Editorial

It is ridiculous that some Southern Cameroonians, including the likes of brother ERIC CHINJE, think that we can continue to live in union with LRC in some form of FEDERALISM. This sounds to me like saying that Satan and God can figure out and arrangement to live together in heaven or that French and British people who are both european citizens, can form a federation and live together as one entity ! The recent exit of Britain from the European union is telling. I want to ask these advocates of federalism the following questions:

- How many times did Ahidjo or Biya ever receive Foncha, Muna, Fonka Shang when they were 2nd personalities of the Republic ?
- How many times has Biya received HRH Fon Angwafor who is 1st Vice President of the CPDM to discuss party issues or state issues, even in these times that anglophones are crying out loud against marginalisation?
- How many times has Biya visited Bamenda that he declared in 1985 to be his 2nd home ?
- How many of the so called " grands projets " that Mr Biya hopes will take his country LRC to emergence in 2035 are in Southern Cameroons?
- How come Biya announced the construction of the Limbe deep seaport since 1998 but abandoned that project in favour of Kribi ?
- Do you know Zacheus Fornjindam (son of Southern Cameroons ) was imprisoned on trumped up charges of embezzlement of 80 millions, then sentenced to life imprisonment, just because he was about to complete the ship yard ( chantier naval ) in Limbe that would have been repairing the biggest ships on the Atlantic coast and boosting the economy of Southern Cameroons ?
- Do you know that the same Fornjindam accused of embezzling 80 millions and sentenced to life jail, left 40 billions in the coffers of chantier naval Douala which were rapidly squandered by his beti successor Antoine Bikoro but never charged of any embezzlement and it is government now paying the salaries of the largely beti workers of that structure ?
- Have you ever seen francophones, even their so called intellectuals, rise up in solidarity with anglophones any time anglophones have been humiliated with insults such as: enemis dans la maison, biafrais, anglofous, les gens qui refechis a gauche, les bamendas esclaves, les vaut riens, etc. And recently Biya himself insulted us as " les extremistes ". You can continue the list. Instead, they team up to defend and make understand that it is all our fault and we deserve such insults !

In 1990, a CTV/CRTV colleague and collaborator of our brother Eric Chinje by name ZACHARIE NGNIMAN, wrongfully and shamelessly accused anglophone students of the then University of Yaounde of having sang the Nigerian national anthem on campus and referred to them as traitors of the nation. The anglophones in Yaounde in particular were arrested and tortured, many killed and dumped in unknown mass graves and not even Eric Chinje had the courage to raise his finger against these lies that exposed anglophones to genocide. On the contrary ZACHARIE NGNIMAN was later promoted to member of parliament while his boss Eric Chinje who himself suffered huge humiliations in CTV/CRTV resigned to look for solace out of the country.

It puzzles me that some Southern Cameroonians still think that some new breed of francophones will crop up and start considering Southern Cameroonians as their equals. It will never happen. Humiliating and wiping out the anglophone existence is a policy that is deeply rooted in the psyche of francophones.

They have created the common law departments in the francophone universities with the intention to teach common law to francophones, then admit them into ENAM, train them as common law magistrates, post them to courts in Southern Cameroons to continue the control of our judicial system with the argument that they understand common law. How can we be so blind not to see the writing on the wall ? These people have corruption, dishonesty, cheating, brutality, mischief, subjugation and exploitation as their way of live !

I have lived with Francophones for 40 years and it is clear to every generation of them that anglophones can never have the same rights like them in " their country " because we were the ones who begged to join them in 1961. Reason why they accept that Fru Ndi won the 1992 presidential elections but understand that Biya was right to seize the victory because he could not allow a foreigner to rule their country. Tell francophones as a whole that the post of Head of State of LRC should rotate between anglophones and francophones. The answer is an out right no and their argument is that anglophones are a minority and cannot expect to rule the francophone majority for what ever reason. After all to them, we were the ones who begged to join them in 1961 and so we must accept what ever treatment they mete on us.

In the face of all these humiliations and subjugation, and the established treachery that characterises the francophone way of life, accepting federalism with LRC will be accepting to enslave ourselves and future generations of Southern Cameroonian for eternity. God has ordained our liberation now like he liberated the children of Israel from Egypt and we must take it now or forget about it for ever. It is either total independence or it is slavery for ever ! We must continue to pay any price till we restore our independence and free ourselves and children from slavery under LRC.

WELCOME AND LONG LIFE THE INDEPENDENT STATE OF SOUTHERN CAMEROONS ( AMBAZONIA ).

DISCLAIMER: Statements and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author, and do not reflect in any way those of cameroon-concord.com

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Rita Akana

26.Apr.2017

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When historians become silent and blind when historical facts are distorted and disgorged, then know that intellectual dishonesty is flooding and rocking that nation.

How can a Country's history be so muddied, ruffed and truncated like that of Cameroon?

How can one nation be having three flags and as many Constitutions that concurrently run like Cameroon?

I have asked to know which of these flags represents who and that question keeps slipping and skipping off my Mind unanswered.

From memory I know and can recollect that French Cameroon had their political independence from France in 1960 with a piece of cloth having Green,Red and Yellow stripes without anY uniqueness! Reluctantly they accepted the erstwhile Southern Cameroon,so that the new nation be established called the Federal Republic of Cameroon, that same piece of cloth was rammed down the gullible and bellitician John Ngu Foncha and it now had two golden stars on the green stripe. As if that was never enough the French scheme to Francophonize the Anglophones was and became an agenda.

Then came 1984 when by the stroke of the presidential golden pen the name of the nation once more was changed as it was changed from the Federal Republic of Cameroon to the the United Republic and then to la Republique du Cameroun.

What a deception and what a fraud or fraudulent way to manipulate public opinion and gradually erase a people's identity and uniqueness?

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Ndim Bernard

24.Apr.2017

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1) The more they call us Extremists , Terrorists the more we dig in to discover who we really are . And thanks to the Assimilation , we now understand perfectly our history , culture and who we really are .
2) The unity slogan of " cameroon is one and indivisible" has provoked us to understand better that there is no smoke without fire given room for research to know how that so loud unity came fruition . Now we understand we were an Independent State .
3) By disconnecting the Internet , we have learnt  a lesson of self-sustainance . Not even the disconnection of water , electricity would mean anything anymore to us.
4) For soldiers to display their tiny muscles and armoury to an unarmed People , we have only been empowered to fight on .
Just one southern cameroonian is capable of taking on five of La Republique's scouts .
You dare ? Lets go . One on One .
5) The lies that have been broadcasted on crtv has only made the southern Cameroonian believe that a chinese language tv/radio could even be more distracting than watching news or listening to crtv .
6) The more our children , fathers , mothers , Leaders are captured ,  tortured , gives us the bile and venom to be transformed leaders , fighters and guerrillas in our own right to defend ourselves and our loved ones . The "ready to die attitude" has been injected into system- dna .
Now that we know who we really are , and fully aware we cohabited with a disguised backstabber , wisdom has superseded mere knowledge .
Thanks to La Republique , we now understand that our fate lies in our own hands and noone else .
We can see clearly now the throughway to the Independence of Southern Cameroon thanks to the good work of La Republique Du Cameroun.

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Rita Akana

22.Apr.2017

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 Members of Parliament of Southern Cameroons extraction and to a certain extent the Senators (because they are elected by indirect suffrage, while others are appointed outright) have in recent days been subject of so much talk and even angry debates. A good lot of them have been called and insulted, others bullied and yet a sound number threatened to stand with their constituents. This far, not a single one of them has promised to resign from the Parliament of La République du Cameroun. Two things must be standing in the way of the desired objective; either the approach is wrong, or the ‘representatives’ of the people have closed their eyes to the sufferings of the masses and their hearts to their own consciences.

Several definitions of conscience abound, given the important role conscience plays in key decision-making, particularly when it concerns the scourge of humanity. This of course, concerns only those people who still have consciences; and we at The Times Journal are convinced that a majority of our Parliamentarians still have this vital part of the human being. The importance of having a conscience can be easily deciphered from this definition offered to us by H.L Mencken; “Conscience is the inner voice that warns us somebody may be looking”.

John Calvin extends Mencken’s thought, adding that; “The torture of a bad conscience is the hell of a living soul”. This contribution only goes to tell us that conscience is so important in all we do. He who decides to ignore his or her conscience at a critical moment like this one may truly miss the point in life not only for themselves, but for generations of their descendants. This is so because at a certain age, those who reason well will understand that their future is in the past, while the present should serve to prepare a better future for their children and grandchildren.

Some of the biggest figures in history remind us that no matter how great you think you are, no matter how big you imagine yourself to be and no matter how seemingly secure your standing is, the conscience call remains too paramount. Just listen to Mahatma Gandhi; “The only tyrant I accept in this world is the ‘still small voice’ within me. And even though I have to face the prospect of being a minority of one, I humbly believe I have the courage to be in such a hopeless minority”.

Where Gandhi speaks with caution, Martin Luther blows the abscess open when he insists that; “It is neither right nor safe to go against my conscience”. This brings us to the fundamental question as to when we know someone has ever had or still has a conscience. This is where Gaylord Nelson sails in by establishing in an unambiguous manner that; “The ultimate test of a man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard”.
Thus, going from Jim Carroll’s point of view that “Conscience is no more than the dead speaking to us”, we are praying our Parliamentarians not to look so much at the comfort of their offices, the beggarly allowances they are still earning and the empty promises being made to them of a better treatment were they to go all the way and let their people down. A good lot of them, we are told, are being reminded that the people never elected them in the first place; they are being told that the same way they were ‘rigged’ into the Glass Building, shall be the same way they could be taken back to Yaounde in 2018 if they continue cooperating.

Our dear Parliamentarians, true representatives of the people do not give in to blackmail, rather they blackmail in the name of their constituents, they do healthy blackmail in order to attract measures that improve the livelihoods of the people they represent. That is why Martin Luther King Jr. tells us all that; “There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right”.

Currently, there is so much talk of our Parliamentarians not being themselves, particularly those of the ruling CPDM Party. There is a school of thought promoting the idea that they are enslaved to the regime and the Head of State, Paul Biya to the point they can no longer reason for themselves. We are told regime barons are constantly telling them to listen to their consciences and not to betray the one man who made them- Paul Biya. It is even rumoured that they are being told that betrayal is common for men with no conscience.

What this means is that our Parliamentarians are today faced with ‘the hard right and the easy wrong’. The easy wrong would be to stand with the oppressor and send a clear message to their constituents that they represent only the Head of State and his interests in Parliament. If they choose the hard right, they shall regain a crucial kind of freedom they lost by belonging to the system. That freedom is found in this beautiful line by John Milton Areopagitica; “Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties”.

The notion that our Parliamentarians in huge numbers do not own themselves, not even their very hearts and consciences could be so frightening if it turned out to be true, although for the most part, and over the years, their actions seem to suggest so. In this light, they need to learn from Jon Katz when he says; “The immature conscience is not its own master. It simply parrots the decisions of others. It does not make judgments of its own; it merely conforms to the judgments of others. That is not real freedom, and it makes true love impossible, for if we are to love truly and freely, we must be able to give something that is truly our own to another. If our heart does not belong to us...how can we give it to another?”

This editorial may anger some of our Parliamentarians who out of mere pride, would want to contend that they indeed own their hearts and consciences; they would simply be losing the point. The honest truth is that they need freedom even more than the common man in the Southern Cameroons, because in the eyes of others in the Anglo-Saxon world, they are not so different from a Clarke. That is why this time is the best for them to act, to arrest that much needed freedom, in fact to stand and be counted.
Pride comes before a fall and this is time to shun pride, because as C.G Jung points out; “Through pride we are ever deceiving ourselves. But deep down below the surface of the average conscience a still, small voice says to us, something is out of tune”. This is the ripe moment for our dear Parliamentarians to handle “something” that is out of tune, and do what history is expecting of them, do what they people are expecting of them, do what their children, grandchildren and generations upon generations of Southern Cameroonians will live to remember them for.

Dear Parliamentarians, permit us to share with you this word of wisdom from Edmond Rostand; “I have a different idea of elegance. I don’t dress like a fop, it’s true, but my moral grooming is impeccable. I never appear in public with a soiled conscience, a tarnished honour, threadbare scruples, or an insult that I haven’t washed away. I’m always immaculately clean, adorned with independence and frankness. I may not cut a stylish figure, but I hold my soul erect. I wear my deeds as ribbons, my wit is sharper than the finest moustache, and when I walk among men I make truths ring like spurs”.

This is the time to think right; it is the time to tell detractors that you are with your people and shall forever be with them. Do not therefore let anyone end up taking credit that they forced you to do what you have known all along that it was right to do.

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John Mbah Akuroh I The Times Journal

11.Apr.2017

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If you need peace, then you must practice justice, if not yours will be the kingdom of trouble and instability. This aptly applies to Cameroon where the Anglophone problem has shattered the country’s image as an oasis of peace in a desert of chaos. Over the last six months, Cameroon has been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. The English-speaking part of the country has been dealing with marginalization for more than five decades and they want this to stop. All attempts by the English-speaking minority to draw the political elite’s attention to this worrying situation has always met with tricks and intimidation. Over the years, the Yaoundé government has succeeded to manufacture its own Anglophone leaders and this Anglophone political elite has always had its work cut out for it – sedate its people with vain promises, food and drinks so as to keep them in check.  The elite has been very effective, using all means, including unfulfilled promises and, where necessary, employ threats of imprisonment or death for those who dare speak out about the pain and suffering marginalization is inflicting on the peace-loving people of West Cameroon.

But after fifty-six years, West Cameroonians feel it is time to break the chains of silence and face a monster that has been spreading death and destruction in a region that holds more than 60% of the country’s wealth. Cameroon’s oil and gold fields are lodged in the country’s south-west region, precisely in Ndian division, where poverty; that which dehumanizes and robs people of their dignity, has taken root. While the country’s refinery may be located in Limbe, Anglophone Cameroon’s coastal city, the oil fields are in the Rio Del Rey estuary in Ndian Division, while localities around Mbonge in the same division are home to large gold deposits. Manyu Division, which is also in the south-west region, is blessed with huge and dense equatorial forests that have been hiding some of the finest timber on the continent, but the people of this region have been sorry spectators of the destruction that is taking place in their forests, as this ageless timber makes its way to East Cameroon.

Oil experts hold that Manyu Division could be sitting on huge oil deposits and there are efforts underway to find out if this region with some of the finest minds in the country could be hiding wealth that can transform the entire country if equitably shared. The region’s sub-soil is throwing up riches that only go to enrich others while the locals watch helplessly from a distance as others feed fat from their manna. It is not in error that many south-westerners have been calling for Canadian-style federalism that will ensure that the government sets up an equalization fund to hold all revenues from natural resources. These revenues will be shared equitably among the different regions of the country for development purposes as practiced by successive Canadian governments which have generated wealth for their people and made Canada the envy of the world. Canada’s Alberta oil sands have brought trillions of dollars to the country’s coffers and the prudent management of the country has brought free education and health care to all the citizens of this great nation. Anglophones are looking forward to the day Canadian federalism will become a reality in their own country. It will be a welcome relief as they will no longer be ruled by French-speaking administrative officers and be taught by Francophone teachers whose knowledge of English is, at best, rudimentary.

However, the rich sub-soil alone did not trigger the current confrontation between the government and the Anglophone minority that is determined to put an end to five decades of contempt and disrespect. Anglophone lawyers who triggered the strike have been vocal about their fate. The government’s error of judgment stemming from transferring Francophone magistrates and judges to Anglophone courts has, on many occasions, led to a clear travesty of justice, with many innocent Anglophones serving long jail terms just because the judges cannot understand English. It has never been the government’s policy to appoint interpreters in court as practiced in Canada, a country that has the same official languages as Cameroon and similar problems. While many Anglophones can speak English and French, their knowledge of legal jargons leaves much to be desired and this has been the root cause of the bitterness against a government they claim is not people-centered.

The frustrations also stem from the fact that Anglophones have, for a very long time, been excluded, either by error or by design, from the School of Magistracy and Administration (ENAM), the institution that trains administrative officers and magistrates, for more than five decades. The military brass is purely francophone and the cabinet which comprises thirty-nine ministers only has one Anglophone minister. Anglophones believe that right from the beginning of this “lopsided relationship”, they have always been considered as the inferior party, with Francophones being the “primus inter peres”. Many Anglophones clearly say they are sick and tired of playing second fiddle to Francophones whose perspective of life is very much driven by short-term thinking and egoism. Abnegation, according to many Anglophones, is a foreign concept to Francophone Cameroonians who, Anglophones claim, have played a key role in bringing the economy of this once prosperous nation to its knees. Anglophones argue that Francophones are naturally submissive, but quietly dictatorial, and would not question anything for fear of acting against constituted authority. They also contend that they are more participatory in their approach to life and their education pushes them into questioning everything except the existence of God. The Anglophone approach is completely at variance with Francophone thinking which has, over the last fifty years, brought a lot of pain and suffering to Anglophones who voluntarily opted to be part of a marriage they thought was predicated on justice, trust and love of fatherland.

Five decades after the UN-staged reunification, the frustrations of the English-speaking minority have boiled over and Anglophones are seeking a way out of this relationship. The strikes that started in October 2016 were aimed at drawing the government’s attention to the angst that has been inhabiting the Anglophone mind. But faithful to its intimidation strategy, the government dispatched its armed forces – known today by Anglophones as “Harm Forces” due to their killing and maiming of innocent civilians, to quash the strikes and send home a strong message to all those who thought they could change the status quo. The military action succeeded, unfortunately, not to intimidate Anglophones, but to radicalize the already frustrated Anglophones who are determined to put an end to the status quo ante, something that is actually coming to pass as the government is bending over backwards to appease Anglophones through a series of measures that some hold are coming too late. Anglophones hold that their call for federalism has been upgraded to the restoration of statehood and discussing federalism is like solving the wrong problem. Today, the country is divided along linguistic lines and the consequences of this conflict go well beyond what many observers had predicted.

When Cameroon’s English-speaking minority decided to challenge the government, many around the world thought the flaring of tempers would not last for more than a week. To many, it was an exercise in failure as the country’s government is noted for its uncanny ways of eradicating dissent and opposition. Intimidation laced with money has always been the government’s method of choice and this has always worked like a charm, especially among Francophones who, many Anglophones consider to be gullible and malleable. Today, the government is at its wit’s end as Anglophones have continued to resist all attempts by the government to break the back of a revolt that has been largely peaceful and without clear leaders. The country has been split and Anglophones are no longer as patriotic as they used to be. Even the Nations Cup could not unite this country whose love for football used to be unquestionable. The patriotism deficit among Anglophones is one poison that is gradually destroying many government officials and they fear that if much is not done to check this unfortunate trend, future generations will continue to question the unity and indivisibility of this country that was designed to be a model on the continent.

This patriotism deficit has been made all the more worse by the disconnection of the Internet in West Cameroon because of the strikes. Many Anglophones hold that this is testimony to the government’s determination to roll them back into the dark ages. They claim that it is their constitutional right to express their frustration with a political system that has been preying on its own citizens. They point to the backwardness of the Anglophone region as proof of the marginalization they have been complaining about. They also hold that strikes organized by Francophone medical staff and teachers in recent weeks had not attracted the type of brutality that had been unleashed on Anglophones. They contend that Anglophone lives do not matter to the government as many Anglophones have been killed and others arrested and taken to Yaoundé without any charges laid against them. This has made the divide a lot trickier than the government had thought.

Today, schools are still closed in both Anglophone regions of the country and it is clear that a blank year is staring both the students and government in the face. The government has been beaten hollow in a conflict that is clearly unconventional. Its ability to manufacture leaders for the people has been tested and it has proven to be wanting. Despite calls by the government for students to go back to school, many Anglophone students are refusing to return to school, with many clearly sympathizing with their striking parents who have been victims of a system that has robbed them of their dignity and jailed them in poverty. They argue that if the government really wants things to return to normal, it must release theirs leaders and fellow West Cameroonians, especially Buea University students, who are in jail for no justified reason.

They are also urging the government to create a commission of inquiry to investigate the killings that have radicalized Anglophones. They want the Internet to be restored as it is a great learning tool that will also enable them to conduct research and stay in touch with their families and friends. They argue that the disconnection of the Internet has caused many Anglophones to lose their jobs. Most of the software development firms that were headquartered in Buea, the south-west regional capital, have simply relocated and this has killed Silicon Mountain, the software hub modeled on America’s Silicon Valley.

But of all the consequences of the conflict that will not go away anytime soon is the destruction that it has wreaked on the economy. Cameroon’s economy has been in a free fall for many decades. Poor management and corruption have pushed this once prosperous economy to the brink. With Cameroon considered today as a fragile country, many investors, especially rich members of the Cameroon Diaspora, hold that it will be too much of a risk to invest in a country where civil liberties are overtly violated and dissent openly crushed. Many investors have faith in the country’s bilingual nature and the effectiveness of its human resources, but they have doubts about the country’s future stability. The Anglophone problem is just one of the many issues facing the government and it is clearly the tip of the iceberg.

Though Francophones have all along been docile and indifferent to the sorry plight of the Anglophone minority, their grumbling has in recent times become loud and clear, and this is causing government officials to lose sleep. The Anglophone virus is gradually spreading and Francophones seem to be finding their voices. Many Francophones are poor and the unemployment rate among them is so high that their frustration could be clearly seen on their faces.  High unemployment, poor healthcare, lack of proper infrastructure, scandals in FECAFOOT (FECAFOOD as Anglophones call it) and corruption in the civil service are gradually converging to produce the perfect storm that may be very hard to stem. If the country’s government wants to avert a future political catastrophe, it must change the way it does business. Years of frustration are gradually pushing the Francophone majority, considered by Anglophones as the “junk majority”, into departing from its traditional way of thinking. This implies calling the management ability of their leaders into question and holding them accountable.

The cost of many years of marginalization is turning out to be very high. Cameroonians have become very unpatriotic, their faith in their systems and government has been diluted by corruption, unemployment and mismanagement. Anglophones have challenged the system and they have proven that they are capable of engineering change in a country that was once thought to be unchangeable. Cabinet ministers have been cut down to normal human proportions and the ever-increasing impact of the crisis is causing many talented and educated Cameroonians to leave the country. Many Anglophones hold that their future lies somewhere else and this has triggered a new wave of brain drain that will surely hurt the country’s economy. Those who are abroad have decided to settle wherever they are, as they are scared of being arrested for their participation in the Anglophone rebellion that has left many parts of West Cameroon without police and administrative officers.

If this conflict and its impact have to be checked, the government has to change its tactics. It must understand that dialogue, indeed genuine dialogue, is an idea whose time has come. It must learn how to listen to the people. It must understand that for the country to be truly united and indivisible, it must come up with participatory approaches that will enable every Cameroon to take ownership of any and every decision that the government takes. It must stop the arbitrary arrests and must also restore the Internet. The government must also understand that the Anglophone problem is simply the tip of the iceberg and its failure to find peaceful and lasting solutions might bring the entire iceberg to the surface.

Cameroon is a key player in the Central African sub-region. It is considered as the engine of the sub-region and any problem that destabilizes Cameroon will automatically create ripple effects that will reach the other fragile countries that surround it. If the sub-region has to be spared another major man-made catastrophe, then wisdom must prevail in Cameroon. Anglophone leaders, the real leaders, most of whom are in jail, must be released and brought to the negotiating table so that together with the government, a new future can be designed for the country.

The cost of conflict is always high and conflict does not benefit anybody. The government has to play its part and it must start listening to its citizens. It must stop muzzling up its citizens so that new and innovative ideas can flourish in the country. No nation has ever attained its full development potential without its citizens being able to express their minds. If Cameroon has to check the cost of this conflict, government authorities must embrace new ways. They must acknowledge that old ways have failed.  The government must also understand that those who make peaceful change impossible, only make violent change inevitable. The world is watching and anything short of a peaceful resolution will be unwelcome.

Joachim Arrey.

About the Author: The author of this piece has served as the executive director of the Global Think-Tank for Africa, a Canada-based public relations outfit that provides image-related advice to African governments. He has published extensively on Cameroon’s political and economic development, especially in the early 90s when the wind of change was blowing across the continent. He has also served as a translator, technical writer, journalist and editor for several international organizations and corporations across the globe. He studied communication at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom and technical writing in George Brown College, Toronto, Canada. He is also a trained translator and holds a Ph.D.

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Joachim Arrey

11.Apr.2017

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 Several online dictionaries establish that the word “Truth” is a noun, referring to “the quality or state of being true”. Wikipedia elucidates further that: “Truth is most often used to mean being in accord with fact or reality, or fidelity to an original or standard. Truth may also often be used in modern contexts to refer to an idea of ‘truth to self’, or authenticity”.

A lot of us reading this editorial may wonder why The Times Journal has chosen this seemingly uninteresting subject matter at this point in time when everyone is concentrating on key strategies on how Southern Cameroons should become the independent country it was voted at the United Nations to be since April, 1961. Some of us are even holding stones already to throw at the writer for daring to recall that truth ought to be an essential part of this struggle for liberation and greater freedoms for all.

The Times Journal has always been for the truth in every sphere of national life and nothing shall frighten us to think differently now. Let us begin by recalling that the greatest Dictionary of all times, the greatest source of wisdom of all ages, the Bible says some simple but compelling thing about how the truth should contribute in a liberation fight like this one. The Bible says; “And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set thee free".

That message is clear and unambiguous; especially so because our struggle is to lay bare a truth which has been hidden from so many Cameroonians and the rest of the world over the years, until this time that our lawyers and teachers decided to take the bull by the horns so that all may see that Cameroon is a den of discrimination, marginalization, dehumanization, torture and bare-bone repression. We are struggling to let those out there who do not know, to take home the truth that we are a people, that the UN General Assembly voted for our independence in 1961 and that Southern Cameroons has recognized and documented international boundaries.

But we must admit one thing to ourselves; it is not possible and not even conceivable to say you can use falsehood to unveil truth. If we never thought about this, it is time to begin looking at this stark reality in the face, so that we can courageously begin to adjust to embrace the only veritable path that will bring real freedom; truth. Those who fought liberation fights with resounding success before us are still here in their writings to remind us that truth is a huge weapon that devastates the enemy more than anything else.

We all quote and like the venerated Mahamat Gandhi for his achievements that will remain relevant thousands of years from today. Hear what he said about the role of truth in struggles like this one; “Truth never damages a cause that is just”. These eight words are so potent that no one needs to elaborate on them. Perhaps adding another authority, William Faulkner’s view to it would bolster our understanding, he says; “Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion against injustice and lying and greed. If people all over the world…would do this, it would change the earth”.

Since October 2016 when this struggle started, a lot of falsehood has been perpetrated and that has scared a lot of converts and made them opponents of the revolution. It has been so easy to destroy people who look at us in the eyes and tell us that we are wrong by coming up with conspiracy theories to tag them as “agents of La Republique” or “someone who has been bought over with as mission to betray the ‘winning’ struggle”. It is obvious that once you are associated with “La Republique” gimmicks, you immediately become an enemy of the freedom of the people and everyone gets authorized to call you names at will.

Worse, by ignoring the truth, because we want to present to the world at all cost that we are united, that everything is alright even when it isn’t, we have succeeded in creating virtual and android monsters whose inconsistencies we now are afraid to point out because we run the risk of being blocked on ‘hot Facebook pages where things happen’ or we may be called blacklegs and named agents of the enemy. Hypocrisy is now the order of the day and we have seen so-called and sometimes self-styled leaders flicker between the federal option and outright self-determination the same way pop stars change dresses, and no eyebrows raised.

We have gradually created the type of leaders known only in the 17th century; the likes of Pope Pius IX who came up with the Dogma of Papal Infallibility. It stated that; “The Pope in discharge of his duties is infallible”. Now, dear friends, go to Facebook and see how those who dare come up with a truth that everyone knows but is refusing to say is treated; “No please, not here, why don’t you handle this one-on-one, make a call please, we don’t need this here, even if he insulted you, please ignore it because he is too important in this struggle, he is our leader, please let the teachers and lawyers allow these guys to continue the way they are going- they should wait and when things are over they can take back their organization” and the list is long.

It was these kinds of thought that pushed one-time US President Theodore Roosevelt to say; “To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American people”. President Roosevelt was a great man still acknowledged until this day and what he said is what a lot of us reproach of the current regime, but can’t afford to be different.

The message from Rick Riordam is that we need to think and act in a way that honours, not in a way that demeans us. He says; “It takes strength and courage to admit the truth”, so, because a lot of people think it is a weakness to make a turnaround and uphold a truth that holds the potential to save millions of lives, to guarantee a future for millions others counting on our ability to walk them out of slavery and servitude. The kind of fear is so nuclear and better described by Czestaw Mitosz when he says; “In a room where people unanimously maintain a conspiracy of silence, one word of truth sounds like a pistol shot”.

Today, the reality is here; power struggles that ought not be are raging on, Facebook constituencies are creating and dismissing leaders of bodies whose basic texts and functioning they know nothing of, basic principles on the devolution of power in every organization have eluded us and even renowned and sometimes venerated men of law attempt to make us see our organizations that federate other organizations as belonging to single individuals who can suddenly decide that although someone were elected along with them, they can decide to endorse any other persons above them- what a shame!?

By Anglo-Saxon, a lot of people mean integrity; that is why we at The Times Journal buy the view of Barbara De Angelis when she notes “Living with integrity means: Not settling for less than what you know you deserve in your relationships. Asking for what you want and need from others. Speaking your truth, even though it might create conflict or tension. Behaving in ways that are in harmony with your personal values. Making choices based on what you believe, and not what others believe”.

Here, we must regret that at a time things are taking a very determined turn, a lot of us still do not realize that boys have to be separated from men. That is why we still cheer when someone stands and says, on behalf of a body that has from inception stood for non violence, preferring to sell reason and not threats, that; “We are giving Parliamentarians of Southern Cameroons origin one month to resign and return home”, and when asked what he would do if they did not cooperate, he answered without wavering; “We will blackmail and threaten them to cooperate”. That is exactly what President Paul Biya and his men describe as “terrorism”.

At The Times Journal, we know the Southern Cameroonians who conceived this struggle never blackmailed nor threatened anyone to adhere; that is why the truth is urgently needed to rescue the struggle from the hands of opportunists and conspiracy theorists before we start finding it difficult to garner the global support we all need to attain our objective.

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John Mbah Akuroh I The Times Journal

03.Apr.2017

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