We failed to prevent the armed conflict seething in Cameroon today, in Anglophone Cameroon or what was British Southern Cameroons in colonial times, or West Cameroon during the early years of Cameroon’s history as an “independent” country. We the Kamerunists, otherwise called the union-nationalists of Cameroon(heirs of the historic UPC and KNDP/OK that fought for and realized Cameroon’s independence and reunification through the 1961 plebiscite), failed in our civic-nationalist struggle to kick the French-imposed system of looters and mercenaries ( kleptomaniac fascists per se) out of power in time to realize the century-old dream of “THE NEW CAMEROON”, and in time to undercut the heirs of those who were against reunification from saying that “Look, reunification was a bad idea.”
The truth is that the current government, the Biya regime and the system or political establishment as a whole never cherished the civic-nationalist goals of reunification and independence that the overwhelming majority of our forebears fought and died for, as well as campaigned and voted for in the 1961 plebiscite. That is why the French-imposed system pushed Anglophone Cameroon to the wall, thereby giving the heirs of those who voted against reunification the upper hand to stand as the champion of the cause for the rights of the peoples of Anglophone Cameroon (the former West Cameroon or the former British Southern Cameroons before that).
Today, these two forces (the government/establishment/French-imposed system and the separatists/secessionists) that have always been a minority in Cameroon’s traumatic history are fighting each other, giving each other relevance---one , falsely as the force trying to keep Cameroon together, while the other sadly as the force to take Anglophone Cameroon away to a future that in reality is Impossible. Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority of Cameroonians who decry their activities are helpless as they drag Cameroon into the abyss, making each other relevant in a fight that the powers that be wish for Cameroon and Cameroonians, a people who defied the stereotypes about Africans as a heavily-divided race incapable of tapping into their mutually compatible strengths and opportunities, so as to come together and become a powerful, united, free, prosperous and defensible force. The powers that be would like to say about the peoples of Cameroon: “Look, they are not any different from other Africans. They too are self-destructive; they too are incapable of advancing humanity…the process of their social-engineering is complete; they are fully ready to serve the purpose we had for them…”
The Biya regime, the French-imposed system that has deprived Cameroonians of a say and a voice in charting their destiny must desist from carrying out another election masquerade until at least 80% of the voting age population in all the provinces are registered, until the process of dialogue and reconciliation is ongoing and until the framework of the “New Cameroon” is in place.
The vision of a “New Cameroon” that would be the nucleus of the future “United Africa” must not be allowed to be killed by those who never cherished it, for the sake of our children, for Africa and for humanity. For the "NEW CAMEROON" to be realized, the Kamerunists (union-nationalists), the country's civic-nationalists or those who cherish Cameroon or the original Cameroonian dream must step forward and start the process that would confine the Ahidjo-Biya legacies and the French-imposed system to the dustbin of history, ensure that Cameroon does not disintegrate. The process would provide the people with a federal, democratic, representative and just system that would not only ensure prosperity and dignity for all its citizens, but that would realize the objectives of reunification as espoused by those who fought, died, campaigned and voted for Cameroon's reunification and independence.
Janvier Tchouteu April 01, 2018
