Victoria, Buea, Tiko: The 2009 Trilogy of Diaries Part 2

Tiko Wharf in 1930: All Infrastructure has now been destroyed. (Wikipedia Common)

Louis Egbe Mbua

All the stories of football triumph and development in Tiko had been made known to all interested parties through the various media, especially the internet. Last Season’s outstanding achievement of that City’s exploits to top the Cameroon football Premier League Championship was an indication of the potential of that determined City. Although such an achievement came as a surprise to others, those who grew up in that coastal city were not the least surprised.

Football is only next to academics and religion in that city given that it is all played and nurtured at the primary school level at least when I was a boy; and that the first primary schools in Tiko were established by missionaries – Basel Mission School, now known as Presbyterian School Tiko Town; Roman Catholic Mission Boys School, now co-educational; Baptist School Tiko Town; and Our Lady’s Girls School Tiko Town, also now co-educational. The Cameroon Development Corporation also established a School in the Upper Costains CDC Quarters , North of the City: today called Government School Upper Costains; and then there was the Council School Motombolombo, Tiko Town, again now known as Government School Tiko Town. These schools were fierce and highly competitive contestants in both football and academics – football matches between these schools of adolescents were like war – Teachers fell out with themselves, pupils friends became enemies, parents refused to talk to each other; and friends became enemies for a short while as emotions went through the roof. It was clear that at least five students would emerge from these institutions to enter Sasse College each year—a no mean achievement given that that College was and still is the premier institution in Cameroon.

In the 1960s and 1970s, there were no secondary schools in Tiko to supplement the football skills of the youngsters or to absorb the fledgling academic talent of the new hopefuls; thus almost all the home grown players who were recruited from these primary schools at the time: Agbor Hans was only in Class seven and about 13 years of age when he played for CDC Football Club, Tiko against Cameroon National greats, Manga Oungene and Captain Mve. Others that may be named include Emaran and his brother, Mayama. This tradition, I assume continues. So, when I decided to visit Tiko this year, the place I grew up, one was expecting wonders in both social and infrastructural development.

As usual, I stopped at the Likomba Roundabout to socialise as it appears, from my observation, the entire Tiko business community has shifted their locations northwards from the sea coast. I was wondering why such a drastic move was of necessity. At any rate, I had some child hood friends who were passing by and immediately recognised me having a drink – Thank God, I have hardly changed all these years of absence – and came over for a good bonhomie of times past. After the mandatory niceties I began my incisive enquiries as to their well being and the progress of the City as well as the citizens.

“Now, where do you work?” I demanded of one of my childhood friends. He looked at me with bemusement; and replied apparently embarrassed: “I am not in employment”. This was a surprising answer as I am aware that this friend received a good and sound vocational education from the local leading Technical College at Ombe, Tiko; and that his father used to be in senior management with the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC), mostly based in Tiko and Victoria.

Have you applied for work with the CDC? I continued. Well, yes, was his answer. I have applied, went for interviews with the company but never received a reply. So, did you find out what the results were? Did you go to the Head Office at Bota in person? I insistently inquired. He narrated that he had done so; and that he was promised, by the Bota men, a job with one of the factories but again they never came back to him. This is not right; I went on, as you are a Tiko citizen, born here. You have the priority: with your vocational education on your belt. How things have changed, I exclaimed. His face turned downcast, and immediately understood the problem; and so asked no further question on this matter r elating to him. However, I was concerned with one of our senior friends – a showman and professional welder educated at Ombe Technical College and who worked with the CDC in Tiko when I was just turning a teenager -- I had not seen him since arriving Cameroon. So the investigations went in this manner:

“Is Juvet still living in Tiko?” No, he no longer lives here.
It appears he is somewhere in Meanja, near Kumba, they said. Why? There was a serious crisis, they answered. Juvet worked hard and became a senior manager at the Tole Tea Estate and factory just off Buea. Nevertheless, when the CDC who owned Tole Tea Estate, sold the company fraudulently and corruptly, to Mr. Danupolo, he summarily dismissed Juvet without explanation and with no compensation and then replaced him by incompetent people from Douala and other areas of French East Cameroon. Juvet lost his job, his housing benefits and he became extremely desperate. We are not sure right now what he does for a living; or how he maintains his family. He is not the only one who suffered this cruelty. There are so many of them who went to work in Tole, from Tiko, and who are now out of work and desperate because of the corrupt situation of the circumstances.

A few moments later, my attention was drawn to a vehicle entering into the junction of an extremely tattered and overgrown, of what I considered a, path; not because the car was spectacularly attractive but that this was the oldest functioning vehicle I have ever seen in my entire life on this planet. The vehicle appeared to have been cut into two -- in the middle; and then rejoined by welding so that the entire vehicle looked like a sagging beam. Worse still, there was a driver in it! The driver waved to greet us; and we also waved back as is the Tiko tradition of geniality. After he had disappeared into the unkempt path, I decided to find out what this strange incident was all about.

Who is that man? I asked. Oh, he is one of us was the reply. Where is he heading to with that vehicle? Well, he appears to be heading towards the Tiko Airport they answered. I knew that the Tiko Airport was just behind us but not in my wildest dream would have expected myself not to have recognised that particular road leading to the airport -- now a tattered path; and why would such a vehicle be heading to the Tiko Airport in the first place. He is a contractor, they said. What kind of contract does he have with the Airport authorities? He may be supplying chemicals or transporting bananas, they added. I still couldn’t understand the logic. So I went further:

Do people sell bananas and chemicals at the Tiko Airport? My audience looked at me with extreme surprise. As I was about to pose the next question, the roaring sound of a plane was heard – surely a plane was taking off. Within seconds, a bright yellow aircraft was buzzing over our heads. Is that a commercial or a private aircraft, I questioned? No it isn’t; the aircraft is owned by Del Monte Corporation. They use it to spray bananas with insecticide chemicals and other Agricultural aspects. Now I see.

The Airport now is used by multinationals to obtain their profits while the inhabitants are jobless roaming about the streets with no money in their pockets; the evil that men do. As long as they obtain their profits, they could take off and land with their planes, but they have no interest in developing the infrastructure for the people. One now sees why President Chavez of Venezuela is so much against these kinds of exploitative multi-nationals. And furthermore, their actions are an environmental hazard. To be spraying chemicals in a densely populated City is not only unethical but may affect the health of the population. Of recent, a British Company was asked by the courts to pay compensation to victims in Ivory Coast, West Africa, after dumping dangerous chemicals in certain parts of that West African nation causing serious health problems to citizens. Del Monte works hand in gloves with the Cameroon Development Corporation, a company that was created by the British for the social development of the people of Southern Cameroons, while Southern Cameroons was a UN Trust Territory; but this peoples’ company is now working with the Cameroon regime to exploit the land which is legally owned by the indigenes -- the Bakweris. Despite the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights injunctions, they continue to work with the Biya Regime to redistribute lands illegally to administrative frauds; and refusing to pay rents for the exploited lands to the indigenes as prescribed by national and international law. Despite several appeals, they continue to violate the human rights of the natives who are the actual owners of the land. That is the lot of the inhabitants of Tiko and the native Bakweris. This is all happening in the eyes of certain sections of the international community ; and certain Cameroonians from the international community and the regime in Yaoundé; so turn a blind eye as they also may be profiting from this oppressive and corrupt system.

Having seen the deprivation with my own eyes, I never bothered to visit this airport as I had known it when I was a boy; and that it was of international standards, a busy and beautiful Airport that has been neglected to rot while the people wallow in abject poverty. I made a decision instead to visit the old Tiko Town. As we drove through the Long Street, I could noticed few changes as I fully recognised the land mark buildings – Airport Hotel, once the pride of the City—now a shadow of itself, no doubt due, partially, to the destruction of the Airport from whence the Hotel obtained its name, and most of its revenues in long gone golden years. The Junior Service CDC Club is still there, so as the Holforth Stadium where legendary Premiership and other epic football matches used to occur – also a neglected and sorry site. Went passed the CDC Camps, still there.
The Long Street Road to the Town is well tarred and maintained. Reached the Post Office and the Presbyterian Church – where a huge development appears to be in the making; and then met with a shock – the town is so deteriorated that I was lost for words. The roads in the town and the streets have so degenerated that a prose would not do to describe them. The Tiko Market, which used to be one of the renowned business exchange places in West Africa, is now but what one could see as a series of huts with little or no economic activity. As I sat down in front of the old Motor Park and saw the citizens and taxis dodging the accumulated rain water in the deep pot holes that pass for streets, I began to believe that there has been a premeditated plan by the regime in Yaoundé to run down this once thriving city.

"What about the Tiko Wharf?" Well, it no longer functions, I was informed tacitly.
Who exactly is the Mayor of this city? I demanded to know. The Mayor came from America. He brought money and promised to repair this city but so far he has done nothing:

I Devastation

A city was once the envy
Of all the working gentry
Is now like a zombie zone
Of mere man, rock, mud and stone
A depiction of a quiet war:
An impression of true woe
As the impostor the foe
Tries to a spirit destroy
The citizens now a toy
Of all that are a mindful dread:
The roads now a mud to tread
By a people despondent:
Holes the road once resplendent
With life, entrepreneurship,
And industry brought by ships
From all the distant, fine lands
Filled with exotic goods, bands
Of fiery sailors swoop the wharf;
Signs of joy as gentle waves warp
The ship with the gentle breeze
Caressing the quay, a kind of frieze
Of shores that twist to Atlantic
And enter the main Vic’ classic.

The City has gone eerie,
And no signs of the very
Narrow gauge of railways
That had citizens in convoys
Of four to five to and fro
The port to bureaus Afro’
Of now a lost hinterland
Where hovering choppers did land
And the planes droned in turns
In queues to land in turns;
To touch down the hard tarmac
At the Airport’s wonder track.
The track a land of flat runway,
Hardly the end was seen a way
For many a plane overtaken
With now a track so sunken:
The neglect now so all dark
And the Airport now so dank
Arraigned by a single yell’ craft
That Del Monte the company sprout
Use as a means to have a spray
Of a people’s fruits now astray,
And in the hands of outside firms
Who came from different farms?
But now claim the family silver
That took a time to deliver;
And another half a struggle
To get rid of them the tussle.

II Oppression

All they want now is pure love
As were times gone by to solve
The hideous problem a duty
All citizens in empathy,
But now reduced to mere rags
Of poverty, want of beggars;
The bounty of goods to sell
Is but a shadow of a spell
That befits the poltergeist ghost:
Not the kind and happy host.

And a man came from the East;
An idea did him pose a test:
“Here we are as close brothers
And we no longer have bothers
As long as we are free of borders
And a nation united in boulders.”
So the host not a slim ghost
Of now; the proposal in post
That was read in so good a faith
Like the son of the patriarch, Seth:
“Do I have trouble with you?
You are my brother of yore,
But we must renew, each year;
Our faith in the idea of yours”

III Bad Faith and Betrayal

The faith to be was of nought,
The boulders bulldozed the plot
From bad faith and to openly cheat
The denizens from their found treat,
And mortality was the city stalked
As activities les affaires stalled
By the Airport an end closure:
The boulder no shame in feature
But the tax collects the bully
And to hands join in grand folly
Of traitors, agents of oppression
All times a pretence of expression
But behind they do betray
For crumbs no one wants on tray
But a throw they wish of the grapes
That traitors use to spit on graves.

IV Hope

But in this theme is hidden hope
‘Cause people: not in slippery slope
Since they do work in prescience
So win a sort of resilience
That was found in last Apartheid;
Like the one which once existed
Before it was so badly crushed
By the Mighty Boulder plunged
Into the Ocean of Pacific
With the sound so specific
As was heard in fairly far India
Like a Tsunami from Ndian,
In Cameroon’s coast now in chains
By a cheating crowd with no brains.

Victoria, Buea, Tiko: The 2009 Trilogy of Diaries

Buea, Cameroon

Louis Egbe Mbua

Nothing prepared my mind for what stood before me. As the car approached the hill towards Mutengene, my memories went into a vivid reverse: The hills, streams, valleys and lush forests appeared with immediacy but this time a reality seen. We had just left Likomba which I had known to be quiet; with broad roads and housing the Tiko Airport. As there was little time to check on these classics, I adjudged that it would be reasonable to return again at a later date. Although, the same old houses decorated the road side, one could see that the entire town was clean and neat; and that the inhabitants were of polite disposition.

The adage that there are a few good men on earth is true in this instance. There was dreadful news of the deplorable state of this road leading to Buea. However, it seemed all nightmarish dreams conjured up vanished before my eyes. The road was so designed that, a drainage system was included from Likomba on towards. As the car sped onto its destination, I posed a question:

“When was this road built?”

“Of recent, about four Months ago,” was the astonishing reply.

As we climbed the hill to Mutengene, I noticed the buildings that were there: the same but well kept. How this deprived people managed to maintain these high standards of maintenance is not easily explained; but one is drawn to an article I read in the London Sunday Times Magazine, 30 August 2009; written by Deidre Fernand, of title a curiosity provoke: From Purdah to Power. Fernand drew a vivid comparison of the indigenous women in power in colonial India. He wrote:

“The British needed Indian royalty to appear as rich and potent rulers of their own peoples, despite the fact that they wielded little power. They ensured that Indian majesties conformed to a cultural stereotype, displaying all the trappings of kingship with none of its reality.”

He went further stating thus:

“British rule in India, established after the rebellion of 1857, ensured that its princes were all style and no substance. For all their lofty titles, maharajas (the word means great king) and nawabs (rulers of Muslim peoples) were little more than actors in an exotic extravaganza, puppets in a peep show. When Lord Curzon, viceroy of India from 1898 to 1905 described them as “a set of unruly and ignorant and rather undisciplined school boys”, he was echoing the prevailing view that they were spoilt brats.”

I would not agree here with Lord Curzon as it seems his was that of colonial stereotype. On the other hand, Fernand’s objectives were to debunk this same prejudice; giving another side of the story. He countered this biased assertion by employing new research from the British Library:

“The story is one of subversion, risk and counter-revolution – the dwell in the crown. Its prince lings devoured books on philosophy, town planning, architecture and engineering and wrote treatises on democracy and women’s suffrage. While paying lip service to its British masters, many of the country’s most important dynasties were active in the nationalist movement. Some of those swearing allegiance to George V in the last great durbar, or regal regime, of 1911 were at the same time fighting for a free India – an objective not achieved until 1947”.

Quoting Deepika Ahlawat in the same article Fernand wrote:

“They had to keep their British masters happy while working towards their own political ends. They needed a dual identity and to be sophisticated diplomats.”

Arriving Buea made me understand what a few good men and women are capable of accomplishing in adversity and oppression. When I left Cameroon, the Mile 17 Junction was back water, covered with thick luxuriant Africa Forests; and in my wildest dreams never thought it could be transformed into a mini-Switzerland. It was such an engrossing sight and for a moment after reaching Buea, agreed in my mind that I find no difference between Buea and the suburb of Twickenham, London. I peered through the drainage system and it was all clean; jumped into a taxi and I was greeted with “Good Morning”. Is this Cameroon I have been hearing from afar? I wondered.

The next day I went to Buea Town to see what has happened there over the years. Again, I was brought to believe that it is possible to achieve in adversity. The roads leading to Buea Town is a double lane, clean and well-maintained. I decided to visit the neighbouring villages of Wondongo, Wonyalyonga and Wokwango, no speck of dust was in sight. I went past the Nigerian Consulate building and other old government and German buildings – spotless.

I decided to visit the Bokwango village located behind the Government Residential Area (GRA) itself. I was immediately introduced into the scene by what looked like a fashion parade; young women and men dressed to the nines. Who are these people, I asked. My friend was surprised at this question and replied with a rhetorical question: What do you mean by “who are these people?” They are citizens of the village he said, disappointed by my rather naive disposition. So, is there a fashion show in the village then? Quite the opposite, we do not do fashion shows here. These people are the villagers living here; that is their way. You people arriving from Europe appear to believe that we are totally ignorant of the entire world and that is not the case! He retorted half-angry and half-surprised at my questions.

Who did these things? I asked the indigenes and inhabitants. Some said it was the work of Mr. Mbella Moki, the seating Mayor of Buea. Others opined that, it was Mr. Peter Musonge, L’Ancien Premier Ministre de La Republique. Did Monsieur Paul Biya come here of recent? They said: ”No”. Who provided the money for this advanced development? Well, it was already in the Cameroon plans years ago. How is that? I inquired. Well, it appears there are always five years development plans in the old days. The government allocates funds to develop the country in these schemes. However, the big people misuse or embezzle these monies. When Musonge came, he instituted stringencies in these projects and made sure these plans were executed in all the provincial capitals was the prevailing opinions.

So, Bamenda, Bertoua, Garoua, Ebolowa have benefited, of recent, as Buea? My inquisitive mind strayed. Not quite, they said. Have you visited these places? Not all of them, a conscientious citizen answered. However, Bamenda is very developed, he continued. Indigenes abroad have stepped in; building beautiful houses and starting businesses. The problem we have here is water and electricity because they are all rationed.

I went, with friends and relatives, to a wine bar in Buea Town: just opposite the old Motor Park. Sat down, ordered a few drinks. Again, I was astounded by the good service and politeness of the people. Raised my eyes and saw what I could envisage as a crowd of people arguing with about five uniformed officers – at least one of them with a gun. What is the argument about? I asked. Well, the Police wish to arrest a man for a series of misdemeanours over a long period of time. They have tried several times over to put him behind bars; but with little success.” He is a Buea boy: born and bred”, they said with a mixture of pride and apprehension.

What is his name? He is Godlove, they said. At that very moment “Godlove” slipped from the arms of the Policemen and varnished without the slightest trace. Nobody could quite tell how he did it.

I would advise the reader to feel free and visit Buea, Cameroon, over this Christmas season if they so do wish.

The Fire Hydrant

Louis Egbe Mbua

The furious rage
Exploded into a full
Blown passionate clash:
In the very hours of dawn
In Malibu’s calm beaches
With the one accused
Of fiery passionate
Forbidden lust
Avec Les Belles.

The other fuming
With fiery rage
Chasing the accused
Like a tempted Tigress
Burning with anger,
Consumed with human jealousy
To exact a perfect feline revenge
Only for her raging fire to be quenched
By the intervention of a fire hydrant;
And the uncontrollable lust of the chastised Tiger
Extinguished by a fire hydrant,
With the furious chase ending
At the tree next to the fire hydrant,
The fiery passion ended
A fire hydrant a hit;
And the heat of passion
A fire hydrant cooled
Like an antidote to lust
From a long love lost,
Gone cold,
As heat turns to cold
And events in time
A fire hydrant frozen

Living in the 21st Century (4): Wisdom Vs Intelligence

Louis Egbe Mbua

From experience, there is a vast gulf

That separates wisdom from pure

Intelligence: the ability to grasp ideas people propose;

But not necessarily having the ability to yourself propose.

All men are intelligent but wisdom is light.

Do all men see the light?


Not all ideas are sound; and these are normally proposed

By the unwise and mistaken: who may or may not be intelligent.

Wisdom, on the other hand, is the ability to understand

All things at once by the person: applied for the benefit of all men

And for the greater good of the wise and unwise: the same.


It is possible to be intelligent but unwise: the reverse is hardly true.

Wisdom is applied for the entire good;

But intelligence is normally applied for self-propagation & survival.

So, a society that dwells on intelligence alone will fail,

But that which applies wisdom will thrive and win.


A man who believes in hurting unarmed protesters or the reverse

For pretentious peaceful settlement is completely unwise.

An unwise man may misuse his intelligence to perpetrate this act

To maintain: the power of oppression over his own people.

Others may not seek power but a self-worshiping nature,

And hatred of others may corrupt their intelligence into this act.


So, studying and obtaining qualifications is fine,

But not the same as knowing and applying all things

By intuition for the benefit of man: which is, in effect, wisdom.

The society that wins is that which can identify the wise

And separate them from the unwisely intelligent

Since the intelligent also have a positive role in society.


A developed society must identify these roles and put structures

In place: to implement policies that keep them in check.

This is the meaning of accountability in advanced societies

Where everybody is accountable for their actions and sayings

So the wise may be separated from fools irrespective of intelligence.

As a result, the society progresses morally and socially:

Otherwise, is that society not doomed?

A Diplomatic Incident: The Ambassadorgate Affair

Louis Egbe Mbua

A diplomatic incident in Washington DC has taken an unexpectedly dramatic turn. Civil war erupted in the CPDM Party civil community in America as the Ambassadorgate affair degenerated into a political fist fight. There have been claims and counter claims, claims and reclaims, denunciations and counter denunciations, renouncement and counter-renouncement; proclamations and counter-proclamations, incantations and counter-incantations; coups and counter-coups, thunder and lightning that concluded with an alleged live punch and counter punch. It has all the trappings of a classic Hollywood movie drama cast complete with characters in a tragic-comedy of Shakespearean proportions.

As each opposing camp after another attempts, albeit pitifully, to extricate themselves from the unexpected and sudden quagmire, Cameroonians and indeed the entire civil community, the world over, watch the unfolding spectacle from the sidelines with undisguised glee and amusement as the antics of what looks like comedians-turned-politicians or the converse are fed to the public needle-drip by needle- drip; and drop after drop.

The entire Junta, in Cameroon, and its dependencies in the Diaspora have been thrown into complete disarray equal to an irreversible political melt-down.

It is unclear how it all began but it seems there are reliable reports, by from the local news agency NBCWashington.com, of a fracas that seemingly came to blows between the Cameroon ambassador in Washington and a group of demonstrators allegedly protesting against embezzlement within or for their payments by the Cameroon Embassy in Washington.
In the ensuing confusion, others within the Cameroon community in America allege that the leader of the protest, Mr. Mpeck, received a powerfully blinding punch from the ambassador while an innocent female on-looker, not involved in the troubles, was allegedly pushed and then rugby-tackled onto the ground by the ambassador or his minders as the story goes: depending on who you believe. To add more confusion to the story, a Cameroonian living in America claimed in the Cameroonian discussion e-group, camnetwork, that he booked an appointment with the Ambassador so as to get a gist of his own side of the story. Accordingly, the source claimed, the Ambassador claimed that he was not involved in a fight; and that he was attacked by the protesters as he left his car to enter the Cameroon Embassy grounds.

Another source claims that the Ambassador left his office to discuss with the protesters as to assuage their grievances but was greeted immediately with a barrage of well aimed stunning blows. Whoever is right or wrong in this instance is beyond one’s contemplation but the whole incident looks like a diplomatic upper-cut against the Cameroon regime and the CPDM party in the USA. How a high-ranking diplomat could have allowed himself to be dragged into a petty street fight is beyond comprehension.

Others proclaim that the Cameroon Ambassador, H.E. Foe Atangana, is a good man with impeccable diplomatic credentials and track record. They cited the Bakassi crisis saying that he was instrumental in this “success”; but then added with a bitter touch of irony and fierce humour that perhaps he honed his “fighting” skills while negotiating the “peaceful” settlement of the Bakassi confrontation between Nigeria and the Republic of Cameroon.

Whatever view is true or false in this unfortunate incident, the fact of the matter is that the Cameroon Consulates the world over have been hijacked by the ruling CPDM party who appear to believe in a strange kind of out-dated philosophy rather reminiscent of the old totalitarian Soviet Communist’s dictatorship of the proletariat: that the CPDM party is supreme, and that the Cameroon nation is second -- a normal diplomatic procedure according to this questionable ideology. The Cameroonian people, on the other hand, see it differently: that the embassy is to serve, with equity and fairness, all Cameroonians including those with dual nationality; and that the Foreign Service should not be politicised – a right judgment. So, when the ensuing imbroglio took a scandalous turn, it rapidly transformed into an acrimoniously reverting partisan quarrel; and later, a means by which the purported CPDM leaders could defend the Ambassador or the “fatherland” from this imminent disgrace from “outsiders”; as well as to save their own skin from the wrath of the concerned and angry Cameroon people.

First, there was Mrs Patience Tamfu, President of the women’s wing of the ruling CPDM ruling party in the USA, who threw the first political punch in a series of classic tactical political blunders. She came out fighting; claiming that the CPDM party is “behind” the Ambassador; thus, reinforcing the long held belief that the embassy is an appendage of the ruling CPDM junta in Cameroon; and as though to say that if a person is a member of the CPDM, he or she has the right to engage in a boxing match in the streets – a flawed mentality. To make matters worse, she went on air and evolved a faceless video with a blushingly ungrammatically ineloquent semi-marathon rant, the incantation of which could easily be identified as that of an all assuming old-guard soviet party apparatchik; and then displaying the kind of tyranny that exists in Cameroon: “warning” her imagined “liar, traitor, thief” not to be “messing around with the wrong person”; and that she is not into the “foolish nonsense”.

Then, enters Lady Kate Atabong Njeuma, also a “Big Hitter” of the CPDM-USA, who gave a rather eloquent and well-crafted “political” statement in camnetwork insinuating that the Ambassador has put in place a “strong team of lawyers”, almost certainly referring to the fighting incident. Again, her conclusions are that the Ambassador must be defended since he is of the CPDM party. In doing so, she unwittingly admits that the Ambassador was involved in the alleged altercation as reported by the local news agency NBCWashington.com. While the writer believes this to be a wise move, it again enters the mind that; had the Ambassador been an independent Cameroonian or an opposition member or a SCNC-SCAPO activist, he would have been left to hang out to dry as the CPDM has been doing to the Cameroon people for almost three decades.

And there is Dr. Emmanuel Konde, a CPDM “strategist”, who appears to be confused and almost certainly overtaken by the events, and who went on air in camnetwork blaming Cameroonians of the North West region, denouncing them as “unpatriotic” to the “fatherland”. Nobody quite understands why he did this; as no one could find a relation between the people of this part of Cameroon and the fighting incident. How he reached this unenviable misguided conclusion is any one’s guess but he appeared to claim to be a “social philosopher” in which case he had “seen” (probably by some kind of magical incantation which we do not understand) that the North west region people want to “dominate” Cameroon, and that this, clearly, is the reason they are blaming the Ambassador for involving himself in the daylight unranked boxing match in the open. Seeing that the tide is turning against the party, he quickly had the good sense to back-track, contradicted or disowned or renounced his former stance, repositioned himself, and then gave another oration blaming the CPDM party for the imbroglio. Meanwhile, he never mentioned the Ambassadorial boxing-cum-wrestling match as though he knows not why he writes.

Enter Mr. Jackson Nanje, The Publicity and Education Secretary of the CPDM USA. Interestingly, at first glance, he denounced all who condemned the incident with all kinds of words; apparently, denying that nothing happened at the Cameroon Embassy grounds in Washington, and asking readers, with unbridled confidence that: “Where you there?” When he later got the itch that he was fighting a losing uphill battle, he also went the same way as his partisan colleagues. He back-pedalled, contradicted his former pronouncements, apparently renounced his former position, and then made a dramatic U-turn to score a spectacular own-goal: penning a long-winding irrelevant and unsubstantiated expose about corruption in the CPDM , and blaming the Chairman of CPDM USA, Mr. Joe Mbu, for this confusion and corruption; and that there is tribalism within the leaders of the CPDM. Which brings us to the ultimate question: Did Mr. Joe Mbu ask the Ambassador or the protesters to exchange blows? Reading from the unfolding drama, the answer is a resounding No:

Round and around,
The doubters deep
Into the round
And swirling pond

So, let justice takes its natural course in this unfortunate and shameful affair because it is unfair to judge a man without due process.

It should be recalled that, over the years, the two gentlemen mentioned [Dr. Konde Emmanuel and Mr. Jackson Nanje] have been the chief protagonists of the oppressive regime in Cameroon; a junta that has tormented and tortured Cameroonians in this day and age. In their sayings, they have always defended the atrocities of the regime against Cameroonians – more specifically the killings of young people in the country during the February 2008 general strike; and the extra-judicial shootings of unarmed students at the Buea University demonstrations in 2005 and 2006.

More importantly, they have always called for the elimination of the SCNC, SCAPO and others who oppose the subjugation of Southern Cameroonians and the open discrimination; human rights violation and theft of their lands and resources by the Republic of Cameroon. One is pleased that they have at least acknowledged the deficiencies of the present system of government in Cameroon; and that they should join hands in making a success of the forth coming negotiations between the Republic of Cameroon and the Southern Cameroons for constitutional changes and freedom in Cameroon; and the freedom of Southern Cameroonians from the vice-grip of corrupt leadership and tyranny. Progress can only be attained when those in the dark begin to see the light at the end of the bottomless dungeon. Within light we are all free; and in darkness we are all lost.

The Biblical Floods and Modern Thoughts (2)

The Rainbow (Wikipedia)

Louis Egbe Mbua

The writer believes every person is free to choose what they believe; and that the curious human mind must not be stopped from asking difficult questions. That is man’s nature.

In this second article, the writer wishes to make a tentative argument -- to assuage the concerns of a few people who dispute and dismiss this event as an untruth -- as concerns the Biblical floods: whether one can actually explain some of the biblical narratives in light of present day thinking and knowledge. This writer is again of the opinion that every occurrence has a logical explanation on earth and the universe. On the other hand, one has a duty to admit their limitations: in that not all things can be explained by man; and that the argument that if man may not have answers to certain phenomena automatically disqualifies that occurrence as non-existent. For instance, we can explain why the sky is blue but can we actually explain why it was not red or green in the first place?

On this note one is inclined to ask the question:

Is there any scientific explanation to substantiate where the flood water went and how?

According to Genesis 7:8: “And the waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days”; and furthermore, Genesis 8: 1-3 states: “And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that were with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the water assuaged. The Fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained. And the waters returned from the earth continually: and after the end of 150 days the waters were abated”.

If we apply the theories of thermodynamics and heat transfer by evaporation in multi-fluid flow of air and water assuming that sunlight appeared at one point after the flood and rains, one may understand that a strong air current is the main agent of evaporation of fluids on this occasion. Furthermore, evaporation is time dependent in relation to the speed of air that passes over a large body of water; and the volume of air in relation to the volume of water. Given the enormously large volume of water involved in the flood, as aforementioned, the volume and speed of the wind must have been cataclysmic: no different from a Tsunami. The wind, therefore, could have had the double effect of evaporating agent; and an agent of force to drive the waters to a fixed position where the evaporation will continue but the flood will end. Now, the time constraint for this act to be completed has not been calculated. However, it appears 150 days is a reasonable -- as stated in the Bible -- time span to dissipate these waters from the earth if a Tsunami can be imagined. It should be remembered that not all the water was evaporated on to the air; and that some of it remained on earth as Seas and Rivers.

What about sea monsters such as the whale and other fishes? Did Noah take them into the ark by twos in sevens?

This is a difficult one as there is no evidence in the Bible that indicates that there was water in the Ark; and that the Bible is silent on marine creatures on this occasion. On the contrary, the ark was designed specifically to be water tight. However, water tight was meant to prevent them but from the outside flood; and not that they should perish of thirst. Consequently, it might as well be possible that Noah had an aquarium within the ark to preserve marine life as well as having drinking water. Given that the ark was approximately 160m long, 27 m wide and 17 m high, which quite neatly fits to today’s description of a container ship or tanker capable of holding at least 600 standard containers, this is quite possible. But can a Whale fit into a container aquarium? A baby killer Whale is 10 feet( about 3 metres) long when it is born. If we agree on this, then given the dimensions of the ark, there is a possibility that whales and other marine creatures could have been in an aquarium in the Ark.

Another possible theory may lie in the fact that there was no need to bring in marine life into the ark as the devastation involved but water. The problem with this theory is that, it is clearly stated in the bible that every living thing died in the flood apart from those in the ark.

What about the salinity of the Seas? Did the flood dilute the seas; and therefore rendered future marine life impossible?

There is no evidence in bible that the original sea was a salty environment? Genesis states that in the beginning of creation, there was just water which was separated from the land. However, during the flood and given its huge scale, it is possible that the salts of the earth were dissolved in the waters. Now, after the evaporation by the wind, large amounts of water evaporated while the salt remains. The more water that were removed, the more concentrated with salts the water that was left became. Thus, the sea is but this concentrated water. What we have as fresh water is either from springs or from rain which again released the evaporated water with no salt thus began the water cycle. As to adaptation, all animals and humans that stayed alive after the flood had to adapt to the new extreme conditions of climate change that followed the deluge. So too are the marine creatures to marine life.

What about the Rainbow? Can it be explained scientifically in relation to the flood?

Genesis 9: 12-14 states: “And God said, “This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you, for perpetual generations. I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud”.”It is possible that after the flood and the intense evaporation, the sky was overcast with the clouds some of them condensing. Furthermore, the air must have been heavy with moisture and water droplets due to the rain. Scientifically, a rainbow is seen when sunlight refracts through raindrops followed by a reflection as it emerges from the raindrop. Thus, what is seen is that light after this process: seven colours of light. This is the process Isaac Newton performed when he refracted light through a prism to reveal the seven visible colours of light. Is there anything new? So, we can say for certain that the rainbow that was seen by Noah actually occurred after the flood; and by implication the flood actually occurred.

Fast forward Revelation 4: 2 -3: “And immediately I was in the spirit: and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.”

We know that there is Light in Heaven because we have been told so in the bible. But is there water as well? The writer cannot answer this question as he has never been to the spiritual Heaven. All we know is that we can explain the formation of the rainbow on earth. It would be futile to attempt explaining the phenomenon in Heaven where one has never been using the same knowledge on earth. On the other hand, that one cannot explain it does not render the book of Revelation irrelevant. Every occurrence and observation has a logical explanation at the proper dimension of space and time; or their appropriate .level ot existence -- spiritual or material.

Now, is there water in the visible heavens that hold the stars and heavenly bodies? It appears this is the case as recent discoveries are proving. Which brings us to the question: was the heavens in the beginning of creation meant to refer to both unseen spiritual heaven and the heavenly bodies?

This article is based on narratives in Genesis Chapter 6 – 9 and Revelations 4: 2 – 3 of the Bible and scientific knowledge in the modern world.

Living in the 21st Century (3) :The Gentleman at The King’s Road, London

Louis Egbe Mbua

The boutique he entered in drama and majesty,

In good mirth greeted the lady with courtesy.

Medium in height did he stand with chest so broad

And a pair of eyes did he have; dazzling in light.

His pupils appeared round as the sun in full flight

When down to the horizon of the sea afloat.

His teeth so white as to even blind the lady

Who with awe on him looked she as though a baby!


In Royal style did he wear his hat in light blue?

True as was given him by his uncle with the clue

To train him on the importance of tenderness;

And who taught his nephew to be a sure witness

About his marvellous inheritance in the family,

And keep the word and continue the party.

Wore him a pressed blue shirt with white stripes

That was tailored for him by his mother spritely,

To render her honest heart proud and jolly

In all the multiplicity of colour style & types

Of courture she had woven for the gentleman,

So fit in London society as the ladies’ marksman.


The blue pair of trousers did he buy in a chic shop

Because had he taken solace in a bus stop

To have a respite from a day’s work at Oxford,

As his varsity training had he got from Bedford.

A black pair of shoes he cited to match his blue socks,

And the heels were not high so as steadied his soles.

So gentle and elegant were his steps, so stable,

Like majestic Black Beauty striding in his stable!

The Biblical Floods and Modern Thoughts (1)

The rugged Mount Everest

Louis Egbe Mbua

Quite recently, there have been claims and counterclaims as to whether the flood occurred or not; at what time frame this event happened in relation to the age of the earth; archaeological evidence relating to the flood; and doubts as to why God would decide to destroy his own creation if he is Good. There have been reports that the Ark of Noah has been found in the Mt. Ararat area by means of satellite technology and sheer brute application of old fashioned archeological excavation; and that the dimensions of this discovery in artefacts match the very descriptions reported in biblical accounts. Others have theorised that there is evidence that a large flood occurred on earth at one point in its existence; but that this deluge never engulfed the entire earth as spoken in the Bible; and that this must have been localised in the Mediterranean sea that burst into the Black sea after the Ice age when the entire ice melted and flooded the region. This article will not dwell on these issues but will examine the flood in light of scientific theories; and to limited geological and geographical approximations. At this stage we can only start by examining the Bible and then scrutinising the evidence with the scientific knowledge at hand.

Accordingly, God gave a clear reason why he brought the flood:

“And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on earth: and it grieved him at his heart.” Genesis 6: 5-6.

So, the precedence for self-destruction has been set, not by God, but by man. While people question the severity of this action, it is of import that we recognise the power of choice. While man has the choice to go about his business, God, also, has the choice to act as to counter or enhance these various choices in line with the kind of choices made. Since, according to God’s own words, man was created in his own image, it follows that the latter statement holds; and that if wickedness was so great that all man could think of was to self-destruct as a matter of choice, then there was no reason for him to continue in his doomed existence. On the other hand, there was a way to self perpetuate in order that God does not destroy the work of his own hands forever as stated in the Bible:

“Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” Genesis 6:8.

Accordingly, Noah and his family were saved from the flood that was to come by building the ark as prescribed by God. He got into the ark before the rains and the flood came. Now, is there any evidence in the present earth to substantiate the flood? According to Genesis the rain fell for 40 days and forty nights. The flood covered the entire world including the Highest Mountains. Now, Mount Everest is about 9000 m high. The diameter of the earth is about 12,000 km.

Mathematical calculations, assuming the water and the earth formed a liquid-solid concentric circle of different densities, will reveal that the volume of water released was 3.6 trillion trillion cubic metres. In addition, the total volume of water on earth and known man is about 1.26 trillion trillion cubic metres. Whether this includes water stored in plants and the ice in Antarctica is unclear. Furthermore, we we must caution that the heights of mountains have changed over the millennia; and consequently our calculations only indicate the present geological features of the earth. Consequently, the writer does not expect the figures to be exact. However, one may see that the amount of water of the said flood compares reasonably well with what is known to be the total amount of water existing on earth today. The Bible went further to state that all the water didn't come from the earth; some came from Heaven but this is dependent upon what one may reasonably agree as to what constitutes heaven.

Did the water come from the spiritual Heaven or from the Heavens in space that constitutes the stars and other heavenly bodies? On the other hand, if we assume that the water came from Space, then the biblical account is vindicated today because Scientists are now finding water in space and the moon etc. Others posit that asteroids brought water to earth at one point. How plausible this theory stands is open to question. The whole point is that the Bible indicated that the water came from below the earth and from Heaven; and that the total amount of water on earth today tallies with the entire water in the flood. Yet again, mountains like Mount Cameroon and the Everest are heavily contoured and rugged. Rugged contours on landscapes are due to either inundation by a flood of a cataclysmic magnitude or due to a strong wind likened to a hurricane over a short period.

How come the Poles – North and South- are ice-bound? Alaska, for instance, is a very cold area? That ice exists there shows that there was a vast amount of water that froze after the event due to the cold nature of these areas which are below freezing temperatures at most times of the year. Did this event with such large amounts of water cause climate change? Possible or possibly not, as this is difficult to know.

Is there any scientific evidence to substantiate where the flood water went and how?

Living in the 21st Century (2): The Writer's Soliloquy

Louis Egbe Mbua

Any person has the right to pick up his pen to write,

But a fool writes without knowing why he writes;

And the skilled tells the audience why he writes.

A wise writer selects his words carefully;

But a fool is bombastic, loud and vulgar.

A fool always writes for himself;

But the wise writes for the audience.

While a fool thumps his chest as he writes;

A talented one masks his skills;

While pretending he knows not what he does.

A fool claims to know when he actually knows not;

But the wise actually knows but pretends to know not.

A fool does not detach himself from his writing;

But the wise writes with no attachment to his writing.

A wise man respects his audience;

But the unabashed fool insults his audience.


Good ideas are borne from the heart;

Not from the head! Do not write from your head!

Write from the heart;

‘Cause resides there the Soul.

Falsehood corrupts the heart;

But truth cleanses the Soul.


It is important that a man broadens his mind;

In order that he is not misled by the unidirectional blind;

Into a bottomless pit: of insouciance and pestilence.

Eritrea, Somalia, Cameroon, the UK are all about human beings;

So to believe that their actions and impacts do not influence;

The world is like saying that there can be people without women.

A man must understand the fundamental behaviour of humans

In the entire universe: to discuss issues pertaining to humans

In his own geographical confinement;

Failing this is chasing after the wind.

.

A Journey to Yaounde (2): A Tour of the City

Yaounde, Cameroon (from flickr)

Louis Egbe Mbua

The problem was to navigate through the windingly dangerous Douala-Yaoundé Highway as was observed by the manoeuvres of the driver. We arrived at Edea at about an hour’s time after leaving the Douala—and thank goodness without any incident. The African forest stood majestically in our view even just after Douala City was left behind. The share greenery that contoured the equatorial scenery was breath taking: hardwoods, shrubs and possibly other important medicinal plants could all be seen and observed as we turned and swerved.

What struck me most was the narrowness of the road. Why is this road so narrow? I tasked my conscience. At least the roads through Likomba are like Boulevards: broad to the equivalent of three cars. Is the present road up to international standards then? When we arrived at Edea, the driver stopped the vehicle for refreshments. As soon as the bus driver gently applied the brake, a great number of Cameroonians jumped into the bus. What are they looking for? I thought. It was only minutes before I realised their seeming predicament.

There were young people from the aged between 7 and 55 bringing all kinds of foods into the bus: Matumba! Matumba! They shouted. This was extremely surprising as we had just passed the Aluminium smelting plant, Allucam, located at Edea; and where enormous hydroelectric power is harnessed from the mighty Sanaga River. Why then is it that these inhabitants have no jobs, apparently, but sell food stuff along the roads. Are these profitable businesses as to provide a man with a decent living or do they subsidise this occupation with other professional undertakings? I continued to wonder along the journey.

This company, Allucam and the hydroelectric Dam, have been operational in Cameroon for as long as one could remember. What then are the knock on effects of the local population and the infrastructure in the enduring years? As far as I could see on the peripheries of the main road, there were no visible sign of infrastructure. The most significant sign of discernible land mark was the classical German Bridge that spanned the River Sanaga. On its side, appears to be another Bridge of little aesthetic merit --- probably built after independence of the Republic of Cameroon in 1960. Thus is this lack of human advancement and infrastructural presence may be due to lack of investment in genuine job-creation and by extension, in people. What was done about 30 years ago has never been altered. In any case the driver continued in his winding journey through the thick equatorial forests of Cameroon. Having fallen asleep I was awakened by another stop in Bimnyobel, an hour’s drive from Yaoundé with the same routine of food selling.

Arriving safely in Yaoundé was such a relief. The characteristic red earth was visible everywhere. But what struck me was that Yaoundé had hardly changed in three decades. One could recognise all the old buildings on the road side. We navigated until we reached the Park in heartland Yaoundé. Having taken a rest, I decided to take a tour round the City. Where is Score, Le Supermarche? I asked the taxi driver. Oh! It is no longer situated in its position. You can see that it has been replaced by a casino. We drove passed Intelcam, the Cameroon’s equivalence of British Telecommunication. The same building stood there; the only improvement was that a 7-8 storey building had been erected behind the old 4-5 storey building. Not much change then? I said. The taxi driver laughed; and said No. I asked no further questions. On the other hand, I observed the City was cleaner and much more organised than hitherto.

We went passed through Cite Verte, a modern estate of block of flats built by the Cameroon government about 35 years ago to house the population of Yaoundé at subsidised rents. This was a shocker as the very modern and well kept flats have deteriorated so much so that it was difficult to recognise these buildings. Who are these people staying here? Well, it appears most people living here are Nordiste, was the taxi man’s unflinching response. Why is that? Well, the government has a policy of some kind of ownership of the occupant having stayed in any of the flats for a certain amount of years, was the answer. Most that were offered the flats were from North Cameroon since it was means tested; and they qualified, he continued. That is a reasonable policy but I have a problem, I said. The people may own the flat but it is the government’s responsibility to maintain the entire estate block by block as the must still holds the ground leasehold as landlords. The taxi man merely shrugged.

It was time for lunch after the extensive tour. Where can one buy lunch here? There is a place near Ngoa-Kelle; near Carrefour Emia, I was informed. Good, I thought. This will provide me with an opportunity of seeing my old hide outs near the University of Yaoundé. We took another taxi and arrived at our destination after passing by Pharmacie de Carrefour still located in the same spot. What, exactly, is the name of this place, I demanded of my niece. It is called Weya: it is owned by an Anglophone from Bamenda. All civil servants in the Ministries come here to eat their lunch. It is very popular; and the food is very good, she replied. I acquiesced at this acute assessment of a connoisseur and fashionista graduate de La Universite de Yaoundé.

On entering the main path to the restaurant we met two immaculately dressed (Cameroonians like nice clothes; and uniforms) who were almost certainly student officers – who politely extended their Bonjours, and which we returned with genuine polity. When we got into the eatery, it was about 2.00 pm; and the entire joint was jam-packed with suited men and dressed women having their exquisite dishes of their choice. A waiter ushered us onto a convenient seat. Now: the moment of truth.

Having settled down in the well organised and neat seat layout, I asked the lone waitress: “Can we have the menu, please?” The waitress looked astonished. Her face changed from delightful to what may be described as scornful. I wondered whether I had breached a basic etiquette. As I was about to repeat myself, my niece whispered, “There are no menus here, for this is not London; just announce your choice of food and it will be delivered to you in precinct platter.” I really was not convinced by this proposed arrangement but I remembered that I was in Africa, so I changed my question: “What exactly do you have then”, I demanded the waitress. She never bothered to respond.

As one was famished, I looked around to observe what the taste of the diners where. My niece ordered her own lunch. I now realise that if I do not act swiftly, I will not have any food. So, having made a mental note on this epicurean experiment I decided to try again – but this time from the waiter: “Can I have eru?” Well, there is none left, was his reply. Fine: please, give me equacoco bible. The diners next to me all turned and looked at me with amusing amazement possibly feeling that I must have arrived but that same day -- they were right . My niece, not knowing what to make of this decided to intervene to help me out me with a verbal menu: Achu, rice and stew, kati kati, ripe plantain and roast fish, fried chicken. I ordered Achu and Chicken. Before long, we were politely joined by two other Cameroonians – one Francophone and an Anglophone. Having had a good conversation about life in Cameroon, shared a few bottles of Cameroon beer and excellent African lunch, we returned to our various sojourns where I contemplated my perilously frightening return journey through the Yaoundé-Douala Highway. Will I arrive intact? I murmured to myself.

A Journey To Yaounde(1): Cameroon O' Bosso Na Mbussa:

Louis Egbe Mbua

On a second visit to Cameroon this year, it won’t have been appropriate, I thought, to leave without making a sortie to Yaoundé, the Capital City of Cameroon. One had read; and heard of the accident-prone highway that links Douala, the commercial hub in the Gulf of Guinea, to the city embedded in the middle of Cameroon. Where does one board a coach to Yaoundé, I inquired. In Akwa, I was informed by old hands of the Douala gentry. There is a company located in Akwa; it is very efficient and provides express service; but you have to arrive early to catch the express service, they opined. What is the name of the Company? Guarantee was the name. How apt: I will be guaranteed a good and safe journey, I said to myself. So, early on the 25th of July 2009, I dressed up after the London business suit fashion, and found myself in the coach station in Akwa.

A nearby kiosk was playing a Cameroonian number in this manner: Pompez, les pompiers; la maison c’est brule . Who wrote and played this song? I asked the man next to me in the seat at the hall way in the station. Hugo Nyame: C’est Padonne Madame, he replied in a knowing and sure disposition. My niece had arrived earlier, arranged for the tickets, secured the seats; and then we sat down in the station to wait for the bus to begin this strange journey. The driver of the Coach signalled that he has to leave in time; at 8:30 am. We climbed into the high-staged design coach; and took our seats. The man who sat next to me asked: Tu es Anglophone?
Oui, je suis Anglophone, I replied. I didn’t have to respond with a similar investigation since only a Francophone Cameroonian would pose such a question in French. Mais, est-que tu viens de Buea ou bien de Bamenda? J' habite ici a Douala, was the answer coming from me.

Non, Tu ne me responds bien. C’est bien que nous sommes tous a Douala. Mais ca ne signifie que nous sommes de Douala. Moi-meme j’habite a Douala mais je ne viens de Littoral. Que j’habite a Douala ne signifie pas que mon village c’est ici a Douala. Mon village, s’Il vous plait, c'est situe a Bandjoun.

This was not the kind of discussion one wished in the beginning of a long journey. However, I decided to answer his philosophical point as he seemed an insightful man; and a man of intelligence. If that is what you mean, then I am travelling from Buea, I responded. Oh! You are an Anglophone Whiteman then, the man exclaimed. Well, you can see that I am not a White person, I said. The man looked bemused on this reply.

I agree with you that your village is within Bandjoun, but this is the 21st century, I continued. It is important that you identify yourself with where you grew up; and where you earn your living as well as your village of origin in Cameroon. The point here is that you have settled in Douala where, you are supposedly, are earning a nice living; well, judging from your wonderful pair of shoes and clothes. The point is not whether I am an Anglophone or you a Francophone but that we are of the same country; and that we all should enjoy the benefits of this land. Consequently, it is of utmost importance that you consider your village as well as where you are presently residing in Cameroon. This is because you have the advantage of a two-pronged opportunity which may make you rich; and as a consequence, the entire Cameroon.

What do you mean by “a two-pronged opportunity”? The man asked. Well, you have the opportunity of having to live in two lands. There is the idea of The Two Lands since ancient times.

How? Asked Le Camerounais. In ancient Africa, I replied, there was a King called Menes, the ruler of Egypt about 4500 years ago, who brought about this idea of unity into the world. We do not know how he came about this idea. However, we know for certain that he united the two lands of Egypt: Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. These lands were of completely different geography, ethnic and possibly linguistic make up. After this act of genius, people from both parts of the united lands had a two-pronged opportunity since they could carve a career in any of the two regions; at the same time could return to their area of origin where they could again advance themselves because they were known there. Due to the uniting of the two lands, the Egyptians were able to harness their people into a critical mass of talent. The result is still there, in the two lands, for the entire world to see today. Remember that connections are as important as an institution. It seems the early Cameroon leaders had this idea or might have read of them from ancient books or might have some kind of links with ancient Egypt – it is Africa after all. The important point is that, I continued, the Egyptian priests and rulers were wiser than us.

Now, my brother, you are trying to compare 2500 BC to the 21st century, he composed. Your comparison does not add up; and invalid. The Egyptians lived in their time. We are living in the 21st century where there are computers and Aeroplanes. So, this ancient “two-pronged” approach can neither fit in this era nor is it feasible. Besides, why do you believe (if we may consider your opinion a belief in the first place) the Egyptians wiser than us? Surely, they never created the computer nor did they go to space, did they? What you are saying is illogical unless you provide a further explanation to buttress your reasoning. As far as I can see you will have great difficulties in crafting an acceptably justified defence in this instance. The Cameroon situation is different because we are one and indivisible from the beginning. As a result, the unification that happened in 1961 cannot be likened to that of the ancient Egyptians despite their considerable success in art, technology, agriculture, architecture, religion and culture. If we examine the matter very closely, we may realise that we might have achieved a similar feat in Cameroon. The Edea Dam, SONARA in Limbe [Victoria]; Douala City and where we are going; Yaoundé. The point of the matter is that we do what we can at this time; and then leave the rest to the future generation. It is true that unity is good but we may not be able to achieve everything dans cinquante ans de L’independance. Cela c’est impossible! Cameroun O’ Bosso*!

You have spoken well mon frère, I emphasised. It is true that Cameroon, and in fact Africa, has made considerable stride in civilisation. However, I won’t agree with you that the stated advancement is of the same stature of achievement as the ancient United Lands of the North and South. The Egyptians appeared to be more enlightened than we are in the 21st century. I agree that they never invented any computers or went into space but they seemed to have understood the psychology of man. I say this because they, apparently, were fair and just to the very best of their abilities in antiquity. For, instance, they knew about women’s rights and the rights of the minority in their Kingdom. The same cannot be given to the present Cameroon. In the present climate, it seems those who purport to be leaders lack this fundamental understanding. For instance, it is not important for you to judge me as an Anglophone or for me to judge you as a Francophone, but that you are a human being who can think and act in a positive way; to affect all Cameroonians and indeed the world. Now, if we have rulers who believe that they must first satisfy their villages before they think of the entire Cameroon and the world, then we cannot actually meet up with Egyptian standards. The Egyptians never did such a thing. While I will not venture to vociferate that the Egyptians were perfect, one is hard pressed to find a leader, in Cameroon, who is wise as was as Hephaestus, the Egyptian queen who built the classic temple at Thebes. Our leaders have failed to emulate these great leaders: they have been involved in discrimination and grandiloquence. Even if the Re-unification was a good idea, they failed to institute social justice in the entire territory as the Egyptians did. As a result, we have a breakdown of morality; and the marginalisation of Anglophones, who form part of the two lands, in a clearly illegal act which must be redressed before we may compare and contrast with the ancients. What we have, therefore, is Cameroon O’ Bosso na Mbussa*; and not actually Cameroun O’Bosso!

The man was shocked at this reply. A woman at his side – presumably his wife – seemed to crave attention; and the discussion was further interrupted when the bus began to move on. Noticing this state of fluxing affairs, I thought it wise not to usher any further commentaries on this matter. I had borrowed a book from my uncle. I opened the page where I had ended my musing of Mbella Sonne Dipoko’s Because of Women and began to read: Ngosso had paddled his canoe......or something of that sort.

*O' Bosso: Getting ahead

* O' Mbussa: Getting behind

Living In the 21st Century (1): A Fashion Statement

Fashion and Style at their Heights

By Louis Egbe Mbua


Since the arrival of the new millennium; there appears to be a psychological shift in every aspect of life that renders men and women to co-exist on the planet. From science to religion, there have been dramatic change of paradigm. In peace and in war, we now live and think differently thannever before. Online education is now a normal occurrence rather than a strange method of pedagogy. Only in the 21st Century and this new millennium can we actually hold up hardened terrorists like Osama Bin Laden, with his urbane looking beard, as a fashion icon. But is he? This article examines the folly and wisdom that go with fashion and style in the first decade of the 21st century and the third millennium:

It is better to be stylish than to be fashionable
Because fashion fades but style stays forever:
A dress worn for show is worse than worn to fit
‘Cause better to fit than to show unstuck and unfit.

A man must not wear a shirt of four colours;
For multiple colours are suited but of women:
The woman with a colourful dress will win
But she who wears white informally has failed.

Black is the new white but brown is for soldiers
And a man looks good in brown but a woman who
Wears combats as a fashion statement is not stylish;
And a man who wears white trousers has no style.

A man of no great height must stay clear of heels
Because it shows fashion insecurity with his looks,
But a woman may wear high heels as long as she is
Not six foot five since she will never find a man in them.

There is no such thing as a small woman since all
Have the same hypnotic powers in similar measure.
Her hand bag must match her dress and hair style
For it is faux pas to have a mismatch in this instance.

No man must nurture long hair unless he is a priest
Or he is into a religious order and in show business
Since men may mistake him for a woman and
Women may classify him as effeminate and weak.

Women & men with long hair should visit the Salon
Each week lest: it looses its natural brilliance.
Short hair style is stylish to both men & women
But it’s unstylish for a woman to be skinned head.

Size zero people must not touch tight trousers
Since this displays angled structures of bones
Rather than curved structures defined by nature
The same applies to size 30s with excess curves.

A good dancer is a delight and a bonus to him:
But better that a bad dancer should not dance at all:
Since this may spoil a social occasion entirely.
Thus if a socialite, you must learn how to dance.

In plastic surgery, only engage to correct a fault
But he who does it for beautification is a fool
‘Cause what you have, was written before time
And plastic surgery can never overcome time.

Beauty is not exuded by the external alone
But what you think inside combines with
The external to make the beauty complete:
Plastic surgery can spoil the whole beauty.

There is a way to walk and move in line
With what you wear as to what you desire.
In fashion dressing, walk with the style of a cat
And the galloping confidence of a horse

The one is meant to compliment the other;
Thus only a fool will try a cat walk at home
Or in the office, for this will be out of place
Since you will not be marked for promotion

A vain woman who strips naked for pictures
Is unwise because she must explain this vanity
To her parents, grandchildren and husband
On why such an extravagant display of vanity

A vain man who strips naked for photographs
Is yet a bigger fool since a man is not exactly
A work of art as compared to the fairer one,
And that fashion without clothes doesn’t exist.

While riches can buy one fashion the same can’t
Be said of style since style exists but in nature.
So while style is real, eternal and supernatural
Fashion is founded on illusion and artificiality.

African Commission Landmark Ruling On Cameroon -- A Road Map To Southern Cameroons Freedom

Louis Egbe Mbua

As day follows night , so too does humility follows arrogance in reversibilty. For years, the Southern Cameroons people have invited the Republic of Cameroon for amicable talks as concerns the violation of thier rights. However, this has been followed by denials and other provocative insults such as: "if you do not like to be in Cameroon, go somewhere else". There is an adage that one should be careful as to what one asks; for it might happen in reality. Referring to an innocent man as: "an enemy of the house" is not only disingenous; but that the aggrieved man may decide to leave that house and create his own home.

There are those who always believe, erroneously, that the oppressed will remain in their abject condition for ever. However, justice is always on the corner, tailing the oppressor who violates the rights of humans. This has been the case between the Southern Cameroons peoples, also known as Anglophones, and the Republic of Cameroun people, otherwise known as Francophones in Cameroon since 1961. Many a Cameroonian have always believed that the Southern Cameroons independence is an impossible dream; and that it will remain a dream forever. This is a dreadful mistake; for poetic justice usually comes most unexpectedly and very quickly. The writer is of the opinion that the ACHPR ruling in the case between the Southern Cameroons and The Republic of Cameroon has delivered the killer hammer Blow to the Cameroon Union and set Southern Cameroons firmly onto the path of independence. When a man keeps crying for justice and insisting on fairness, they are usually rewarded. Again, it is better to engage your brother and reach an agreement on an injustice than for him to take you to court where you cannot escape retributive justice and punishment for your wrong doings. This writing will attempt to interprete the Commission's ruling in light of Southern Cameroons independence and freedom.

Following the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights ruling being made public by that organisation; as well as the government of The Republic of Cameroon in a Communique dated 1st October 2009, it is clear that the Republic of Cameroon has violated the Human Rights of Southern Cameroonians on 10 counts: in relation to the African Charter; and that the Republic of Cameroon, also known as La Republique du Cameroun, is guilty of violating international Law. When the UN sponsored plebiscite of February 1961 was initiated in Southern Cameroons, there were no provisions for such gross and grosteque violations of human rights in the enactment of the creation of the Cameroon Federation between the two former UN Trust Territories. As a consequence, these violations justify that the United Nations steps in and conduct a second plebiscite in that territory for the Southern Cameroons people to decide as to whether they wish to continue in the UN-created Union with La Republique as a Federated State or whether they desire outright independence as a separate country.

Similarly, this is the moment for Southern Cameroons to seize to free their people from 50 years of discrimination and violation of their rights by The Republic of Cameroon. In a bizarrely paradoxical twist, it provides, albeit inadvertently, an opportunity for the citizens of The Republic of Cameroon to throw out 50 years of totalitarian oligarchy, peacefully rewrite the constitution so as to free the people from the seemingly impossible grip of sychophancy, dictatorship, oppression, brutality and corrupt leadership; and set them on a path to progress. We have to now examine, in details, the winning points that will lead to Southern Cameroons freedom and how it can be done; and the freedom of all Cameroonians in due course as a consequence.

So, examining what the Commission found in its ruling in interpretation:

The Commission found that the Republic of Cameroon violated article 1 of the African Charter which enshrines Human rights to all African peoples.

The Commission found that La Republique du Cameroun violated article 2 of the African Charter which stipulated the entitlement to enjoyment of the right of birth; that Cameroon discriminated against Southern Cameroonians contrary to article 20 of the African charter. The Commission drew attention to discrimination of Southern Cameroonian businesses, especially in light of the Treaty for the Harmonisation of Business Law in Africa, OHADA (Organisation pour l’Hamonisation Des Droits d’Affaires en Afrique.) They reached this decision on grounds that Southern Cameroonians businessmen in Cameroon must submit their article of incorporation for their businesses in French; and that failure to do so means that they cannot open a business bank account; and thus cannot obtain loans or are refused access to capital. The writer finds this strange since Cameroon claims to be a bilingual nation. Furthermore, it explains why most thriving and profitable Southern Cameroonian businesses had to be relocated to Francophone Cameroon after 1972; especially to Douala ; went bankrupt; and why business did not thrive in Southern Cameroons.

It would seem that this has been a practice that has been going on since 1972 when the Federation was illegally destroyed; and that this was a long term premeditated plan to annihilate Southern Cameroonians so as to reduce them to abject poverty; and to weaken their fight for freedom. The land mark ruling means that the OHADA ratification is null and void as regards Southern Cameroons territory; and since this violates the 1961 plebiscite, it follows that The Republic of Cameroon has no right of jurisdiction to dictate business law to Southern Cameroonians in their territory; meaning that the Southern Cameroons state and law on businesses still stand to this day.

The Commission also found The Republic of Cameroon in violation of Article 4 of the African Charter which enshrined the right to life and the inviolability of human persons.

Cameroon also violated article 5 of the African Charter because the government subjected Southern Cameroonians to torture, amputations and denial of medical treatment of arrested activists. If this is true, then The Republic of Cameroon also breached the plebiscite conditions and as a result the Union no longer counts. In this case, the United Nations must take up its responsibility to re-examine the 1961 plebiscite.

The Republic of Cameroon further violated article 6 of the African Charter of Human Rights because her forces arrest Southern Cameroonians who are detained for days and months without trial. As usual, La Republique du Cameroun tried to justify this violation by accusing the detainees, falsely, of being terrorists. This was thrown out and the Commission again indicted the government of gross violation of the Rights of Southern Cameroonians.

The Republic of Cameroon was also found guilty of violation of Article 7 (1) (b) (c) and (d) which enshrined the right to fair trial. They reached this decision because Southern Cameroonians were arrested and transferred to Francophone territory (Bafoussam and Yaounde) to be tried by a Military tribunal although those arrested and accused were civilians; and that they were tried in French, a language they do not understand and without interpreters. This is shameful for a purportedly bilingual country and a naked act of Apartheid. It must be stated that this has been going on for more than 40 years. During a confrontation with Cameroon oppresive forces from Francophone Cameroon who were perpetrating naked aggression on civilians, in Bakossiland, in 1966, Southern Cameroons, Southern Cameroonians accused of involvement were transferred to Yaoundé in Francophone territory where they were either executed or incacerated for long periods after a kangaroo trial in Military tribunals. This again violates the 1961 UN-supervised plebiscite, and therefore, Southern Cameroonians must demand a fresh plebiscite from the international community to decide their future. No people must be surrendered to be violated in such a blatant disregard to human life and fairness in the name of a Union. Unions must be just and fair to all citizens; and especially to protect the minority partner.

The Commission also arrived at the decision that the Cameroon government violated article 11 of the African Charter that outlines the right to free assembly in accordance with National laws and security. The Commission found the Cameroon government guilty of forced suppression of demonstrators, and that there is sufficient evidence that Southern Cameroonians have been shot and killed by forces during demonstrations while others arrested died in prison. Is this what Southern Cameroonians voted for in 1961? If this is not what they asked, then the plebiscite is now devoid of its original objectives and must be reviewed by the United Nations.

The findings of the Commission as regards article 19 that centered on the annexation of Southern Cameroons by La Republique du Cameroun in violation of the African charter, is more intriguing; and delivers an unprecedented victory to Southern Cameroons.

The Commission stated, very clearly, that they have no jurisdiction; and therefore incompetent to determine what annexation is in this instance in connection with the UN 1961 plebiscite in the Trust Territory of Southern Cameroons; and what happened in 1961 – 1972 since this predates the entry into force of the charter. This is a land mark ruling because it implies that the United Nations has been dragged into the dispute. If the UN organised a plebiscite in terms of equal status of the two states, how come there is no longer any Southern Cameroons government? Where is the equality here? What were the instruments that the UN, as a supervisor of the British administered territory, put in place to protect the constitutional and human rights of Southern Cameroons? Did the United Nations fail in her responsibility in the Southern Cameroons case? The answer to the latter question is a resounding Yes ; because had this happened, these gross violations could never have occurred in the first place; and that Francophone administrators and soldiers would have respected the jurisdiction of Southern Cameroons as not to enter the territory to maim, kill and oppress the people from September 1961 and onwards to now.

The Commission didn’t end there but went further to announce that if Southern Cameroons can establish that annexation occurred; and that this right was violated before 18 December 1989 and continues thereafter, then the Commission will be competent to examine the annexation issue. This is a blank cheque to Southern Cameroons. There is enough evidence to prove violation:

A. The two governors of the SW and NW regions of what constitutes Southern Cameroons are Francophones.

B. In 2005, soldiers from Francophone Cameroon entered Buea and shot and killed students in a demonstration at University of Buea who were protesting of poor conditions and other matters at the University. They also raped and looted in Buea as well as terrorise the population of Buea. This is forceful annexation as they violated the boundaries of Southern Cameroons which is at River Mungo.

C. A similar incident happened in Buea in 2006.

D. In Bamenda in 2007

E. And the recent Cameroon riots in Febraury 2008.

In another case, Southern Cameroons, now has the right to refer the matter to the Security Council of the UN who is now celarly competent to re-examine the UN 1961 plebiscite and arrange a new one in line with the Commission’s findings.

In a separate development regarding article 19, the Commission found Cameroon in violation of this article in relation to transferring the Port of Victoria (Limbe) to Douala. According to the Commission, this amounts to the case that The Republic of Cameroon has no control of Victoria (Limbe) and therefore in violation of this article.

Article 20 is very interesting. This dwells on secession and the right to self-determination as a people. Firstly, the Commission rejects secession on grounds that the Complaint violates that right of the African Charter. In effect, the Commission cannot violate its own charter – a perfectly valid point. But it appears Southern Cameroons never asked for secession as there is no treaty of Union between the two former territory. On the other hand, it appears the Commission is incompetent to decide on this matter.

Again, however, the Commission hands out Southern Cameroons with a blank cheque. They ruled that Southern Cameroonians are a separate and distinct people; and that collective peoples’ rights are as important as individual rights, and that Southern Cameroonians qualify as a people geographically, culturally and with a common cause. The implications; in terms of Southern Cameroons independence are huge. Southern Cameroons must now report to the UN who began this ordeal in the first place so that the 1961 plebiscite is revisited.

The Commission recommends dialogue between the leaders of the two states, especially the SCNC and SCAPO who brought the Southern Cameroons case against The Cameroon Republic , under the auspices of the African Commission rather than separation. In this case, therefore, Southern Cameroons leaders must insist on a new plebiscite that includes outright independence which was clandestinely left out in the 1961 fiasco; and that the United Nations must be involved in settling this matter once and for all.

Finally, the Commission found the Cameroon government in violation of Article 26 that enshrines the independence of the Judiciary. They ruled that the Cameroon Judiciary is not independent in line with article 26 of the Africa Charter because the President of Cameroon, who is the head of the Executive arm, is also head of the Judiciary. This is against democratic principles that require that the Executive arm must be separated from the Judiciary arm. In that case, therefore, Cameroon Judiciary cannot be fair.

This, also, is a blank cheque to both Southern Cameroons and Cameroon peoples in general. This is the time to act and eliminate once and for all the propensity for unfair trials and selective crimes where by the President cannot be held into account. In addition, Southern Cameroons has the right to take their case to the ICJ since the judiciary in Cameroon is now incompetent to rule on these violations. The UN must be involved in resolving this matter once and for all.

The Commission also ruled on other articles but most of the ruling was based on lack of submission of evidence by Southern Cameroons; and therefore on technicalities rather than evidence put against by The Republic of Cameroon to challenge them.

Details of the Commission’s Ruling on Communication 266/2003 can be found in:

http://www.achpr.org/english/_info/news_en.html