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00:00Ladies and gentlemen, you are welcome to the program.
00:28It is two scores plus two since President Paul Beale acceded to the supreme majesticy
00:34of the Cameroonian political scene, which he baptized as the New Deal.
00:41And as he answered in an intriguing question from a French journalist, it is not by wish
00:48but it is by tenacity that one stays in power.
00:53President Paul Beale has been steadfast for 42 years and the anniversary, as usual, will
01:01be celebrated on November 6.
01:05On Press Hour today, we shall look at the achievements of the New Deal and what is lacking
01:11to attain the goals he set from the onset of his accession to power.
01:18To talk about this very timely topic and a topic of national interest, we have with
01:25us Abed Ndiambonde.
01:26Abed Ndiambonde is the political desk editor of CRTV Radio.
01:32Abed, welcome to Press Hour.
01:34It's my pleasure, Ndar.
01:36And we have Grimbal Ndar, Deputy Secretary General of the Social Democratic Front, the
01:42SDF.
01:43Welcome to Press Hour.
01:44Thank you very much, Ndar Kilian.
01:47It's a pleasure to be here.
01:49I must say this is my first time on being on your TV debate platform.
01:54And I hope that by the end of today, Cameroonians will be well enlightened on the achievements
02:01as well as the failures of the New Deal regime.
02:04Yes.
02:05We brought you to point out some of those achievements, maybe where they have been lacking,
02:13not actually failure, because he's riding on.
02:16And that's why we brought you to the set.
02:19Thank you for coming.
02:21Now, even whatever the case, he is the head of state.
02:25We are not looking at him as the president of a party.
02:30Thank you very much.
02:31All Cameroonians are supposed to celebrate this day.
02:33Now, join me to welcome Honorable Ndjume Peter Amban, who is a member of Parliament
02:41for the CPDM.
02:42You're welcome.
02:43Thank you very much.
02:44Kilian, it's always a pleasure being part of this very, very enlightening program of yours.
02:51And today again, I thank God that I'm here.
02:53Yes.
02:54And our own Professor Elvis Ngolengole, member of the Central Committee of the Cameroon People's
03:02Democratic Movement, the CPDM.
03:05Prof, thank you.
03:06Each time we call, you answer.
03:08Welcome to Press Hour.
03:09It's always a pleasure.
03:10I'm a Republican and I love to be part of the affairs of the Republic, especially when
03:17I'm in the company of very distinguished and highly esteemed fellow citizens, such as the
03:27ones on this panel.
03:28Thank you very much.
03:29I feel very comfortable and I feel proud to be a citizen of a Republic that is called Cameroon.
03:35Thank you very much, Prof.
03:37And this is Press Hour.
03:40We always kick off by what the newspapers fed on in a week.
03:45And Emanuela Vermeer read the newspapers for Press Hour.
04:03Newspapers in Cameroon opened the week ending in what can be termed one too many killings
04:09in the Northwest region.
04:10There is outrage in municipal updates as mindless terrorists kill deputy mayor of Bamenda.
04:16The Guardian Post describes the gruesome killing as despicable and senseless.
04:21The Voice, advocating for an end to the bloodshed, presents the mayor as latest victim.
04:27And as Lifetime newspaper also reports of the murder of the Bamenda 2 mayor, the Herald
04:34Tribune brings to the fore the killing of two civilians in two hours and injuring of
04:39students by gunmen in Bamenda.
04:42Cameroon Insider writes killing of Bamenda 2 mayor when the horror movie continues before
04:49the Center for Human Rights Development in Africa calls for investigation into the killing
04:55in the horizon.
04:56Notorious separatist fighters are then neutralized in Cameroon Tribune.
05:01To the Guardian Post, soldiers send Amber General Lucifer to hell and also kills eight
05:06fighters in raid in Mimé Division of the Southwest region.
05:10Researchers are reported upbeat in Cameroon Insider as phobia increases perks, then expressed
05:16gratitude for increments of scientific research allowances in Cameroon Tribune, especially
05:21as Cameroon aims to boost industrialization with its One Council, One Policy strategy
05:28in The Voice.
05:29Such will then make way for ambitions Cameroon has to top world plantation production on
05:34Eco Outlook as Life-Changing Plantation Transformation Unit goes operational in Banguim in November,
05:41according to this paper.
05:43At a time Africa is coming together for its gas production in Cameroon Tribune, Minister
05:49Foucalistou Gentry announces multi-billion tire factory in the Southwest region.
05:55In municipal updates, then reiterates government's resolve to revitalize the economy in the
06:01Herald Tribune before the Guardian Post presents what it terms hot files BIA should handle
06:08to resurrect nation, like chase deadwoods and unproductive ministers, fill vacuum left
06:15by deceased government members and send retired governors, SDOs and DOs home, among others.
06:23But the interest of The Voice newspaper is on what it headlines, dismal state of roads,
06:28Mba Gangile opens can of worms.
06:31To the Guardian Post, Mba Gangile reports Nganunju Messi to BIA for worsening road infrastructure
06:38before Nganunju Messi replies Mba Gangile on nightmarish Yaoundé Mutengene road in the
06:44Horizon newspaper.
06:46The Post reports that the police boss has charged 2,444 Mutengene police trainees to
06:53protect civilians, just when Justice Minister Lohaissou regrets lengthy periods of awaiting
07:00trials for crime suspects in the sun.
07:03New electricity rates then go operational in Cameroon.
07:07In municipal updates, Cameroon Tribune reports that the new tariffs are uniform for everyone.
07:13The Guardian Insider then announces that a recycling plant to cost 80 billion CFR is
07:18on the way to recycle waste in Yaoundé and so the town could look better.
07:23And those were the papers for you.
07:35Thank you very much Emmanuel and ladies and gentlemen.
07:38If you are just tuning in, this is Press Hour and we are broadcasting live from Studio
07:444 of CRTV Production Center at Mbala II in Yaoundé.
07:51Just keep your cold, we're going to give you the type of debate that you need for a
07:57Sunday afternoon.
07:58Now, Prof, our topic is the New Deal, Achievements and Perspectives.
08:06Actually, we want to look at the achievements of 42 years of President Paul.
08:12We are in power and see what is it that he hasn't yet completed in his agenda, call
08:19it program or even vision.
08:22We are going to start with the journalist on the set, Albert Diambondé.
08:28If you are a pressman, if you were to look at Paul Diard today and say, yes, Mr. President,
08:34we are happy you did this to Cameroon, you did this to Cameroonians, what would you say?
08:41First of all, to say, I would tell the President that 42 years of his being in power have been
08:50fairly good, but like every other citizen, to say that it could be better and also to
08:59comment that the act of nation building is never complete.
09:04Even the most developed nations still do have challenges, emerging challenges, old challenges,
09:11which call for all those who are not only the President, but all those who are vote
09:20holders, all those who are state functionaries, all those who are patriots, to be able to
09:28help the President to attain.
09:30And so, when I say it's fairly good and we could do better, I'm looking at the
09:36provision of basic amenities like water, electricity, roads.
09:41You bear with me that a lot has been done, but like I say, we could do better.
09:47We have the problems of culture of maintenance, maybe we're going to come to that.
09:52We're actually going to come to that.
09:54What I would say is, with respect to basic amenities, we all know what the country was
09:59before now.
10:00When it comes to issues of civil liberties, we know what it was and we all know what
10:07it is today with big giant strides, but yet there are still some challenges which call
10:15on all Cameroonians to help the President.
10:17Thank you.
10:18We are going to get to those challenges.
10:20Let's move over to the extreme right of this set to meet Grim Balder, who is the
10:28Deputy Secretary General of the Social Democratic Front.
10:32You may want to ask why we brought him.
10:35Cameroonians know that from the 1990s, when the political potatoes were very hot, it was
10:43the SDF that was leading many other political parties.
10:47It has consistently stayed in opposition while others came into alliances, some even
10:58just fell off the track along the line.
11:02Now, Grim Balder, we are going to come to, as you said, where things have not worked,
11:10because we cannot be painting a completely white picture.
11:14Now, as head of state, we first want to look at where has it worked?
11:21OK.
11:23Thank you.
11:25It has been 42 years since 1982.
11:33It is true that in contemporary science we cannot completely say something is 100% bad
11:41or 100% good.
11:43But as you asked, where has it gone right?
11:46I will first of all begin by saying that as an individual, as a Cameroonian, I have
11:53a PhD degree today and it was in Cameroon.
11:57From my primary one, nursery one education up to PhD level, I did it in Cameroon.
12:05I did not have any of my qualifications out of the country.
12:10That is a plus.
12:12Despite the problems we have in Cameroon's educational system, I still want to say that
12:18the education in Cameroon is relatively free.
12:22Because with 50,000 francs, you can do a PhD in Cameroon.
12:28We should share that opinion to say that when a student pays 50,000 francs, the state has
12:37added a fee to the 50, which makes 500 on relative terms.
12:44So the cost of the school or university study is 500,000 francs.
12:52According to analysis, the most expensive state university owned by the government
12:57is the University of Boya, where if we want to estimate, as you have said, the fee there
13:02would be about 700,000 francs.
13:05And the cheapest is the University of Yaoundé-Toussouan, where the fee would be estimated about 450,000 francs.
13:13I think this is something that most Cameroonians don't know.
13:17Yes, they only pay 50,000 francs, which is something to applaud.
13:25Because relatively, in sub-Saharan Africa, in terms of education, Cameroon is ranked above the average.
13:31Thank you very much.
13:32Can you continue with some other ideas?
13:34It is a good aspect.
13:37There is also this aspect of civil liberties, which you earlier mentioned.
13:44But permit me to say that this aspect cannot be mentioned without making reference to the SDF.
13:51Because if we have civil liberties today in Cameroon, it is also partly, not even partly,
13:58mostly due to the opposition to the activities of the SDF in the 1990s.
14:03Remember that the government under President Pogbia was very, very reluctant to submit to the new wave
14:11of democratization across Africa and across the globe.
14:15And so, because of this very strong democratic force, from Nijon Fundi of blessed memory,
14:24multi-partisanship could come in Cameroon.
14:27It is said, and it is proven, that through some people in President Pogbia's party,
14:35as the chairman of a party, were against it.
14:40And he was the one who came out and said, no, we have to accept.
14:44So, yes, the SDF did that.
14:46But the credit also should go to the person who had the power to refuse.
14:52Yes, that's why I'm saying that the credit goes to both.
14:57But more to the part where pressure came from.
15:00That's what I'm saying.
15:01Because the head of state had the power, the legitimate power to accept or not to accept.
15:08He accepted under pressure, that's the truth.
15:10He accepted under pressure.
15:13But civil liberties, unfortunately, is being threatened today.
15:17We see how journalists are being murdered for their opinions.
15:20That would be the second part of our discussion.
15:22Thank you very much.
15:23Now, we're going to go around the table.
15:26I'm going to go to Honorable Peter and Jumé Peter-Ambang,
15:31some of the achievements of your party, because you have the CPDM.
15:37But also, achievements of the head of state.
15:40Because on the 6th of November, we, as Cameroonians, are celebrating President Pogbia
15:48with the President of the Republic.
15:49Yes.
15:50Thank you very much.
15:51I think, before I continue, I just want to make a very fast correction
15:56from what Mr. Grégoire said.
16:00When he says that most of the credit for democracy, liberty that we have today,
16:09goes to opposition, that is a pleasure.
16:11No, I would say no.
16:13He has forgotten that President Pogbia,
16:16when he came to power, he had a vision.
16:20And that vision was in his book, Communal Liberalism.
16:24And in this book, you could see clearly that he was a man who was already open,
16:30you know, to democracy, open to freedom.
16:33And this opportunity came, and he was simply trying to implement the vision
16:38that he had in his book.
16:40So, Mr. Ndiaye, I'll go back to records.
16:43That is simple truth.
16:45Just as he could have said no, but then he had a vision.
16:48So that is the first thing.
16:50Now, to add to what others have said, a lot has been done by President Pogbia.
16:57But I want to cite particularly the aspect of peace.
17:01Because it is in this area that he has even won international awards
17:07and recognition and respect.
17:09The way he manages insecurity, the way he manages conflicts,
17:17the way he has been able to, not only in Cameroon,
17:22but at the level of the region and internationally.
17:25And you know that in 2017, he spoke out at the UN General Assembly
17:32on the importance of peace in sustainable development and for humanity.
17:39So it is in this area of peace that I want to really dwell on today,
17:43because there is no price for peace.
17:45Okay, thank you.
17:46Thank you.
17:47Professor Evis Ngole Ngole, the Republican.
17:50Yes.
17:51Some of the achievements of the New Deal.
17:54Yes, 42 years of President Pogbia in power,
17:5942 years of lots of achievements, great achievements.
18:03And I've always said, as a Republican,
18:07we always have to be objective,
18:12because by definition, a republic is a political system
18:20in which the people are the ones who determine who governs
18:26and how they are governed.
18:27That's why it's called a republic.
18:29It could be called something else.
18:31But for us, ours is a republic.
18:33Therefore, because we are the ones, we the citizens, the people,
18:36who decide, we have to try to be objective, because it depends on us.
18:41And as a Republican, when you look at 42 years of President Pogbia in power,
18:46you are looking at 42 years of visionary and inspiring leadership,
18:55visionary and inspiring method of managing state power.
19:00And when you look at those 42 years, it's like you can look at a glass,
19:0442 years, after 42 years, policymaking is like pouring water in a glass,
19:09or pouring whatever, soil or whatever, in a glass.
19:1242 years, would you, in all objectivity, claim that a glass is empty?
19:18That common sense does not qualify you to say it's empty, cannot be empty.
19:26It shows that something has gotten into the glass in 42 years.
19:29And in 42 years, you can say, what has gone into the glass called Cameroon?
19:34A lot.
19:35Mr. Dr. Grimba, because you just said you got a PhD,
19:40so I have the right to call you Dr. Grimba.
19:44In 42 years, and I'm very glad that you are objective enough
19:48to have admitted that there have been achievements, civil liberties,
19:51multi-partisan, that's good.
19:53Many people don't look at it that way, but where I disagree with you,
19:57the Honorable Jumeir Peter, I'm taking a cue from him,
20:01is that, from my own point of view, I did my PhD in the United States of America,
20:06and to do a PhD in the United States of America today,
20:09costs you nothing less than $25 million as a student, as you know.
20:13I did it at the University of Denver in Colorado, USA.
20:16To do a PhD, if you don't have about $25 million, that's about $50,000,
20:20you cannot, a year, by the way, you cannot get a PhD.
20:25But in Cameroon, just with $50,000 that you pay, you can get a PhD.
20:31That in itself shows that there is something positive, successful,
20:35about the management of state power by President Biya in 42 years in Cameroon.
20:40But to be, as the common man says...
20:46Yes.
20:47Prof, let me look at the glass you've been talking about,
20:53and say, yes, it has been filled with water or whatever.
20:57Now, one of the things that we find in that glass is diplomacy.
21:02Can you tell us how diplomacy has worked on that?
21:05Yes, that is a field of my expertise, because I got my PhD in international relations.
21:09That is one of the areas in which President Biya stands out as having been a great achiever.
21:15One, in diplomacy, President Biya has diversified our diplomacy.
21:21He has expanded the field of partners.
21:24I mean, when we began, we had fewer partners.
21:28He has opened up our diplomacy today, because he has announced that he has launched
21:33and initiated a kind of diplomacy where he doesn't make any enemies.
21:38He is a very moderate person.
21:40He believes in peace.
21:41He believes in friendship with everybody.
21:44And he focuses on the interests of Cameroon.
21:47So the first achievement is that our field of partners has expanded.
21:52Today, Cameroon is everywhere.
21:53It has partners all over, beyond the traditional field.
21:57That's already a big plus for us.
21:59And he said that at the time, people thought Cameroon was going to go into war with Nigeria.
22:07Yes.
22:08He kept the guns aside and used diplomacy.
22:11Can you tell us how he used that diplomacy to solve that as a conflict or war,
22:16and then by extension to other conflicts, Honorable Njume?
22:20Yes.
22:21The second achievement is that President Biya, the world has accepted that in Africa,
22:25if you want a president, a leader of peace,
22:29a leader who believes in peace and he is the epitome of peace,
22:33President Biya is where you will go to.
22:37And because of that, we see that President Biya, in 42 years,
22:42has succeeded to manage all the conflicts that will compromise or can disturb peace,
22:52not only for Cameroon, but for the rest of Africa.
22:55And the best example is that the conflict that we had with our sister country,
23:03our brother country, Nigeria, from 1993,
23:07that country was solved with the Green Trail Accord in 2006.
23:11And I was in New York at Green Tree with President Biya.
23:14When that accord was signed, I was there.
23:16I was lucky, privileged Cameroonian to have been in the president's suite
23:23to see how that Green Trail Accord was signed with the Nigerian president.
23:28But what that has done today is that,
23:31because President Biya succeeded in that area of managing peace,
23:36today partners, the whole world, when it's looking for peace,
23:41they tend to see Cameroon and cite Cameroon as a good example.
23:45Take the case, for example, of the internal problem we have in the north-west and south-west.
23:50President Biya has shown his determination and courage
23:54to bring about a solution to our problem
23:57through peaceful methods of dialoguing, negotiation and reform.
24:04And he is doing well at it.
24:08Because we see the results are that the situation is improving.
24:13That's incredible.
24:15Someone else would have done it differently.
24:17And it's not that he doesn't have the power to do it differently.
24:19But because he is the epitome of peace,
24:24he has preferred to use, and he has said so several times,
24:27that he has the power, no doubt about that,
24:30but he chooses to use that power through the method of dialogue,
24:34through the method of negotiation, through the method of reform.
24:39And the dialogue is continuous.
24:43It is continuous.
24:45We are going to come back.
24:47I just wanted to say something.
24:51What you are saying is very dangerous
24:53because when it comes to matters of peace now in Cameroon,
24:58we cannot say Cameroon is a peaceful country.
25:01President Biya was peaceful.
25:03But he is no longer peaceful.
25:05That is a problem because the major national dialogue,
25:08I can tell you even with facts, data,
25:12Mr. Andakilian,
25:14that it has not resolved anything.
25:19It has not resolved anything.
25:21Why?
25:22Because most of the things that have been resolved
25:24are things that were not even supposed to have been a problem before the crisis.
25:30That is a problem.
25:32Look at, go to, Prof,
25:34I know you follow international events very well.
25:38Data shows that among the first 27 countries,
25:43peaceful African countries, Cameroon is not among.
25:47So Cameroon has lost that peace.
25:50It used to enjoy,
25:51and I want to remind Prof that President Biya
25:54would not be judged by the international community,
25:56he would be judged by Cameroonians.
25:58Yes, he would be judged by Cameroonians.
26:00And the pain that the Cameroonians in the northwest, southwest,
26:05and in the far north are going through,
26:07and the government is just sitting and watching,
26:10is serious.
26:11How can President Biya be ready to fly thousands of kilometers
26:15to go to the US to attain a summons from Joe Biden,
26:19but cannot move to Bamenda,
26:22cannot move to the southwest,
26:25to talk with his people?
26:27That is a problem.
26:30During times of crisis,
26:32the head of state does not delegate powers.
26:39Yes, he must,
26:41because he has a psychological impact.
27:00Yes.
27:03Yes, the power to use.
27:04Yes.
27:30Don't you think that he has used a peaceful means,
27:33as Prof Erwin Gollin-Gollin said,
27:36because he could use drones,
27:38he could use aeroplanes,
27:40and then firepower.
27:42Yes, yes.
27:43So I'm just asking you,
27:44when you say that nothing...
27:45No, he has used peaceful means.
27:46The problem is that it is ineffective.
27:49It is not working.
27:50Well, I know.
27:51That is the problem.
27:52It is good.
27:53Yes.
27:54We don't want you to correct that.
27:57I'm not against that.
27:58I'm not against that.
27:59The problem is that it is not working.
28:01You are very sincere.
28:02You have corrected that.
28:03It is not working.
28:04That was excessive what you said.
28:05It is not what we say, right?
28:07The example of this is that he is speaking here freely.
28:09Yes.
28:10I had a couple of points to raise.
28:12I won't listen to the others speak.
28:14Yes.
28:15To begin with, Doctor,
28:17I cover military affairs,
28:19and the key word has been
28:22on defense and security forces
28:24to exercise restraint.
28:26Yes.
28:28Sometimes they even get nervous.
28:30Nervous.
28:31When they fairly see the enemy coming
28:36and they don't have other instructions
28:40telling them to fire back,
28:42I can tell you that we have lost men on the ground
28:46simply because of the instruction
28:50to exercise restraint
28:52because the head of state wants to keep...
28:56He has said it repeatedly.
28:57I think the Prime Minister said it
28:59while in Bamenda and Boya,
29:00in his first trips,
29:01that the head of state has said
29:03he cannot fight with his own children.
29:07So I think that we should be able...
29:11But in the airport in 2017,
29:13he made a statement which was a declaration...
29:17No, no, no.
29:18Wait, wait, wait.
29:19Wait, wait, wait.
29:20Wait, wait, wait.
29:21Wait, wait, wait.
29:22Wait, wait, wait.
29:23Wait, wait, wait.
29:24Wait, wait, wait.
29:25I can tell you,
29:26because we keep the facts,
29:28I can tell you the President
29:31asked the international community
29:33to bear him witness
29:35over the exaction of non-state armed groups,
29:41called them separatists,
29:44and their killings of men in uniform.
29:48That outing came after exactions in Manu,
29:52notably in Mafi.
29:53We keep the records
29:54because I know that there will be a time
29:56when all of this will have to be talked about.
29:59Sure.
30:00There is another aspect which I wanted to raise
30:02because we have children who are also watching.
30:04We should be able to tell them some of these things.
30:07When we talk 42 years of President Paul Biya,
30:10we are not talking 42 years of the CPDM.
30:13No, of course not.
30:14So we are not talking of 42 years
30:17of the achievements of the CPDM.
30:19That's exactly what we underlined.
30:21Good.
30:23It's important for us to make that demarcation
30:26between the party and the nation.
30:29We are not talking democracy yet
30:31because that President we are talking about
30:36is in an alliance with other parties.
30:39He is being voted by people
30:41who are not affiliated to any of these parties.
30:44It's important,
30:46so much so that even those of the party
30:50who may want to celebrate
30:52President Biya's achievements of their party,
30:55if they do so,
30:57should also be able to be accountable
31:00and take responsibility for the shortcomings
31:03or what some will call the failures.
31:05So it's important.
31:06But I wanted to make note of 42 years.
31:10Let me learn.
31:1142 years to say
31:13we have been using the imagery of the glass
31:16whether it's half-filled or half-booted
31:19or it's half-empty.
31:21I wanted to talk about four points.
31:24I will not elaborate on them.
31:2642 years to talk about an exceptional longevity in power.
31:33To say that Cameroonians have been fairly tolerant
31:39also with the President
31:41because we've had moments of political upheavals.
31:45We've had moments of economic instability.
31:48I wanted to say
31:51the party has been quite supportive to the President.
31:57Many of the Presidents who emerged like President Biya
32:02lost the favor of their parties along the way.
32:05And also to say that we should salute
32:09the loyalty of the army
32:12because in many countries
32:14the army has also fairly wanted to test power
32:18and breach the principles of democracy.
32:21So all these elements put together
32:24for those who want to celebrate 42 years
32:28like it will be this week
32:30they should remember some of these guidelines.
32:33Celebrate the entire people of Cameroon.
32:35Thank you very much, Albert.
32:37As you say, you're a political death editor.
32:39That's why you bring out some of these points
32:43with precision.
32:45We also have some other people
32:47who are going to react to the achievements
32:52of the President of the Republic.
32:55And the first person we're going to take
32:59maybe we'll get your contribution before we go there.
33:01Yes, very, very briefly.
33:03Thank you very much.
33:05I just want to make this remark.
33:07Cameroonians are watching.
33:09The whole world is watching.
33:11I just want to plead with Cameroonians
33:15especially the opposition
33:17to understand that many Cameroonians
33:22have died because of this crisis
33:24in the northwest, southwest and extreme north.
33:27They should not politicize it.
33:30It's so dangerous because lives are involved.
33:34Lives are involved and these lives are very precious.
33:37To be very honest with you
33:40we have to thank the head of state.
33:45I mean as a person.
33:47As a person.
33:49As Mr. Jean Bondi said
33:51as commander-in-chief of the armed forces
33:55he could have been tempted
33:58to do whatever he would have done
34:02just to see how he could bring peace.
34:05And when Dr. Ondaat says that
34:07it has not been effective
34:09it has not been effective
34:11because he has not been ruthless.
34:13He has been moving at a snail's pace
34:16still struggling to see how
34:18he can make people to understand.
34:20That is why he decided to use another tactic
34:23which is this one
34:25to build a kind of relationship
34:28a kind of cohesion between the population and the army.
34:31And this has worked very, very well
34:34especially in the extreme north
34:36where now the Boko Haram
34:38has now resulted to do what?
34:41Hit and run tactic
34:43in order to go back and reinforce.
34:45It wasn't like that before.
34:47Now because the population is now working
34:49in synergy with the military
34:51things are happening differently.
34:53Very good. And in the north-west and south-west
34:55there are some communities who are implementing that
34:58and it is also working.
35:00In the north-west and south-west
35:02what is happening is that
35:04the head of state has made it
35:06in such a way that
35:08the military is exercising a lot of professionalism.
35:11Yes, I understand.
35:13Let's watch the reactions
35:17from some of our compatriots
35:20who reacted.
35:22We are going to start with
35:24Mr. Frou Jonathan
35:26who is a chargeur de mission
35:28in CPDM Central Committee.
35:34We are going to be celebrating 42 years
35:37of President Porbea's
35:39accession to power
35:41which means that he has been
35:43ruling this country for 42 years.
35:46You are asking what we are celebrating.
35:48We are celebrating the achievements
35:50the President has registered for all this time.
35:52We are celebrating
35:54what we call a success story.
35:57We are celebrating the victories
35:59that President Porbea has achieved
36:01We are celebrating the victories
36:03that President Porbea has made for Cameroon.
36:06In fact, you will understand that
36:09when President Porbea took over office
36:11in 1982
36:13he gave himself a road map.
36:15He put his vision clearly to Cameroonians.
36:18He said he was going to
36:20liberalize this country.
36:22He was going to democratize the country.
36:24He was going to bring economic and social growth.
36:27He was going to bring diplomatic victories
36:30for our country.
36:31In fact, these were the pillars
36:33on which President Porbea
36:35put himself when he took over office.
36:37And it's important that
36:39if we are looking at it 42 years afterwards
36:41we have to go back to these pillars
36:43to this road map.
36:44Has he achieved anything?
36:46Let us start just with democracy
36:48and liberalization.
36:49You know, before President Porbea
36:51took over office
36:53we couldn't talk about democracy in Cameroon.
36:55Public liberties,
36:57press liberties were inexistent.
36:59If you remember,
37:01the newspapers before they were published
37:03they had to go through censorship.
37:05The private radio stations could not talk.
37:07Even on CRTV, at a certain moment
37:09some of your colleagues
37:11could not be able to talk because
37:13there were no liberties.
37:14So, in 1990, President Porbea
37:16came up with the laws
37:18that liberated the sector.
37:20And today, we have
37:22a plethora of newspapers,
37:24private newspapers,
37:26we have radio stations,
37:28we have television stations
37:30which talk freely.
37:32In fact, they discuss whatever they want
37:34all the time, even talking about the President
37:36in a very derogatory manner.
37:38They are free to talk.
37:40We are talking of democracy.
37:42When we talk of democracy,
37:44we are talking of transparency.
37:46Transparency in elections.
37:48Because for you to talk about democracy
37:50without transparency, this is not possible.
37:52We know that President Porbea
37:54completely reformed the electoral process
37:56in Cameroon.
37:58Before 1982,
38:00elections were organized by
38:02MINAT, which is a government
38:04organ. Ballot boxes were
38:06wooden.
38:08The electoral registers
38:10were manual, which means that they could be manipulated
38:12at all times. But when President Porbea
38:14came in, he said he was going to bring
38:16democracy. And democracy means
38:18this process has to be reformed
38:20to make it more transparent
38:22and more effective. That's why
38:24today we have
38:26an independent body
38:28that is able to
38:30manage and organize
38:32elections in our country in a free
38:34and transparent atmosphere.
38:36We are talking of political
38:38parties. You remember
38:40in 1982, we had one political party
38:42in Cameroon.
38:44In 1985, the CPD was created.
38:46In the 1990s,
38:48there were a lot of
38:50people clamoring for
38:52democracy.
38:54Even though it was already on the agenda of the President,
38:56President Porbea accepted. He said
38:58we should get ready for
39:00multipartism. And he opened the doors
39:02and today in Cameroon,
39:04we have several political parties.
39:06We count them in hundreds who operate
39:08freely and can vote for elections.
39:10Now, if you look
39:12at the social domain,
39:14we're talking here of education,
39:16we're talking of public health. It's important
39:18for us to see what was
39:20existing in 1982
39:22and see what is existing
39:24today. If you look at the educational
39:26sector, we see the schools
39:28have been developed, primary schools now have free
39:30primary schools
39:32exist in almost all the villages,
39:34all the quarters, private and government
39:36primary schools, even the universities.
39:38The universities, we used to have one university,
39:40people would leave extreme love to come and
39:42school in the other university.
39:44But today, we have more than 10
39:46state universities and so many
39:48private universities who are not only
39:50on general education, but
39:52professionalizing our education, making it
39:54to be so that our
39:56children, when they go to school, they come out like
39:58professionals. It's not what we used to exist before.
40:00People no longer study history, geography
40:02but they go into professional education.
40:04If you look at public health,
40:06in the public health domain, we see that
40:08the number of hospitals
40:10that we had when President
40:12Parbea took our office,
40:14has multiplied. In fact, we have
40:16districts in every subdivision.
40:18In fact, we have medical assistants
40:20at our doorsteps.
40:22This is like
40:24AIDS, like tuberculosis,
40:26like malaria.
40:28Today, unlike what existed before.
40:30So, we feel that
40:32President Parbea, for 42 years,
40:34has been able to realize
40:36his roadmap. He is working
40:38strictly on a roadmap.
40:40President Parbea has
40:42a destination. He is
40:44taking Cameroon somewhere.
40:46And where is he taking Cameroon to?
40:48He is taking Cameroon to emergence.
40:50That is his vision for
40:522035.
40:54Well, thank you very much.
40:56I think we should just take the last
40:58reactions and then come back to the set.
41:00We also have some other
41:02Cameroonians who
41:04enumerated the achievements
41:06of President Parbea
41:08as head of state for 42 years.
41:10We have
41:12Zou Boutani,
41:14who is a
41:16development agent and researcher
41:18in agriculture.
41:20We also have
41:22Thien Nguyen Peter, who is
41:24mayor of Bamenda 2 council.
41:26Yes, let's have their reactions. That's going to be
41:28brief.
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