Perspectives on Written Cameroon Literature in English

22. John Ngong Kum, Walls of Agony, Yaoundé: Editions CLE 2006

313 22 John Ngong Kum, W Walls of Agony, Yaoundé: Editions CLE 2006 A Cameroonian educationist, John Ngong Kum Ngong, has graced our literary landscape with two new imaginative works. They are Battle for Survival (June 2006) a play, and Walls of Agony (June 2006) a collection of 40 poems. For now, I am concerned with the latter, putting on hold the former. Walls of Agony has as its general subject matter the post-colonial Cameroonian society which the poet criticizes and educates. Cameroon emerges from the poems as a society composed of people of various cultural and ethnic backgrounds. But instead of this cultural multivalence becoming a source of strength and a potential for positive change, it translates into a narrative of national anomie, an occasion for the construction of walls of incomprehension and misery. The poet’s anger is directed against all those who erect these polyvalent tribal walls of division and misunderstanding between the Superior Self and the Inferior Other. His ire is aimed at those who fan the flames of tribal Manichaeism (‘The Battle continues’, ‘Powerless’). The Cameroon that the poems examine is a country blessed with many natural resources which are unfortunately mismanaged by a few privileged citizens to the detriment and misery of many. The poet pictures the country as having been ruined and destroyed by the profligate few but one that needs to be rebuilt by real patriots. It is in the dimension of reconstruction that the poet situates his role and that of genuine nationalists. On the whole the poet is pre-occupied with familiar themes like exploitation, deprivation, marginalisation, cruelty, insatiable greed, corruption, indecency, injustice and exclusion etc. 314 It is axiomatic that the essence of poetry is imagery, the use of figurative language. Ngong Kum’s collection is highly figurative, particularly with regard to the use of metaphor. The human leeches, the parasites and destroyers of the country are metaphorically read as ‘caterpillars on our grazing land’ (43); ‘greedy dogs’ (24); ‘grey-haired sharks’ (24); ‘human locusts’ (41); ‘fleas and rats’ (32); ‘worms’ (54); ‘maniacs’ (24); ‘cursed castrated curs’ (29), etc. This use of emotive language shows the poet’s anger and critical attitude towards his subject matter. However, the author does not only deconstruct; he reveals his desire to reconstruct, to rebuild what has been destroyed. While he is critical, the poet eschews runaway radicalism or outright recourse to violence as a means of reconstructing a new Cameroonian society. He believes the law can be invoked for the redress of some of the social ills, (‘Ridiculous Walls’). In places the poet’s critical but patriotic tone of voice becomes combative. He sounds like a man of action, a fighter. But his weapon is neither the spear nor the gun, but rather the barrel of the ‘pen’ which be intends to use to ‘fire’ our ‘brains’ so that ‘those who career with justice / Will for sure join the rescue team / That will give our country a new face’ (‘Ridiculous Walls’). He entreats his ancestral supreme deity, Kezeh, to give him artistic wisdom to reform his Cameroonian society, ‘A brush and paint for reconstruction’ with which ‘to challenge corruption to combat and batter the heart of exploitation’ (‘Better than Flight’). He appeals to Kezeh to ‘Mould me into a fine poet / That my songs may my people revive’ (‘Let me in’). It is logical that a man as committed as the poet is will not look kindly on those who refuse to speak out against societal ills. Indeed he criticises those who remain silent in the face of social injustice and misdemeanour; that is, ‘those who still do not see / The folly of not speaking out’ (53). He believes that he and his generation will be held accountable to history, to posterity (‘Touch Down’ and ‘The Combatant’): 315 Your children will be ashamed When the story will be told Of how you shamelessly backed down From the position you took To combat cutthroat exclusion (‘The combatant’) The poet thus encourages those who matter to join him in condemning the moral wrongs of society in the hope of eventually reforming it. He urges citizens to play an active, positive role in constructing ‘walls’ of understanding while demolishing those of incomprehension. The poet wishes he were thunder and lightning so that he could raze to the ground all symbols of retrogression and underdevelopment; he wishes he had the magic balm with...