The tides could be turning on the Cameroon leadership

The tides could be turning on the Cameroon leadership following a senate hearing that took place on April 18, 2012, at the US Senate/Subcommittee on Africa that was dominated by discussions on the Biya one-man-leadership that has been in power for over three decades.

A Tsunami on Biya and Cameroon was unleashed in opening remarks by the US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs at the US State Department; Johnnie Carson, in which he revealed that, following the conclusions of the 2011 Presidential election in Cameroon, he wrote to President Biya, urging the re-establishment, as soon as possible, of the term limit and the implementation of constitutional reforms and a more transparent and an independent electoral commission.

In his remarks to the committee on Cameroon, Hon. Carson accused the Cameroon political leaders of the ruling party of having taken advantage of the country's relative stability, prosperity and system of patronage to entrench their leadership.

He added that the little oil that Cameroon has got has helped to provide a cushion to Paul Biya and encourage a patronage system as well as fuelled corruption in the country. In his words:
"Oil has been behind some of the corruption and patronage that has helped to keep Paul Biya in power."

Hon. Carson further declared, before the committee, that the 2011 Presidential election in Cameroon was seriously flawed: polling stations opened late, citizens were allowed to vote multiple times in some cases, ballot box stuffing and voter intimidations were observed in various parts of the country. He lamented the fact that the Supreme Court received credible complaints of fraud from opposition parties, but, unfortunately, the Court unjustly dismissed all the cases.

Hon. Carson’s testimony could explain why, until this day, the US has not sent any form of congratulatory message to President Biya, following the October 2011 Presidential election.
On comparing the US policy response between Cameroon and Senegal where both Wade and Biya had "tinkered" their constitutions by removing term limits, Carson explained that the US acted differently in Cameroon because the threat of violence and wide spread instability was not as great or as serious as it appeared to be in Senegal on the eve of the Presidential election. This is clear confirmation of the role the people's power played in stopping Wade from another term in office. In contrast to the passive civil society in Cameroon, Carson considered the Senegalese civil society to be active, saying it played a key role in organising the grass-roots support that quickly turned into an anti-Wade movement.

In his closing remarks, the Assistant Secretary of State remained optimistic about the future of Cameroon. He reiterated the popular belief that a democratic change is irreversible in Cameroon, especially with President Biya getting close to 80 years old. This implied that if the awaited change doesn't come from Cameroonians themselves, time will catch up with Biya eventually.

He called upon the Senate/subcommittee on Africa to write to President Biya in the same way it wrote to President Wade of Senegal, calling on him to respect the democratic norms so as to enable a smooth and peaceful transition of power in Cameroon.

He also urged the Senate to remind Biya that the international community is focused on what is happening in Cameroon and the need to put stronger institutions which will ensure a stable transition when the time comes.

Meanwhile, on the second panel of the hearing, Dr. Christopher Fomunyoh, Senior Director for Africa at the National Democratic Institute (NDI) reminded the committee that, for the past 50 years, Cameroon has failed to conduct national elections that were not overshadowed by controversy.

Fomunyoh further stressed that, in Cameroon, the opaque handling of electoral processes and government-imposed hurdles impede the ability of the civil society and the independent media to monitor and report on elections. He decried the fact that, the Cameroonian youth, prompted by restrictive laws and a lack of confidence in the country's political system and institutions, are becoming apathetic and apprehensive of their future.

Fomunyoh, who is widely expected to play a key role in the transition process in Cameroon, raised legitimate concerns to the committee on the fact that the lack of political will to create the appropriate framework for credible democratic elections, while preserving an entrenched regime in power, may push the country to the brink of violence and instability.

He equally insisted on the need for the Cameroonian civil society to be strengthened given the importance of their role in the democratisation process in Cameroon. Other panellists at the hearing included Dr. Mo Ibrahim of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation and Hon. Earl Gast, Assistant Administrator for Africa, US Agency for International Development. Senior Senators like John Kerry and Isakson were also present at the hearings.