CA condemns President Paul Biya’s visit to Italy- a misplaced priority
The West Cameroon Association (WCA) has observed with bewilderment the current state visit of His Excellency Mr Paul Biya, President of Cameroon to Italy, at a time when West Cameroon is heavily militarised, with its citizens refused the right to freedom of speech which has led to several Anglophones being unlawfully jailed, many hospitalised and internet blackout in the region.
WCA condemns such a visit to Italy, a Christian country where justice and the respect of fundamental human rights are central to the dignity of every human being born in the image of God, the same rights which are being denied to the peoples of West Cameroon under Mr. Biya’s brutal and repressive regime.
WCA notes that such a visit confirms the disdain with which the Biya government treats English speaking Cameroonians, clearly showing his intransigence to finding a lasting solution to the Anglophone problem whose eruption has crippled West Cameroon for over four months.
Furthermore, WCA has received reports that, a group of young men and women accompanied the President on this trip, thus highlighting the misuse of the taxpayers’ money to fund such a trip at the expense of Cameroonians, in addition to exploiting the vulnerability of the youths whose future is not guaranteed under his leadership.
WCA fears that with the current trial of the arrested leaders of the Civil Society Consortium scheduled for Thursday, March 23rd 2017, there could be an eruption of emotions if as predicted, the accused Leaders, Dr Agbor Balla, Dr Neba Fontem; as well as Mancho Bibixy, Justice Ayah Paul and many others whose basic human rights and freedoms continue to be abused by the government, are not afforded a fair trial. This could further escalate the Anglophone crisis to catastrophic proportions.
Therefore, WCA calls for the immediate return to Cameroon of Mr Biya to resolve the current impasse using his existing executive powers of the state to initiate meaningful dialogue for a lasting resolution.
WCA strongly urges the President of Cameroon to stop all the cosmetic gimmicks such as setting up of the “Commission on Bilingualism and Multiculturalism” and immediately convene constitutional talks to restore the sacrosanct form of state by which West Cameroon became independent by way of a 2-state co-equal federation with East Cameroon. The 1961 Constitution had this safeguard to maintain our unity and should never ever have been tampered with – its desecration has led to what is now manifesting as this persistent Anglophone Problem.
God Bless West Cameroon.
The Secretariat,
The West Cameroon Association,
Email: secretariat[at]westcamassoc[dot]org
Weblink: http://www.westcamassoc.org/
