Southern West Cameroon Revisited (1950-1972) Volume One: Unveiling Inescapable Traps

Chapter 4 - The Plebiscite: Litmus Test of Political Maturity

81 Chapter 4 The Plebiscite: Litmus Test of Political Maturity Of all the events which occurred to actualize it and those which have happened in its wake, the plebiscite of 11 February1961 is incontestably the highest watershed in the political history of Southern Cameroons; as by it, all the political activity in that territory beginning from 1951 was epitomized. It was a momentous decision taken by 349.652 or 94.75 of the total electorate and was the most critical decision that has continued to affect the lives and times not only of the inhabitants of that part of Cameroon but that of the entire country. Internationally, certified as sacrosanct free, fair and transparent, it was supreme to all other forms of elections that took place before and after it. In a way, it constituted the essence directly or indirectly, of the substance covered by the caption of the Summit Magazine. Consequently, because of the numerous allegations that have dogged it, it deserves special attention and the statistics provided when carefully analysed speak volumes as there is a limit to the distortions and games that can be played on these figures. There are numerous allegations in the interview targeted at the plebiscite, the worst of which is the delusion that; “There wasn’t an overwhelming support for reunification per se.”129 Even more disparaging, Professor Ngoh holds that: “in the plebiscite of February 11, 1961, most voters in British Southern Cameroons did not understand what they were voting for. Some felt they were voting for a loose confederation, others for a Commonwealth ...”130 Besides the fact that the option of reunification with Republic of Cameroon was the “most” unattractive option because literally it was on fire, it should be understood that the campaigns were fierce and thorough; and the plebiscite was superbly well organized to the point of unanimous satisfaction as borne by the observations at the time by all the parties involved. The impression created by the UN Plebiscite 129 Ibid., see Epilogue 130 Ibid., Time Scape Magazine, p.18. 82 Commissioner himself, Dr. Abdoh Djalal, the Iranian, whose account to the UN General Assembly was lucid, speaks for itself. In it at the cost of repetition for emphasis, he reported: One of the outstanding aspects of the plebiscite in the Southern Cameroons was the remarkable calm, which prevailed during all its phases, despite the density of the political campaign during the last weeks preceding the polling. It is with great satisfaction that l pay tribute to the people of Southern Cameroons for the respect they showed for law and order.131 This amounted to a superb performance report card for the entire Southern Cameroons populace especially the electorate. It was also a manifestation of the high level of political consciousness, degree of patriotism and civic responsibility of the people of Southern Cameroons. Interestingly, John Percival, one of the twenty-five Plebiscite Officers, though a British citizen bluntly condemned British benign neglect of the territory and politicking at the UN. Yoking both together, he considered the entire exercise bogus, unnecessary and sheer eyewash by Great Britain and the UN from the angle that the electorate was deprived of the Third Option of Independence. Thus in the first place he saw: The whole plebiscite as a public relations exercise designed to demonstrate to the world at large that the people of Southern Cameroons were being given freedom of choice, whereas the only choice they wanted was denied to them…. arguing passionately in favour of independence.132 He maintains that Southern Cameroonians even as far away as Wum were very politically mature, clearly pointing out that they had been deprived by the British of their most cherished option which was independence. However, Percival still confirmed the views of Dr. Djalal Abdoh concerning the thoroughness with which the process 131 Ibid., Ndi, Golden Age p. 79. 132 Ibid., Percival, p.79. 83 was executed. He, Percival, alone hired twenty registration clerks besides other officials and for the process, he notes: As soon as we had corrected the typescripts, we took the finished forms back to our districts and had them posted where they could be available to everyone in each village. This was to give the opportunity for people to point out omissions on the list, or to make objections against the inclusion of any one they believed to be an unqualified voter. The time table allowed for these objections...