I Spit on their Graves: Testimony Relevant to the Democratization Struggle in Cameroon

The French may not be Foolish but...

163 The French May Not Be Foolish But… T he French may not be foolish, but they are certainly not wise. I am less concerned here with trying to prove the foolishness of the French than with demonstrating their lack of wisdom. Whether lack of wisdom and foolishness are simply two names for one and the same reality, two sides of one and the same coin, is not for me to say. You can decide that for yourself. If the French were wise they would have realized the importance of the Freudian factor in Cameroon politics. Theoretically, the rise of John Fru Ndi is extremely important to the French and French neo-colonial politics in Cameroon. If the French were wise, they would have immediately realized how lucky they were at the emergence of Fru Ndi at a very crucial point in the political history of Cameroon. In terms of grass-root support all over the national territory, the “bookseller of Bamenda,” Ni John Fru Ndi, has no peer on our political firmament. I have made this statement before in this column because this has been the case since the historic launching of the Social Democratic Front (SDF) in May 1990. In fact, the fanaticism with which Cameroonians, right across the board and across regional linguistic barriers, support Fru Ndi, is only matched by the latter’s own charisma.. The democratic wind of change which heralded the last decade of our millennium will not stop blowing until all repressive dictatorial systems are blown off from all parts 164 Godfrey B. Tangwa (Rotcod Gobata) of the globe. The French should know. In a plural society as culturally, ethnically and linguistically diverse as Cameroon, it is extremely difficult for any individual or even political party to draw the sort of support that Fru Ndi has enjoyed for three years running now. And this in spite of a formidable state machinery mobilized on all fronts against him. The latest opinion polls still give Fru Ndi about 80% of the support of Cameroonians and his nearest rival about 50%. And it is very significant that all the closest rivals are also his supporters such as Garga Haman Adji, Hameni Bielieu and Sanda Oumarou; which means that as a team they enjoy close to 100% support of Cameroonians who are sick of the Biya junta and dying for change in Cameroon. If the French were wise they would have realized the critical importance of the fact John Fru Ndi is an Anglophone. The Anglophone factor is the greatest challenge to French hegemony in Cameroon. The way things are at present, the French will surely meet their waterloo in Cameroon within the context of the Anglophone problem. One possible scenario is the outright secession of the Anglophone region. As exploiters, this is a nightmarish possibility for the French since the mammary glands of the Cameroonian cow to be milked are located within that region. If the French had allowed Fru Ndi to have his victory in 1992, it is more than likely that the Anglophone problem would simply have fizzled out. Because what has greatly accentuated the Anglophone problem is blatant injustice, ably supported by ruthless repression and careless arrogance. The Fru Ndi phenomenon has helped to bring out the French assimilationist policy of the Anglophones in its stark nudity. And now the Anglophone problem has reached such a pitch that, even if Fru Ndi were to come to power now, Anglophones would not be satisfied with anything less than a return to federation. And it would have to be an enhanced federation with more autonomy than what existed prior to Ahmadou Ahidjo’s 1972 fraud. 165 I Spit on their Graves: Testimony Relevant to the Democratization Struggle If the French were wise, they would surely have known that what makes the Anglo-Saxon world tick is not any socalled Anglo-Saxon cultural imperialism but rather LIBERALISM characterized by democracy, openness, tolerance and meritocracy. Last year, the Francophonie Club here in Yaounde held their activities at the British Council. An Anglophone activity can never be allowed at the French Cultural Centre. I’ve tried on several occasions and always been bluntly told that the FCC is not here to promote English. The French language is more sonorous, sweeter in the mouth and ear, than English. But everyone would eventually prefer English which is non-musical to the ear and often awkward in the mouth...