By Tikum Mbah Azonga
The President is in a fix
Nevertheless, he is at the forum
Followed by poets, philosophers and priests
But there are no journalists
Simply because instead of the word, “press”
Someone wrote, “dress”
And so, the hapless Protocol Officer
Despite his years of experience
Took it his own way
And gave the president the wrong brief.
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
At first, there were just common iron filings
Then came the metric system
And the erection of the Berlin wall
And then, the tongue-tied visitor.
If anyone was abducted, it was Kelong
As he read the ten o`clock news
No one could stop the assailants, not even Mballa Two
Today our man speaks on the other side of the Atlantic
And proudly too.
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
Oh, darling
How I miss you!
Your irresistible dreamy eyes
So misleadingly calm they can drown ten men at once
But I love them, I want them
Please, give me a look right now, right here
So that at my own behest and at my own peril
I can dive headlong into that distant bottomless pit of a world
It matters little if I never return
You are worth more than my life
Call it suicide if you like
It won`t change anything.
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
Dear God
Today, send forth thine annointed angel
Send him down with the olive balm
So that tonight, holding up the black and white label
May I chant the ringing mantra: “This is the cod!This is the cod!”
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
If at all anyone has known the hard life
It is this me, caught as I am
Between a rock and a hard place
For what haven`t I done or condoned?
I irked out a living from dustbins in Fyffe
I was used as canon fodder to dynamite a dam in Oldham
For a single farthing in Leeds, I was made to buy and sell stale lace
So, how much more should I have condoned?
BAMENDA UNIVERSITY GROWS BIGGER
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
The University of Bamenda, Cameroon`s seventh state university, which effectivel y kicks off this 2010-2011 academic year is doing so with three new schools added to it. They are the Faculty of Health Sciences, the Faculty of Science, and the Institute of Commerce and Mananagement. The information was disclosed recently by the university`s pionner Vice Chancellor, Prof. Tafah Edokat. The three institutions will bolster the existing stock of the Higher Teachers`s Training College (ENS) headed by Acting Director [Prof Matthew Gwanfogbe and the Higher Technical Teachers` Training College (HTTTC) headed by Acting Diretor Dr. Lukong Kenneth Mengnjo.
The Service Head for Student Affairs, Dr. Nguendjio Emile Gille of the ENS told Cameroon Tribune that the groundwork is moving as planned.
AYAH PAUL`S MISSED OPPORTUNITY
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
A few days ago, People`s Action Party (PAP) Leader Ayah Paul Abine published pictures of women demonstrating at the Cameroon Tea Estate (CTE) for nonpayment of dues. He also reported that the women`s demonstration had been broken up by local administrators. Ayah did well by bringing this “social injustice” to the attention of the world. However, he could have gone further. But he stopped short. By reporting the event, Ayah did the job of a journalist which is to “expose”, rather than his rightful one of a politician which is to “correct”.
Where Ayah erred is that as a politician and especially a presidential candidate who literally came from nowhere to find himself so high up on the league table of presidential candidates, he should have exploited the incident of the striking women to his own advantage. Instead of just reporting, the former parliamentarian could have acted by either personally marching up to the regional governor`s office and asking him some tough questions, or driving to Yaounde to demand an explanation from the minister in charge. If he did that then he would have been parading a solution to the public, not the problem.
Right now, Ayah has tremendous power and political clout which he does not seem to realize. So from that view point, he is like the proverbial man who earned five thousand francs a day but lived poorly on only five hundred francs. Ayah after all did comparatively well in the presidential election. In fact6, after Paul Biya with a 77.9 score; Ni John Fru Ndi coming second with 10.7; Garga Haman Adji coming third with 3.2, it is Ayah who followed in fifth place with 1.2 per cent. Ayah is to be commended because unlike the other candidates, he is a first time comer to the presidential race. From that view point, Walla Edith Kabang another new comer and the woman with the best score at the election, deserves some praise for coming closely behind Ayah at number 6th place with 0.71 per cent of the votes.
Henceforth, Ayah must learn that in order to grow stronger in politics and be able to stand the test of time, he should seek to show what he can do for the people rather than just show that he can demonstrate that his adversary is ruling poorly.
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
Eric Njungwe wrote in CAMNETWORK:
“International law recognizes the right of a people to have recourse to rebellion against dictatorship and oppression. If the people of Cameroon were to rise-up against the dictatorship of Paul Biya, it would be perfectly legal and be recognized by the international community as a legitimate act by an oppressed people to free themselves from tyranny”.
BELOW IS MY REPLY TO ERIC AND OTHER LIKE-MINDED PEOPLE.
1. EMPTY TALK AND NOTHING ELSE
That`s true. But the problem is that we have a lot of people who do very much talking and no action. Who will leave talk, rise up courageously and bell the cat? No one. We talk today as we did twenty five years ago and will do 25 years from now.
2. THE UNSONG HEROES
Yet there are other Cameroonians on the ground, on the spot, in the field, doing it their own way. They may not satisfy us but at least they are there and doing something about it. That is why I feel Diasporan critics show render to Caesar what is Caesar`s by acknowledging the significant role of people like Fru Ndi and more recently, Ayah and Kah Walla. There is a saying that the man who says it can`t be done should not stop the man who is doing it. The rest of us have chosen to be absentee landlords. We have abdicated and ceded our rights. We are toothless dogs and dogs whose bark is not might, but fright.Yet someone once said: “Les absents ont toujours tort” (Absentees are always the wrong ones).
3. LACK OF UNITY FROM WITHIN
Strictly speaking, Cameroon does not need the over two hundred political parties and over fifty bidding for president of the Republic. Why did the opposition not unite and presnet a single candidate? They instead did so only later to sign a joint statement. From the moment they accepted to run, they should have known the decison of the Supreme Court was final. Now, what purpose will protests serve?
4. LACK OF UNITY FROM WITHOUT
The Diaspora critics must ask themselves some tough questions: To wha extent did they prepare the opposition for thew change they wan? Election campaigns cost a lot of money. You remember that from wht Obama spent. How much of it did yousend to the candidate of your choice? Did you take time out and come here to help? Did you campaign for them in your host country? Also, if you have taken foreign nationality which implies that at least for now, you are no longer a Cameroon, do still have a voice?
5. THE GAPING GAP OF THE DIASPORA
The Diaspora is not impacting well here at home. There are a lot of concrete actions the Diaspora could take for the benefit of the country. Unfortunately, it has become obsessed with one man: Paul Biya. How many scholarships has the Diaspora offered young Cameroonians since the school year began? How many schools has the Diaspora built? How many potable water points has it provided? How many health facilities have they provided? When we had an outbreak of cholera, where were they? Why are they not investing heavily back at home? Property is a very lucrative domain in Cameroon. Whether you build for a family or a business, you will have tenants. So why not cash in on opportunities such as the newly created University of Bamenda and build houses for students ad lecturers? In that way you make some money and help Cameronians with muc needed low cost housing. The opportunities are limitles.
6. TAKING AIM AT THE WRONG TARGET
I talked about the obsession with the removal of Paul Biya? But Biya is only one Cameroonian. Street protests did not remove him in 1990-1992. So what has changed so dramatically that we think it will work this time. Political success needs patience and planning. The opposition should note that and start preparing for the next presiddntial election today. Seven years is a short period politically. Even Ni John Fru Ndi, the incontestable leader of the opposition will still be politically young enough to become president in 2018. But he must look forward and not backwards, and start preparing now. Cameroon is more important than Paul Biya. That`s why people come and go but the nation remains.
7. DO NOT COUNT ON THE WEST
Some Cameroonians said hey were going to demonstrate in Wshington. I do not know if they did it. But what would be the message to Americans who see a bunch of Black peole, not even looking like ther own , African American brothers , blocking their streets with placards on some distant president and country? Won`t your hosts simply turn round and wonder loudly : “Why on earth don`t they take it back to their own contry and leave us in peace?” And concretely, what do you expect Obama to do? March into Yaounde with a big stick and beat Biya out of Etoudi? Since when? In other words, yopu are asking someone else to come and tidy up your own dirty backyard for you.
8. INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS
Diasporans have been quick to quote the American ambassador saying the election here was flawed. But the observers from the African Union, the Commonwelath, and La Francophonie, after making some observations, concluded that the results were acceptable. The UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon issued a statement of appreciation. We can`t ignore that. Besides, we have not seen any Western countries recalling their ambassadors as a sign of protest. Remember that when a couple of years ago, the American embassy staff quit their rented property and moved into the purpose-built embassy on the way to Mont Febe and the Etoudi Palace – just next to what is widely regarded as Paul Biya`s reirement home – the ambassador said this shift from renting to ownership indicated that ‘we are here to stay”.
9. THERE ARE NO PERFECT ELECTIONS
Regular observers know that there is no such thing as a perfect election anywhere, even in the West, including America. An example is the September 2011 election held in Zambia. Observers preferred to conclude by using the expression: “Zambian Election Not Perfect But 100% Better”. This decision was reached even after some irregularities were noticed: “These were just some of the observations made by the Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network who were also invited to observe, and who concluded that Zambia had a number of good practices, but had to improve on fair and balanced coverage of all political parties in the media, lack of gender parity in Zambia’s electoral processes, and lack of a clear framework on political parties financing, so that smaller political parties are not disadvantaged.”
(Femme de classe exceptionnelle)
By Tikum Mbah Azonga
WHY LORD? WHY?
It was with a heavy heart that I learned of the passing into eternity of Mrs Musonge, wife of the Former Prime Minister and Head of Government, the Rt. Hon. Peter Mafany Musonge. She was like a mother to me, just like her husband “is” a father to me. In fact, in Mrs Musonge`s lifetime, she referred to me as “my husband`s son”. This was the result of a closely woven longstandin fibre of love, mutual understanding and conviviality between us.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
I met Mrs Musonge through the husband. Back in the 1980s when Mr. Musonge was making headline news as an astute, robust and highly efficient General Mananger of the state corporations placed under him such as LABOGENIE, and I believe MATGENIE, I followed his activities from London with keen interest. After all, Cameroon was one of the ‘Francophone and lusophone” countries that I covered for the London-absed magazine where I worked. Aftewr he was appointed General Manager of the CDC, I wrote him a congratulatory message. He replied. Thereafter we stayed in touch.
AN INTERVIEW ON CRTV
In 1996, I came to Cameroon and was guest on the popular English language analytical programme, “Cameroon Calling”. Among the questions was asked was whether the UNDP Leader, Bello Bouba Maigari had not betrayed the coalition of opposition parties by going into an alliance with the CPDM. I said no, because politics is a game interest. It is neither charity nor religion. I ited a group of British parliamentarians who once crossed the carpet of the Housew of Commons and were now sitting with the opposition Labout party members, having denounced their own Tory party. Yet, no one accsused them of treason.
I suppose this response and perhaps others I gave moved the PM because I understand he instructed the General Manager of CRTV to do him copies of the interview. The PM later on asked his predecessor, the Rt. Hon. Solomon Achidi Achu to get me to him. Pa Achu did and Mr Musonge received me in his office. We exchanged views on a wide range of issues and I left him full of satistaction with myself and unquenchable admiration for him. Later on , I had a number of preoccupations while in Cameroon which he addressed without hesitation, again with total satisfaction. In fact, Pa Musonge is more than a father to me. Bernard Eko, his then Private Secretary is a living witness to my assertions.
ENTER ANN MOJOKO MUSONGE
Although I had seen Mrs Musonge before, I actually saw her at close quarters during her husbands official visit to Bamenda as prime minister. At the time I was back in Cameroon and played a role in planning the visit and receiving him both on arrival in Santa, during the cceremony in Bamenda and at the time of his exit from Santa. During his speech in Bamenda, the PM moved the growds when he said it was thanks to Bamenda that he had found his “lovely and beautiful wife”. Mr Musonge found her in Bamenda when he worked there as a young engineer.
THE PM INTRODUCES ME TO HIS LOVELY WIFE
This moment came rather unexpectedly. It was one day when the PM reeceived me at his official rsidence near the Yaounde ake. After he and I had chatted downstairs and I rose and was about to eave, he stopped me: “Tikum, wait a minute. There`s a great fan of yours in this house who would like to say hello to you?” Upon those words, he went upstairs and returned with his wife. “Oh, so it was Madam”, gasped.”I`m delighted, Madam. It`s an honour. In fact it`s a great honour fr me!”. She said she very much the then early morning national radio programme, THE WAKE UP SHOW which I ran with the late legendary Journalist, Becky Ndive. How nice to know one is appreciated, I though.
SO, WHO WAS ANN MOJOKO MUSONGE?
Mrs Musonge was an exquisite piece of beauty, especially when she was bespactacled and laughed showing her nice gap teeth which everyone knows is an enviable source of beauty. I could not agree more with Samuel who while reacting to the death recently through Camnetwork, wrote these words on Mrs Musonge who was a teacher by profession: “In 1968 and at the height of the growing academic and galvanizing power of the dynamic stance of CCAST,Bambili in the
country and beyond a tenderly delicate looking ,youthful and self-effacing and apparently plain figure quietly and gently majestically softly strode into the Literature class.In her silky voice she declared in innocently sounding terms she stated with emphatic ease:
“I am Ann Mbongo,just graduated from Nigeria.”She went on to give very little of herself.Her very essence of nature was to to prove herself in teaching..and she did so with universal admiration.She taught with such expet finesse she seemed to be trading tenderly and softly on our dreams.Her approach to her enthusiasm in teaching embodied the totality of the best and beauty of the human spirit that flowd ceaselessly from her delightful persona.”
SPECIAL WORDS TO MY FATHER, PA MUSONGE
Dear Father, I know how you must feel because I know firsthand what Mum meant to you. But there is a prayer that urges us to accept the things we can`t change and change the ones we can change. Besides, the Lord gives and the Lord takes. He is Sovereign. Mum, go in peace.
APPEAL TO THE MUSONGE FAMILY
I would be grateful if you could select an excerpt from this message and include it in the funeral book and sign it on my behalf as , Dr. Tikum Mbah Azonga, Your husband`s Son.
TO THE REST OF THE FAMILY
Please, stay united. Above all, set up an ANN MOJOKO MUSONGE FOUNDATION which can pursue the good works and deeds that were so close to her heart. If you get it started, you can count me in as a de facto member.
I am particularly thinking of family members such as BERNARD FENDE EKO,EBOB EVENYE MBIWAN TANYI, NAMONDO (DIDI) MBIWAN NDANDO, Dr. Mrs. ETONDE MUSONGE TARKANG, Mr. ISOKE MUSONGE (with whom I am professionally connected as a translator), EWANGE MUSONGE, Mr. JACKAI MUSONGE,Mr. VICTOR TABE TARKANG, Mrs. DORA EVENYE EWUSI,Mrs. SUSAN EPOSI MOKEBA,Ms ESTHER ENANGA HARRY and Mrs. ELIZABETH EFETI MBIWAN.
To God be the glory!
Tikum Mbah Azonga, PhD
Lecturer in Mass Communication and French
University of Buea
TEL 7767 6165 or 99986 8663
Email: tmazonga@gmail.com
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