Ritual killings in Cameroon’s political capital for big government and political positions?, By Chofor Che, 24 January 2013

The political capital of Cameroon, Yaoundé, specifically the neighbourhood called Mimboman, has been hit since December 2012, by a number of deaths of young girls aged 15 to 25. Many have concluded that these deaths are ritual killings especially as the young girls died in similar circumstances, with their sexual organs missing.

Perplexed by such mysterious acts especially at the beginning of an electoral year, a prominent journalist and specialist on supernatural happenings, Begnono Bengono was interviewed on national television, Cameroon’s Radio and Television network. Bengono asserted that this is not a strange phenomenon in Cameroon. According to him, during every electoral year in Cameroon, young people die. It is believed that certain parts of their bodies are used for rituals to enable politicians remain in power or win elections.

Cameroon will host municipal and legislative elections this year. Many government big guns are visiting soothsayers so as to remain in power. This view was corroborated by Dr Ateba Ayene, outspoken member of the Central Committee of the ruling political party in Cameroon, the Cameroon Peoples’ Democratic Movement. According to Ateba, who was recently interviewed over a private television network, Canal2, such acts are demonic acts and contribute to the degradation of the fabric of society.

Forces of law and order have been carrying out investigations on these killings. It is disturbing to know that this neighbourhood is cut off from other neighbourhoods in the nation’s capital, especially as it has no good roads, it is plagued by water and electricity shortages, and it has no police station. The population of Mimboman remains in disarray and fear.

The case of Mimboman in Yaoundé is a vivid example of the consequences of big government especially in Africa. The State in Cameroon is a preferred means by which certain individuals enrich themselves at the detriment of others. Some individuals even go an extra mile to adhere to demands from soothsayers just to remain in power.

African states especially the government of Cameroon need to revisit the raison d’etre of the state. One of the major duties of the state is to ensure that the citizens are safe and sound. It is unbelievable that there is no police station in this area of the city. Action needs to be taken by the authorities that be, to ensure that the population of Mimboman is safe.

Roads as well as power and water are important requirements for life. The population of Mimboman lack these facilities. There is a local council in this area, which has remained dormant for a long-time due to the fact that funds meant for development do not trickle down from the central government to the local government in Mimboman. There is need for the central government to give a chance for communities to develop by ensuring that funds meant for development are judiciously utilised.

If the idea of limited government is inculcated in Cameroonians and they are encouraged to be business orientated, then there will be no need for such outrageous crimes. Of course, the idea of limited government must be beafed up with action. It is important for the state to give room for the private sector to thrive. The private sector in Africa in general and Cameroon still suffers enormously from government cohesion, making many Cameroonians to find solace in politics and government positions. If Cameroon needs to contribute to Africa’s renaissance, then it is time not only for a mind-set change, but concrete action on the ground.

 

Cameroon’s Special Criminal Court: Bad or good omen?, By Chofor Che, 24 January 2013

The Special Criminal Court in Cameroon is a special tribunal created in 2012 to investigate corruption related crimes. Information gotten from case files from this special court has left the population of Cameroon indifferent over the mandate and effectiveness of this court. Is the court an extension of the powerful executive or is a weak extension of the judiciary created to settle political scores?

According to Cameroon Tribune of the 22 of January 2012, in just two months of operation, the court has recovered about 2 billion francs CFA. It is disturbing to know that money projected for development projects is siphoned by individuals while the people of Cameroon continue to languish in poverty. The mandate of this court is to ensure that stolen money is recovered from such corrupt individuals, as corroborated the Minister of State, Minister of Justice and Keeper of the Seals, Laurent Esso, during the inaugural ceremony of the court on 15 October 2012.

Recently the court sentenced an artisanal pot producer caught stealing telecommunication cables of a state owned corporation. According to Cameroon Tribune, this is a sign that the court was not only created to target political criminals and high ranking officials involved in gross financial malpractices.

The court also recently decided to drop charges against the former Director General of the defunct Cameroon Airlines, Yves Michael Fotso, after he agreed to pay back stolen funds. This individual was accused of having swindled state funds and also for having crippled the defunct Cameroon Airlines.

The court is also handling the file of the former Prime Minister of Cameroon, Ephraim Inoni, who was also accused and imprisoned in the national state prison, Kondegui for having embezzled funds meant for development.

There is still a major worry on why colossal amounts of money are left in the hands on individuals without any stringent control. It is no secret that the central government created the problem in the first place by allowing such amount of money to be badly managed by dubious individuals.

Now that the Special Criminal Court has announced that it has and is recovering money from corrupt officials, what happens to the recovered money? Is there a special account where this money will be put to be utilised for specific projects or defunct projects? Has the special court or the central government put measures in place to ensure that this money is redirected to services that were deprived of these funds? What steps are being taken by the state to ensure that such amount of money is not siphoned by corrupt officials again? These are the questions that continue to plague the minds of Cameroonians who remain pessimistic about the mandate of the Special Criminal Court.

It is a laudable idea that such a court was created, but the purpose of such a move by the central government will definitely be defeated if the money is not pumped back into the economy. Cameroonians wish that the money recovered should be utilised for what it was meant for, or be judiciously utilised for defunct projects.

Having a special court is not enough. There is need for Cameroonians to be given a chance to engage in other lucrative sectors like agriculture and small and medium size enterprises. The agricultural sector in Cameroon is still to be mechanised and exploited. The state needs to reduce the current big government sector and increase the private sector. Such measures will definitely reduce the wanton corruption which still persists in the country despite the existence of institutions like the special Criminal Court and other anti-corruption agencies.

 

International Monetary Fund (IMF) prescribes own financial guidelines for Cameroon , By African Manager, 14 November 2012

The head of the joint mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB), Mario Zamaroczy, Monday recommended a number of guidelines for Cameroon to integrate in its 2013 Finance Act.

The IMF proposals include the promotion of growth, a consolidated financial system, enhanced revenue and expenditure limitation, according to a PANA report.

The joint mission has been in Yaounde since Monday for a week-long working visit during which it will assess Cameroon’s economic situation over the last 10 months of 2012 and determine the national economic outlook for 2013.

The mission met Monday with Alamine Ousmane Mey, the Cameroonian Minister of Finance and officials of the Bank of Central African States (BEAC).

During its last mission to Cameroon in May, the IMF had forecast for Cameroon a 5% economic growth for 2013, provided that the central African country complied with a number of requirements, including continuing the implementation of structuring investments and promoting the private sector through the improvement of the business climate and enhancement of the financial sector.

 

Labour unions in Cameroon call on local content policy improvement and better recruitment measures especially in the oil and gas sector, By Chofor Che, 12 November 2012

Since June 2012, civil society groups in Cameroon have been holding meetings with respect to improving recruitment environment in public and private sectors in the country. These moves also include improving the local content policy in the oil and gas sector in Cameroon. Local content policy warrants that private investors in sectors like the forestry as well as in the oil and gas sector, recruit and train locals, to actively participate in these sectors in their home countries. This to some extent entails that locals are involved in this sectors and add value to their home countries, both economically and professionally.

In mid-2012, the Federation of Trade Unions of Cameroon (L’intersyndicale du Cameroun) which is the national representative of all Cameroon workers, and comprises of the National Union of Cameroon Workers (UNTC) and Union of Free Trade Unions, was involved in pushing forth the agenda of ensuring that employees benefit from better working and recruitment conditions.  Amongst other issues, the Federation of Trade Unions was vehemently against the price hikes in gas and fuel prices, witnessed by the country recently.

According to a representative of UNTC, the central government has been very negligent in the oil and gas sector and is the main cause of the hikes in fuel prices, as well as poor remuneration of workers in the public sector.  The labour unions advocated for a reduction of fuel prices and an increase in Cameroon’s minimum wage from XAF 28,246 per month to some substantial amount. The issue of also coordinating and improving on recruitments in the oil and gas sector was also a major issue.

As part of a change in the local content policy, the Federation of Trade Unions were bitter against the way the National Oil refinery (with French acronym SONARA) functions. They could not understand why a lot of money is pumped into this structure which does not refine oil and gas. The state exports crude oil and imports finished oil products, which become very expensive for the average Cameroonian. The argument given by the state is that, it is very expensive for SONARA to refine oil. According to Federation of Trade Unions, this money should be utilised in infrastructural development and in a betterment of the working conditions of workers.

Focusing on the issue of the recruitment of workers in the oil and gas sector, which is currently coordinated through employment services, this representative from UNTC, is of the view that recruitments via employment services, does not add enough value to local content. Usually those employed via employment services do face issues of poor wages, uncoordinated compensation schemes by multinationals, risks of being fired without justification, just to list a few. The representative of UNTC added that complaints and reports from affected employees especially those fired by some multinationals, show that these employment services take no measures to protect the rights of workers. Workers are left on their own.

The representative from UNTC therefore revealed that, there is a push to involve the state in the recruitment exercise of workers in the oil and gas sector, as part of the move to reshape local content policy in the sector. This position was corroborated by a representative of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, who added that, there have been a series of consultation meetings to revamp the local content policy in the oil and gas sector. Some of these meetings focused on strengthening and protecting the rights of Cameroonians working in the oil and gas sector, as well as putting in place legislation on local content policy.

There is indeed a need for Cameroon to improve on its local content policy in the oil and gas sector. At present, the country has week legislation on how citizens are recruited in the sector and how these citizens are to benefit the country professionally. Improving local content policy will go a long way in developing the country, if and only if corrupt government officials do not utilise this medium as a means of enriching themselves, rather than developing the country and harnessing employment measures for Cameroonians as well as foreigners.

 

Ease of Doing Business in Cameroon, Sourced from Doing Business Report 2013

Top rankings	DB 2013 Rank	DB 2012 Rank	Change in Rank
Starting a Business	125	123	-2
Dealing with Construction Permits	95	92	-3
Getting Electricity	63	61	-2
Registering Property	158	155	-3
Getting Credit	104	97	-7
Protecting Investors	128	124	-4
Paying Taxes	176	173	-3
Trading Across Borders	157	158	1
Enforcing Contracts	172	175	3
Resolving Insolvency Overall ranking	150   161	150   156	No change   A change in rank of -5