Boundaries and History in Africa: Issues in Conventional Boundaries and Ideological Frontiers

Chapter 27 A Thank You Valediction

595 Chapter 27 A Thank You Valediction By Verkijika G. Fanso Introduction The tradition of Festschrifts (that is, presenting papers of publishing a volume of articles as tribute to a scholar, often at the end of” his/her career) and Valedictions (that is, farewell greetings on important occasions) are definitely Anglo-Saxon practices, and the University of Yaounde 1 already has a tradition of gedenkschrift, or posthumous presentation of papers or publication in memory of a departed colleague. However, the tradition of Festschrift is already making headway in this University. I am thinking of the two most recent Festschrifts organized as tributes, one to Prof. Mbagwana of the English Department and the other to Prof. Chumbow of the Linguistics Department, on the occasion of their retirement from formal academic routines of this University. I am therefore one of the first few privileged academics of Yaounde 1 to be honoured by colleagues, former and current students, friends and admirers from within and outside Cameroon on the occasion of my retirement from formal active service. It is befitting that on such an occasion, I should make a valedictory speech and bow out of official day-to-day academic engagements in the University of Yaounde 1. In this farewell speech, I will talk about the Department of History at the time I was recruited, I will talk about myself and my experiences before and during my very long career in Yaounde and also about things that I think should be looked into in order to move the University forward academically. If I had been only a civil servant and not a senior don at the 596 University and the Ministry of Higher Education, I should have retired at least ten years ago on the occasion of reaching the official age of fifty-five. This Valediction is therefore properly a farewell to formal routines in the University where I may continue to serve as a parttimer after retirement; it is not goodbye to the Public Service that I should have left long ago. My Immediate Preoccupations at Retirement I know that when I say I might continue to serve on a part-time basis, the students who are still working with me on their researches, especially those already at advanced stages of their work or completing their doctoral degree programs, as well as colleagues with whom I am working on joint research projects, would be anxious to know whether I will say bye-bye to those projects and to them and turn my back to academics, or whether I would still be there and available. Many have been rushing to complete their theses, fearing that I am going away for good. I want to assure them that I am still there and available for as long as the Good Lord will continue to give me the energy to read and to continue working with them and also for as long as the University of Yaounde 1 continues to allow me to serve on a part-time basis. The Minister of Higher Education was re-assuring in the National Assembly on this issue of Emeritus Professors during the Question and Answer session a few weeks ago. Whatever the case, how could I go away completely so soon from academics that I have known and loved for so long a time? I will surely work with the research students I accepted to supervise within the expected time limit before going away. In saying so, I am happy to state that after some sixty years at books, from the time I was enrolled in Infants One till date, including 36 years and 10 months of continuous studies, teaching, researching and publishing, I should really go away from active service at the University of Yaounde, as it was known when I was formally recruited on the 3rd of October 1974, or the University of Yaounde 1, as it has been known since 1993.1 really need to go away and rest! 597 The Department of History in 1974 When I started teaching here in 1974, there were hardly more than 40 students in the history degree or third year class and hardly more than 300 fresh men and women in History/Geography in the then lone ‘Bilingual’ University of Yaounde in the country. Today the History Department in Yaounde 1 alone has about 4,000 students and the Graduate Classes have more than 1000, with more...