In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

19 Chapter Two Ahmadou Ahidjo, Independence and the Hidden Agenda The once-upon-a-time twin yellow stars on the Cameroon flag told the tale of a nation, and so does the now lone star—the dilemma of a people: Anglophone and Francophone Cameroonians disagreeing over the kind of government to have—federation or otherwise—and the level of influence each faction should have in the management of the nation and its resources. The situation has led to Anglophones threatening to secede because of what they consider their second class status in their own country. This impasse ought not to exist but for the love of some people to foment trouble for absolutely no reason other than that they are egoistic, evil, and myopic, or at best easily manipulated by forces outside of themselves. Otherwise, there is absolutely no need to manipulate Cameroon’s history, as has been and continues to be the case until today by imperialists and quisling forces within the current national territory. The groups of people later to be identified as Cameroonians, with the emergence of the modern state, were a quiet, peace-loving people living in smaller communities, and sometimes organised states and kingdoms ruled by monarchs with as much rights to their crowns and positions as their European counterparts (Nyamnjoh Africa’s Media 101). Above all else, they were held together by ethnic bonds. These communities were no doubt expanding as the members ventured out into other territories for different undertakings. Their activities ranged from hunting, trade, and subsequently socializing, but things were to change with the entrance of Westerners. Since then, Cameroon’s history has been tormented by the presence of different Western nations relating to Cameroon in different capacities. The Portuguese, however, sometime in 1472, were the first to surface in this territory, with its foundation in the Atlantic Ocean, the map of which looks today like a triangle with a hump. The Portuguese, it is reported, also gave the country her name. Because of the prawns they saw up one of the estuaries, the Wouri estuary, they called the country they had come to, Rio dos Camarões, “River of Prawns”. The name, with time, metamorphosed into “Cameroon”, and has since been spelled differently depending on the language of the Western nation romancing the country at the time, starting with the Portuguese themselves. From their arrival until the end of the 16th century, Portuguese navigators and traders scoured the coasts of Cameroon, even as the trade in slaves and other valuables was going on. In 1841, Joseph Merrick and Alfred Saker were two of the first Protestant missionaries to arrive in Douala, Cameroon. This was the socio-political climate of Cameroon, when the Germans entered the scene, and on July 12, 1884, signed a treaty with the Douala chief of Akwa, making Douala a German protectorate. The Germans called the country “Kamerun;” they were, however, not to be around for long. Not having fared well during World War I (1914), the Germans, who had already begun establishing themselves in the country, were flushed out by the victorious allied forces.1 This defeat of the Germans led to the sharing of Cameroon between France and Britain as a way of compensating them for their roles in the War. Whereas France received the larger part of the territory, Britain was placed in charge of what is today the English-speaking part of Cameroon, which is smaller 20 in territory and population. These two Western nations established their cultures in these parts of Cameroon and at once went to work exploiting the territories for their benefits. Whereas France treated her part of Cameroon (which they spell “Cameroun”) as France overseas, and did a lot to develop it, Britain’s legacy in the Southern Cameroons is shameful, comparatively speaking. Although the British established a firm system of governance to help them control the territory, there was absolutely nothing else done to develop it. It is said in Cameroon today that if Britain did any work that looked like development, it was intended to facilitate her draining of the region involved. For example, the dangerous winding tracks put in place for roads, and the railways, served the transportation of raw materials to the coast, for subsequent exportation overseas, and hardly anything else. This exportation of Africa’s surplus subsequently resulted in underdevelopment. Small wonder one can point out, even today, numerous German structures in the former Southern Cameroons, but hardly anything by the English. To be...

Share