A great encounter with a great mind! Thanks Prof.

VIE...Very Important Essay...and surely Professor, there is a downside of Social media: garbage can be propagated, then hoarded- a phony 'treasure' for the weak minds. That's the lesson we're all learning from the social networks you just cited in your comment. The road is still very long...unfortunately, we underestimated the folly of some 'academics'!

Good research Mon Dibussi! I came accross Ebenezer Akwanga's book at a friend's place in Y'de a few years ago after he had left Kondengui...forgotten the title...it's a 'good read' about his dreadful experience in Kondengui.

Dr Vakunta, Thanks for this brilliant analysis of the problems of the Cameroons today and the way forward for Southern Cameroons, after the October 9 electoral charade. Your paper brings into my mind a piece I wrote while in Buea, on the eve of the 21st century titled 'The Cry Of The Millennium'(1999) published in The Post. While my friends were actively preparing for the New Year of the new Millennium-2000, I was caught by a reflective fit, pondering why Southern Cameroons would be entering a new millennium in perpetual bondage under la Republique. The evidence then, as it is now, was overwhelming and really vexing. Biya had been in power then for about 18years...one or two Southern Cameroonians featured as 'cadre' in SONARA, even the menial jobs in SONARA were done by Biya's tribesmen or the kinsmen of the GM. The roads in SW were unpaved- except the SONARA-DOUALA stretch, basic amenities like potable water and medicine were luxuries in many enclaves in NW and SW, poor road infrastructure etc etc. We sought the media(mostly print) to call Southern Cameroonians to act... of course there were no Facebooks and Twitters...internet was embryonic . We were like lone wolves...because SDF was en vogue then... We sounded our gong at home(Southern Cameroons) then, ready to sacrifice our last drop of blood if our call was yielded to...and I am sure you and many others who are portrayed now as keyboard analysts have faced the same storm while you were still serving in the Cameroons, before finding yourselves where you are now, because of one reason or the other... I am worried that an insightfully inciting article, like the one above, which is genuinely unapologetic on the future use of alternative methods to tackle the problems of the Cameroons especially Southern Cameroons, can be diluted by little mind 'agents' with their all too familiar comment: '..you guys are in safe havens instigating your fellow compatriots to go and be killed...', as if when we were around, we never sounded our gong or assembled in the market place when we heard its sound... History will judge us all, some by their omission, a few by their commission and most by their indecision.

Congrats!! You're the best!!

I reserve my comments and weep for this servant of God!

Doctor, THANK YOU for sharing this video.

Fr Paul A true man of God, Shunning the distractions of earthly treasure, Choosing humility over haughtiness, Always there for the poor and oppressed, A hardworking shepherd, An unrepentant disciplinarian, An intellectual in priestly robes.

Thanks for this inspirational story from a talented young African. There are many young African geniuses like Kamkwamba whose creativity are being stifled by the policies of corrupt African regimes.

This investigative piece projects more light on the numerous economic maneuvers that the Biya regime is performing with his French 'suckers', resulting to the impoverishment of the masses. Thanks for highlighting it.

I am not surprised that this kind of lecture is coming from a Scandinavian Intellectual. Scandinavia, A group of nations that have proved to the world that everybody is everybody's keeper. That civilization is not only when men spend billions to undertake failed missions to the moon, erect skyscrapers, or damage the environment with impunity; but that civilization is the mutual respect for peoples and their culture, while striving constantly for every human being to enjoy the basics of nature's largesse to mankind- food, shelter and health. A world where our common happiness is intertwined- a world where one cannot claim to be fully happy if his neighbour languishes in misery. A world where, we have the responsibility to bequeath something to the generations to come. African dictators have positioned Africa at the tail end of human development. When Africa will install its new order, void of chronic dictatorship, in some decades to come, then people of the Western world will make beaten paths to Africa's doorstep. P\s It is not by chance that these Nordic countries(Sweden,Denmark,Norway,Finland,Iceland) are constantly rated the best countries to live by the UN. They have a system that is worth copying by many countries, call it social democracy or whatever: www.norwaypost.no Norway again rated top country to live in Norway has again been rated as the best country in the world to live in on the United Nations Development Index. Australia is second on the UNDP ranking list, and Iceland third. All the Nordic countries are found among the top 20 nations on the ranking list. Sweden is 7th, Finland 12th and Denmark 16th. France rejoined the top 10 countries after dropping down for one year, while Luxembourg fell from the top 10. The ranking among the 182 nations is based on life expectancy, level of education, and gross national product (GNP) per inhabitant. (NRK/Press release) Rolleiv Solholm

As a fervent reader of the weekend letter, I am impressed by how much issues you analyse in your letter. Those who understand you well can't avoid reading your letter each weekend. keep it up 'Ngwa' and 'Mbella'

Each day, many go not to sleep without entering the den to read what was scribbled. This distinguished recognition is clear evidence of your tireless effort in making your country, Africa and the World a better place. CONGRATULATIONS! Let the ink in the den never dry up, so that we won't stop savoring the wisdom encrypted in the scribbles. Neba-Fuh

Brilliant!!!!

Adama Munye, I believe that writing on such a complicated topic which is deeply scientific, should not just be an opinion. I will recommend that you back your assertions with some scientifically tested research references. A good idea anyway, that will need more work!

'Anger is one letter short of danger'. I think the 'Ntumfor' Nico Halle is being controlled by anger, thus bringing out a haughty attitude in his responses. Everybody has the right to discuss or describe his legacy, but humble people leave the public to judge and present their legacies. The 'Ntumfor' is not as humble as he stated.

The Mugabe saga is a complex situation that has ushered many simplistic explanations and theories with little quest for logical accuracy. To hide under the notion of neo-colonialism is a lame way to minimize the atrocities you and me know these African dictators have caused in Africa. The notion of neo-colonialism is vague and has multiple contextual definitions which cannot serve as any excuse for tyrants to submerge their populace to extreme hardship, as they continually embezzle their country's riches to the detriment of the masses who are constantly miserable. When an African dictator like Mugabe continually endorse the use of nomenclature like 'dollar' to identify his country's legal tender, is that African? When Mugabe stashed away billions in Western banks while his people cannot survive Maslow's bottommost rung, isn't that neo-colonialism? When Mugabe builds many multi-billion chateaux comparable with Louis XIV style while his people live in shambles, is that African? Mugabe's 40years younger wife holds the record as the most valuable Western designers' client before travel sanctions were meted to her, Isn't that neo-colonialism? The notion of Mugabe taking the African Liberation struggle to the economic level is a big deception. The land seizure policy was an economically naive way of solving a complex post colonial problem. There are economic variables that could have been put in place to permit Black Zimbabweans benefit from the land ownership problem. Increased taxes and state controlled prices are subtle economic tactics western and other countries use to stifle foreign investments in their countries. They force you out of business by fiscal methods, not by Idi Amin's kind of illiterate economic policies, like seizing Asian shops in his tenure as ruler of Uganda. The land seizure has not benefited the common Zimbabweans, only Mugabe and his junta are benefiting from the lands seized. That is Economic African Liberation Struggle??? In as much as Qhadhaffi ought to have bowed out of power, we can not miminize his effort in leading a debt-free and stable libya during years of sanctions meted on Libya by Western powers after the Lockerbie bombing. This is an example to show that an African ruler with just minimal patriotism can man Africa's economy even when sanctions are meted by the Western world. Zimbabwe is an example of failed leadership, as Mandela indicated. A country suffering a 355,000% inflation rate can not hold the West responsible for the mess. Is it the West that instruct African Ministers to embezzle billions allocated for projects aimed at uplifting the standards of living of common Africans? Cameroon is a clear example: We will soon accuse the West for major economic theft like the Ondong Ndong's billions and the Mounchipougate? What a shame! Africans need to move beyond the hypocritical Sarkozyian accusation as presented in his address in a Senegal. If Africans care they can create their own CNN and BBC, as Abraham Tangwe proposes and deny to show pictures of suffering Africans, brutalized Africans, rigged elections, and Corpse-like rulers. Whether you like it or not, that is the African reality now and the West cannot be our only scapegoat for refusing to move on. Think again!!!

The Mugabe saga is a complex situation that has ushered many simplistic explanations and theories with little quest for logical accuracy. To hide under the notion of neo-colonialism is a lame way to minimize the atrocities you and me know these African dictators have caused in Africa. The notion of neo-colonialism is vague and has multiple contextual definitions which cannot serve as any excuse for tyrants to submerge their populace to extreme hardship, as they continually embezzle their country's riches to the detriment of the masses who are constantly miserable. When an African dictator like Mugabe continually endorse the use of nomenclature like 'dollar' to identify his country's legal tender, is that African? When Mugabe stashed away billions in Western banks while his people cannot survive Maslow's bottommost rung, isn't that neo-colonialism? When Mugabe builds many multi-billion chateaux comparable with Louis XIV style while his people live in shambles, is that African? Mugabe's 40years younger wife holds the record as the most valuable Western designers' client before travel sanctions were meted to her, Isn't that neo-colonialism? The notion of Mugabe taking the African Liberation struggle to the economic level is a big deception. The land seizure policy was an economically naive way of solving a complex post colonial problem. There are economic variables that could have been put in place to permit Black Zimbabweans benefit from the land ownership problem. Increased taxes and state controlled prices are subtle economic tactics western and other countries use to stifle foreign investments in their countries. They force you out of business by fiscal methods, not by Idi Amin's kind of illiterate economic policies, like seizing Asian shops in his tenure as ruler of Uganda. The land seizure has not benefited the common Zimbabweans, only Mugabe and his junta are benefiting from the lands seized. That is Economic African Liberation Struggle??? In as much as Qhadhaffi ought to have bowed out of power, we can not miminize his effort in leading a debt-free and stable libya during years of sanctions meted on Libya by Western powers after the Lockerbie bombing. This is an example to show that an African ruler with just minimal patriotism can man Africa's economy even when sanctions are meted by the Western world. Zimbabwe is an example of failed leadership, as Mandela indicated. A country suffering a 355,000% inflation rate can not hold the West responsible for the mess. Is it the West that instruct African Ministers to embezzle billions allocated for projects aimed at uplifting the standards of living of common Africans? Cameroon is a clear example: We will soon accuse the West for major economic theft like the Ondong Ndong's billions and the Mounchipougate? What a shame! Africans need to move beyond the hypocritical Sarkozyian accusation as presented in his address in a Senegal. If Africans care they can create their own CNN and BBC, as Abraham Tangwe proposes and deny to show pictures of suffering Africans, brutalized Africans, rigged elections, and Corpse-like rulers. Whether you like it or not, that is the African reality now and the West cannot be our only scapegoat for refusing to move on. Think again!!!

The Mugabe saga is a complex situation that has ushered many simplistic explanations and theories with little quest for logical accuracy. To hide under the notion of neo-colonialism is a lame way to minimize the atrocities you and me know these African dictators have caused in Africa. The notion of neo-colonialism is vague and has multiple contextual definitions which cannot serve as any excuse for tyrants to submerge their populace to extreme hardship, as they continually embezzle their country's riches to the detriment of the masses who are constantly miserable. When an African dictator like Mugabe continually endorse the use of nomenclature like 'dollar' to identify his country's legal tender, is that African? When Mugabe stashed away billions in Western banks while his people cannot survive Maslow's bottommost rung, isn't that neo-colonialism? When Mugabe builds many multi-billion chateaux comparable with Louis XIV style while his people live in shambles, is that African? Mugabe's 40years younger wife holds the record as the most valuable Western designers' client before travel sanctions were meted to her, Isn't that neo-colonialism? The notion of Mugabe taking the African Liberation struggle to the economic level is a big deception. The land seizure policy was an economically naive way of solving a complex post colonial problem. There are economic variables that could have been put in place to permit Black Zimbabweans benefit from the land ownership problem. Increased taxes and state controlled prices are subtle economic tactics western and other countries use to stifle foreign investments in their countries. They force you out of business by fiscal methods, not by Idi Amin's kind of illiterate economic policies, like seizing Asian shops in his tenure as ruler of Uganda. The land seizure has not benefited the common Zimbabweans, only Mugabe and his junta are benefiting from the lands seized. That is Economic African Liberation Struggle??? In as much as Qhadhaffi ought to have bowed out of power, we can not miminize his effort in leading a debt-free and stable libya during years of sanctions meted on Libya by Western powers after the Lockerbie bombing. This is an example to show that an African ruler with just minimal patriotism can man Africa's economy even when sanctions are meted by the Western world. Zimbabwe is an example of failed leadership, as Mandela indicated. A country suffering a 355,000% inflation rate can not hold the West responsible for the mess. Is it the West that instruct African Ministers to embezzle billions allocated for projects aimed at uplifting the standards of living of common Africans? Cameroon is a clear example: We will soon accuse the West for major economic theft like the Ondong Ndong's billions and the Mounchipougate? What a shame! Africans need to move beyond the hypocritical Sarkozyian accusation as presented in his address in a Senegal. If Africans care they can create their own CNN and BBC, as Abraham Tangwe proposes and deny to show pictures of suffering Africans, brutalized Africans, rigged elections, and Corpse-like rulers. Whether you like it or not, that is the African reality now and the West cannot be our only scapegoat for refusing to move on. Think again!!!

Reduced Jail Terms For Suicide Embezzlers Jail sentences of previously convicted 'suicide embezzlers' are being reduced, on condition that they pay back a greater chunk of the money embezzled. The latest case is the ruling by the Appeal court on the Ondo Ndong case. We had earlier suggested such a move but criticism poured in tagging us as 'sympathizing with the regime and embezzlers'. The idea was to emphasize the better option of reclaiming the people's money from these bandits. The latest move by the regime to pursue this option was not unexpected. The recent civil servants' salary adjustments ,while ignoring this year's budget with regards to expenditure and revenue was precipitated as far as this regime is concern, in order to manipulate the constitution to allow Biya to rule till death. Now the regime is going back into its embezzlement reserves to foot its bills-the salary adjustments. Billions are needed. The embezzled money has to be recovered-those hoarded by those embezzlers still enjoying illegitimate liberty, as well as, those patronizing the prison premises of Kondengui. The question is: Who will manage the recovered funds, if ever they are recovered?? These same thieves?? Jail term for Ondo Ndong and Co. reduced By Pamela Bidjocka, 17/04/2008: The former General Manager of FEICOM Emmanuel Gerald Ondo Ndong who was jailed to 50year term for embezzlement was in court again yesterday. The Appeal Court in Yaounde has revised this ruling. According to yesterday’s verdict, the former General Manager of FEICOM shall serve a twenty year jail term instead of the initial fifty years. Jail terms for his co-accusers have also been reduced. The reduction is however, accompanied by a clause; from the initial three billion five hundred thousands francs to be paid as damages, the culprits shall now be required to pay twenty six billion franc CFA. It is also important to state that Edjang Marie Carine, Ngo Bayanag, Etoga Marie–Gabriel that were earlier acquitted have now been found guilty of complicity in the embezzlement of state funds. Some property of Ondo Ndong that had been confiscated by the court where returned. According to the presiding judge, these possessions were returned on grounds that they were acquired before the act of embezzlement was committed. The current ruling seem have been guided by popular opinion; a good percentage of the Cameroonian population prefer to have the embezzled money refunded than to have convicted embezzlers serve long jail terms with the money in their possession. The Ondo Ndong affair is one of the high profiled cases in recent times. Observers say the convictions seem to demonstrate President Paul Biya’s determination to fight embezzlement and corruption in Cameroon. check out www.nebafuh.com for more!!

The Pandora's Box Has Been Opened (II) Great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela who fundamentally adopted non-violence as the strategy for their struggle, sometimes contemplated the violent option. When a people's struggle for liberation are stifled by an egoistic manipulative tendency to oppress them even at their lowest, then violent tendencies start cropping in. Violence is an impulsive uncontrollable outburst usually manifested out of frustration. The bill just adopted by Parliament, to give Biya a laissez-faire joystick to toy around further with the Cameroonian people even after 25years of a failed regime is frustrating. Let the 157 simpletons who voted for that bill amending the constitution to allow Biya to rule till death and be unaccountable for his crimes, not make a toast yet with their champagne glasses. The suffering Cameroonian people whose sores have been spread with salt will not stop at lamenting. They are meticulously weighing the options-violent or non-violent. The latter may just be what the CPDM quislings have pushed the people to. Below are excerpts culled from 'The Sacred Warrior'- The liberator of South Africa looks at the seminal work of the liberator of India By NELSON MANDELA Gandhi remained committed to nonviolence; I followed the Gandhian strategy for as long as I could, but then there came a point in our struggle when the brute force of the oppressor could no longer be countered through passive resistance alone. We founded Unkhonto we Sizwe and added a military dimension to our struggle. Even then, we chose sabotage because it did not involve the loss of life, and it offered the best hope for future race relations.... ...following my address to the Pan-African Freedom Movement of East and Central Africa (PAFMECA) in 1962, in which I stated, "Force is the only language the imperialists can hear, and no country became free without some sort of violence." Gandhi himself never ruled out violence absolutely and unreservedly. He conceded the necessity of arms in certain situations. He said, "Where choice is set between cowardice and violence, I would advise violence...I prefer to use arms in defense of honor rather than remain the vile witness of dishonor ..." Violence and nonviolence are not mutually exclusive; it is the predominance of the one or the other that labels a struggle... CHECK OUT www.nebafuh.com for more.

Nobody could have painted the picture better than this! It's a deplorable situation. What baffles me is how Cameroonians tolerate such mess. When will Cameroonians get out of their cocoons?

Paul should start his 'special duties' by telling Paul about the sorry state of prisons in the country. At least, this time the latter will be hearing it from the horse's own mouth. The difference between Paul and Paul is that the former has served his term in prison, while the latter is still to serve. NEBA-FUH

While Biya is striving to reduce Cameroon to a one-party state, Fru Ndi is striving to reduce SDF to a one-man party. NEBA-FUH

Christian P. Stegmueller, If your article was just a descriptive piece, without any iota of prejudice, it will be intellectual. Without doubt, your article smacks prejudiced tendencies in its description. A week ago, a German ask me this question: "Is it true that Africans live on trees?" My answer was affirmative. I went on to explain how the German Ambassador in my country lives on a tree as well. In his stupidity, he listened with empathy. What hypocrisy! In this era of globalization, the West still thinks it can play smart on us. If not of our unpatriotic Oligarchs, this country won't stoop so low for any common European to be elated to a superior stratum as soon as he arrives Cameroon. When Oligarchs invest on mega-billion hospitals and chateaux in your backyard, you take no time to investigate where their wealth came from. If you did that, you will understand why taxi drivers don't pretend to smile, if there is nothing to smile about. I am sure you must be suprise that you are not living on a tree, as you must have thought. My advice to you is to travel out of the closet of Buea. Go to Limbe-down to Idenau, go Upcountry-up to Ikwerri. If possible, take a trip to La Republique-to the East in Nguelemendouka. Go North, and enjoy the Sahel heat. You will savour the wealth of this country's natural resources. When you are back in your isolated room in Buea, reflect on your next write-up. The title should be " Why taxi drivers are too busy to smile and badly paid in Cameroon" . In you do your homework well, you will realise that part of the money, which could have been used to pay these taxi drivers and cause them to smile, is caged in banks and illegal investments by Cameroonian oligarchs, with complicity of your fellow countrymen in Germany. Neba-Fuh