Dibussi Tande: Scribbles from the Den

The Electoral Process in Cameroon: What Are the Lessons Learned?

Remarks by [US] Ambassador Robert P. Jackson at the Civil Society Post-Election Roundtable

"Democracy cannot exist in theory if it does not exist in practice.  It cannot exist on paper if it does not exist on the streets.  As I have said on several occasions, we cannot wait until the conditions for democracy are perfect before we start exercising our democratic rights.  We must create conditions for democracy by exercising our democratic rights."

Digital Video Conference between Yaounde and Washington, D.C.

Ladies and gentlemen,
Colleagues and friends,

Good afternoon.  It is a pleasure to host this digital video conference and to provide a forum to forge stronger ties between U.S. and Cameroonian civil society organizations.  I hope that through this event today, we can have a frank discussion about the October 9 presidential election -- with the understanding that the election will not be complete until Cameroon’s Supreme Court rules on requests for annulment and announces the results.  Today, we should take a comprehensive look at what lessons we can learn from the process -- not simply examining what ELECAM did well and where it could improve, but what we did well and where we could improve in terms of promoting democracy.  Ultimately, I hope that at the conclusion of today’s session, we will have a better sense of what role we can play in and between elections.

[Interview] Ngu Morcho: "Africa's Time is Now!"

Originally broadcast on the on The Businessmakers Radio Show (Houston)

Summary: He grew up in a Cameroon village in a family that valued education. He attended college in the U.K., and years later earned his M.B.A. at Rice University and studied entrepreneurship, hoping to one day return home to help his fellow Africans. As democracy has grown throughout the country, so has entrepreneurship. And Ngu Morcho is right in the middle of it, through his efforts with the Tagos Group. Russ interviews an entrepreneur with a remarkable story.

 

 

Ngu Morcho from The Businessmakers on Vimeo.

  Click here to listen to podcast

Cote D’Ivoire - Weeping With Every Tear in My Body

A Guest Post by Georges Njamkepo 

"In Mr. Gbagbo's look, I saw the depths of his introspection into the recent history of his country; I saw the regret of having started this conflict, but most of all, for having accepted to play the escalation game which Africans have mastered so well..."

In His Own Words: Christopher Fomunyoh on the Cote d'Ivoire Crisis

By Christopher Fomunyoh, Ph.D

"in looking at political leadership across our continent and its attitude to elections and other democratic practices, one cannot help but lament that, in still too many African countries, our political elites and leaders have no respect for us as citizens and our votes and voices."

Dear readers, with Ivorian emissaries coming to Cameroon and some of our fellow citizens taking public stances on the ongoing political crisis in Cote d'Ivoire, I would like to chime in with a few facts to further enrich the discussion.  I am truly inspired by the in depth analysis of many of our brothers and sisters, although astonished and disappointed by the misguided characterizations of a few others.  I am also hoping that as we debate Cote d'Ivoire this 2010, we think of how we would approach the circumstances should a similar situation arise in our own country in the not-too-distant future.  

Interview : Dibussi Tande on Digital Media & Digital Activism

I was recently interviewed for an article that appeared on our company's news portal. Excerpts:

"I am motivated by the belief that Africa’s problems are not as intractable as they seem, and that Africa is in a perpetual state of take-off due to its largely untapped and/or mismanaged socio-economic and human potential. Digital technology with the unfettered freedom, flexibility and creativity, offers an incredible opportunity to bypass or even leap frog over many of the socio-economic, structural and political hurdles that obstruct Africa’s development." Dibussi Tande

1) How did you become interested in digital activism – and how it pertains to African social advocacy?

ANS: Since my college days in Africa, I’ve always been involved in political and social activism. So the movement towards digital activism was a natural one for me, especially with the emergence of Web 2.0, which offered the possibility of high quality and easy to create user-generated content which activists could use to establish virtual spaces, free from government control, to inform, engage, motivate and mobilize around their specific causes.  This intersection between civil society and the Internet is what has given birth to the Digital Civil Society, which uses the Internet in innovative ways to further the cause of social justice on the continent.

Bill Zimmerman: "Africa is at the cutting edge of mobile technology innovation"

Bill Zimmerman, founder of Limbe Labs, a Limbe-based startup incubator and outsourcing outfit, talks a about a new generation of IT entrepreneurs in Cameroon, the changing African ICT scene and cutting-edge mobile technology innovations from the continent. (Note: The intro is in Dutch but the actual interview in English)

Camerounian Novelist Léonora Miano Blasts Her American Publishers

Originally published on Literary Saloon

Dear the Complete Review,

   Thank you for giving me some space to express myself, and to say why the foreword added to my novel should be removed.

In sub-Saharan Africa, we’re used to be despised by the rest of the world and to be treated as mere animals. I knew, when L’intérieur de la nuit (Dark Heart of the Night) was published, that some would use the novel in order to reinforce their views on Africa and its peoples. Really, I didn’t care and still don’t care about that. What I’m interested in, is the African point of view on the topics I work on. I think we’ve spent too much time hoping for understanding and recognition from people other than ourselves. It’s time we focus on our problems and deal with them, no matter how painful it is. I’m confident in our ability to do so. I’m confident in our desire to no more take lessons in humanity from people who created and used the atomic bomb, and who still have death penalty in their country. Things would be so cool if people could just clean their front door ... 

Chicago 2016: Game Over! (An Insider Account)

By Makuna Tande in Copenhagen

The day started with promise as President Obama touched down in Copenhagen. But I knew the winds were turning.  We had been afraid of Rio’s powerful emotional message. And when the Rio team showed the world the dreaded map showing where the Olympics had held, we knew the game was up.

Makuna Tande with First Lady Michelle Obama in Copenhagen

This time the map was even more telling. On previous stops, only the names of past host cities were on the famous Rio map. The Brazilians took it a step further this time:  A huge graphic depicting the number of times each continent had hosted the games was added. It was too powerful.

U.S. Ambassador Janet E. Garvey: Cameroonians Should Take Ownership of their Country

"For the last several years, the Cameroonian Government has spent less than 75% of the money it has budgeted for investment.  The money is there, the needs exist, so why are these funds not being spent...?"

"The World Bank’s Doing Business report has shown that the business climate in Cameroon has gotten worse over each of the last few years, at the same time that Cameroon’s peers were making tremendous improvements.  This trend cannot be blamed on the economic crisis!"...

"...the biggest obstacle to Cameroon’s development, the biggest obstacle that prevents Cameroon from achieving its full potential, is Cameroonians’ lack of ownership for their own nation, their own government, their own communities."

"I am troubled by the spirit of resignation, almost of despair, that seems to prevail among many of my Cameroonian friends these days."

Literature Apartheid in Cameroon

Patrice Nganang (Translated from French by Emmanuel Ndeh Avwontom) 

“Anglophone writers appear to me akin to the Albatross in Baudelaire’s poetry. The English language that they acquired from their colonial past arms them with broad wings, but the Anglophone issue clips them in their impeding flight.”

An intellectual crime is being committed in our country: that of segregation against Anglophone Cameroon Literature. The crime is unfolding before the very eyes of our national Intellectuals, with our consent as stakeholders and, often spurred by our most respected, yet conniving francophone Intellectuals. Salient in mind are Achille Mbembe’s fumble in an article he published on the Anglophone issue.  The fact, therefore, that a francophone student can complete education, beginning at Nursery school right up to a University degree – twenty years in all – without so much as touching a poetry collection, a work of prose or a drama piece published by an Anglophone writer is illustrative of the magnitude of the literary apartheid which has been used by our educational system to brainwash us.

In His Own Words: Biyiti Essam Explains How State Funds Ended Up in His Personal Bank Account

"I was expecting a treasury check [from the Minister of Finance]... instead, three brawny fellows came into my office with a bag containing 250 millions Fcfa... Tell me, where should I have kept this money? You wanted me to keep the money in my home… for them to to come and knock off my kids before stealing the money?" Biyiti Essam

Jean-Pierre Biyiti bi Essam, Cameroon’s Minister of Communications and government spokesperson (whom his detractors like to refer to as "petit Goebbels") is in hot water. He is accused of diverting 140 million Fcfa, meant to prepare for the Pope’s visit, into his private bank account. There are also questions about the 70 million Fcfa paid to a Gabonese firm to supply four giant screens used during the Pope’s mass in Yaounde. The Minister has already appeared before the state prosecutor. Here are excerpts [in English] of an interview which he gave to the French language daily Le Messager (my translation).

This interview gives us a rare first-hand insight into how government works (or does not work) in Cameroon. Even more significant than the issue of embezzlement, is the realization that neither Cameroon nor the entire CEMAC region seem to have modern financial mechanisms to facilitate the transfer of funds within the country or the entire region - bags and bouncers play the role usually reserved for financial institutions… This story would have been quite hilarious had the stakes not been so high…

Julio Barthson in his Own Words: On the Campaign Trail for Barack Obama

In 1992, he was a valiant foot soldier for the Union for Change movement which nearly brought down the Biya regime. 16 years later, Nfor Julio Barthson, former reporter for Challenge Hebdo and La Nouvelle Expression, and former Managing Editor for Cameroon Post, reminisces about his experiences as a campaigner for Barack Obama.

  I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for having worked so hard to bring change to our great country. I am so honored to be have been one of yours; I am blessed to be called one Obama Soldier among Millions like you. Thanks for anyone who supported our strategy at the Real-Time Obama Active Response (ROAR). As I prepare to deploy overseas on another active duty tour in January, I would like to share a few words from my blog with you.

I met some of the most wonderful people in America thanks to Barack Obama's campaign. I will never forget.

Serge Fosso: Why I was Kicked Off a Brussels Airlines Flight To Douala

"I am still very angry as I think of my daughter for whom I had exceptionally taken this vacation... I was treated with contempt and brutalized just because for one moment, I was the voice of a misfortune which did not have a voice; because I had come to the aid of a human being who was being ill-treated and needed help."

On March 27, 136 Nigerian passengers were ordered off a British Airways flight to Lagos after they complained about the brutal treatment of a man who was being deported to Nigeria. One of the passengers, Ayodeji Omotade, whom police considered the ringleader of the protest movement, was arrested, abandoned at the airport and banned from flying on British Airways.  One momth later, the outrage over this incident is still growing.

Last week, Nigerian President Yar’dua launched an investigation into the incident. Nigeria’s foreign Minister also met with the British high commissioner in Abuja to inform him in no uncertain terms that Nigeria “would not tolerate the inhuman treatment of any Nigerian for any reason, even when there are allegations of criminal activities” and that “Nigerians must be treated with dignity within and outside the shores of the country.”

In their Own Words - An interview with Dibussi Tande

Originally Published in Success Story E-Magazine no 006, February 2008

In this major interview with Success Story E-Magazine, Dibussi Tande talks about a variety of hot-button issues including:

• The role of the Diaspora in national development
• The role of political parties in the political process in Cameroon
• The fallout from Cameroon's outdated and colonial educational system
• The state of Anglophone Literature today
• What the future holds for Cameroon's youth
• The link between good governance, democracy and sustainable development
• The risks and possibilities of the “bushfaller” phenomenon, etc.

Excerpts:

Cameroon: The United States Against Scrapping Presidential Term Limits

Excerpts of US Ambassador Janet E. Garvey's "Super Tuesday" speech

We have consistently spoken out against changing executive term limits in other countries, such as in Nigeria, and we would recommend against an effort to amend the constitution when such a move could be perceived as being for the benefit of one individual or group.

Cameroon has made many positive changes in the past decade. You should be proud of your press freedoms, religious tolerance and improvements in human rights. The 2006 Criminal Procedure Code was a major step forward. Cameroon’s role in supporting international peacekeeping, in combating wildlife trafficking, and in hosting refugees shows an ability to adapt positively to a changing world environment. I would like to acknowledge my government’s appreciation for the excellent support we have received from the Government of Cameroon in evacuating our Embassy personnel from Chad this week – it underscores our long and broad-based friendship.

Peace Corps Volunteers: Too Many Innocents Abroad

By Robert L. Strauss - Former Cameroon Peace Corps Director (Originally published in the New York Times)

"The Peace Corps has long shipped out well-meaning young people possessing little more than good intentions and a college diploma... In Cameroon, we had many volunteers sent to serve in the agriculture program whose only experience was puttering around in their mom and dad’s backyard during high school."

THE Peace Corps recently began a laudable initiative to increase the number of volunteers who are 50 and older. As the Peace Corps’ country director in Cameroon from 2002 until last February, I observed how many older volunteers brought something to their service that most young volunteers could not: extensive professional and life experience and the ability to mentor younger volunteers.

However, even if the Peace Corps reaches its goal of having 15 percent of its volunteers over 50, the overwhelming majority will remain recently minted college graduates. And too often these young volunteers lack the maturity and professional experience to be effective development workers in the 21st century.

In their Own Words: Franz Fanon on the Assassination of Felix Moumié

Tomorrow, November 3, 2007, marks the 47th anniversary of the death of Cameroonian nationalist leader, Felix Moumié. In this posting, we relive that tragic event through the eyes of Franz Fanon (picture), the famous Caribbean essayist, psychoanalyst, and revolutionary who fought alongside the FLN in the Algerian war of independence, and whose writings inspired African anti-colonial liberation movements in the 1950s and 60s:

Moumié. On September 30th [1960] we met on the Accra airfield. He was going to Geneva for some very important meetings. In three months, he told us, we would witness a mass ebbing of colonialism in Cameroon.

Excerpts of President Biya's Interview on France 24

Click here for President Biya's interview in English

During his recent visit to Paris, the usually media-shy Paul Biya gave a rare 40-minute interview to the French international cable network France 24. He discussed a wide range of issues from the 2011 elections, to his relations with opposition leader John Fru Ndi, corruption, his successor, and the repatriation of the corpse of former President Ahmadou Ahidjo who is buried in Dakar, Senegal.

The interview which was conducted by Ulysse Gosset was broadcast this evening on Le Talk De Paris. Viewers and interested parties around the world had the opportunity to send in their questions prior to the interview.

This was President Biya's first interview in France since his stormy 1990 interview with the late Yves Mourousi on Radio Monte Carlo.

Here are choice excerpts from the interview (my unofficial translation):

In His Own Words: Revisiting Nicholas Sarkozy's University of Dakar Speech

Excerpts from speech by Nicholas Sarkozy, given at the University of Dakar, Senegal on July 26, 2007.

The speech given by French President Nicolas Sarkozy at the University of Dakar on July 26, 2007 is arguably one of the most talked-about and most controversial speeches in recent times; one that has generated - and is still generating - tons of reactions from across the world, particularly from Africa. Although excerpts of the speech have appeared in many publications and websites, it has been quite difficult getting a full transcript of the speech in English. A good samaritan recently directed me to an unofficial version of the speech in English. Find below sections of the Dakar speech that generated most of the controversy. (Subtitles are mine).

The excerpts are followed by links to rebuttals by Achille Mbembe, a Cameroonian Professor of History at the University of Witswatesrand in South Africa, which have also generated widespread debate in Africanist circles.

George Ayittey: Cheetahs vs. Hippos for Africa's Future

"This grab-you-by-the-throat speech by Ghanaian economist George Ayittey unleashes an almost breathtaking torrent of controlled anger toward corrupt leaders and the complacency that allows them to thrive. These "Hippos" (lazy, slow, ornery) have ruined postcolonial Africa, he says. Why, then, does he remain optimistic? Because of the young, agile "Cheetah Generation," a "new breed of Africans" taking their futures into their own hands."