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Cameroon: High Profile Arrests - Anti-Corruption Fight Or Victimisation?
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The Post (Buea)
OPINION
4 April 2008
Posted to the web 4 April 2008
Peterkins Manyong
The unexpected finally happened on Monday, March 31 at in Yaounde. The erstwhile untouchable Polycarpe Abah Abah former Economy and Finance Minister and Urbain Olanguena Awono, former Public Health Minister were whisked of off by the police for interrogation.
Speculations had been rife that Abah Abah, Olanguena and Jean Marie Atangana Mebara, former External Relations Minister, had fulfilled all the conditions necessary for them to take up permanent residence at Kondengui.
Prior to his arrest, Abah Abah had refuted all rumours that he was a target of Operation Sparrow Hawk. He wondered aloud when contacted by a journalist in his Odja residence why such unfounded rumours were being peddled about him. His high sense of security was shattered as early as 6 am when members of the special police operation took him to the judicial police headquarters.
A similar treatment was meted to Olanguena Awono.Also arrested were some of their collaborators like Etogo Mbezelle, former Paymaster for Yaounde and Maurice Fezeu, Director of the National AIDS Control Committee.
Abah Abah had for long been suspected of mismanagement of finances while he was Director of Taxes and later as Economy and Finance Minister, while Olanguena Awono was faulted for his mismanagement of HIV/AIDS funds.
Soothing The Aggrieved
In his famous France 24 interview, President Paul Biya hinted that the fight against HIV/AIDS, corruption and so on were priority. He was responding to a question from journalists about a possible third mandate bid. Cameroonians agreed with him. This analyst also agrees wholeheartedly with the Head of State on the issue of the fight against corruption in particular.
If President Biya never knew, let him get this from somebody who had never flattered him on any issue. The increasing cost of living and the galloping unemployment in Cameroon have heightened the enthusiasm of Cameroonians for the anti-corruption fight.
The Biya regime has also taken a few commendable strides to cut public expenditure and made an effort to curb the high prices of basic commodities. But this is unlikely to improve the life of Cameroonians when those in elevated positions can't distinguish between their personal money and the public till.
The arrest of Abah Abah and Olanguena put to rest the myth that some people are untouchable sacred cows. Before last Monday's commendable act, Abah Abah ad Mebara had metamorphosed into religious caterpillars, enrolling themselves at the Protestant Major Seminary in Yaounde. In medieval times people who sought sanctuary in God's house were considered immune to arrest.
Pursuing them was therefore considered a violation of sanctuary. The exception to this rule was murder. Abah Abah in the literal sense of the word committed no murder. He simply took away what was placed at his disposal. But if we agree with Shakespeare's Shylock that he who takes away what a man lives upon, takes away the man's life, Abah Abah can be considered as taking away the lives of millions of Cameroonians by depriving them of their hard earned money.
Fighting Corruption Or Settling Scores?
Eleven years ago, Titus Edzoa, a former Secretary General at the Presidency was arrested and jailed for 15 years on corruption charges around the same time as Pierre Desire Engo, Director of CNPS who was also jailed for ten years. Edzoa had campaigned the same year to replace Biya at the Presidency.
Engo was said to be also nursing ambitions to challenge Biya. Far from applauding the moves, a considerable number of Cameroonians sympathised with the two men who were seen as Biya's scapegoats. No such accusations had been levelled against the Head of State for jailing Seydou Monchipou, a former Post and Telecommunication Minister, accused alongside some of his collaborators for swindling close to FCFA 11 billion.
No such allegations were also made when Gerard Emmanuel Ondo Ndong and collaborators were jailed. Neither were Edouard Etonde Ekotto and Siyam Siewe, the objects of public sympathy. This means that the public is very sensitive and can distinguish between victimisation and deserved punishment.
It is, therefore, hoped that the arrest of Abah Abah and Olanguena is based on facts that they indeed looted the public treasury and not because they belong to or are sympathisers of the famous G11, suspected to be eyeing Biya's juicy post.
The moment the public suspects that this is the motive of arrest, they would be seen as victims rather than suspects and the regime would lose whatever iota of sympathy the public had for it. It may not be out of place to mention here that embezzlement is an offence abhorred and considered culpable by all laws whether human or divine.
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Dante emphasises the obnoxious nature of corruption by allocating to embezzlers a special circle in hell where those who engaged in it while on earth are forced to dance incessantly while maggots fall out of their rotten faces with the sweat.
If President Biya wants to be remembered as the man who brought democracy to Cameroon, he should hit harder on corruption which is the greatest drawback to good governance. Those arrested should not necessarily be jailed as Cardinal Tumi suggests in the September edition of Summit Magazine, but forced to return the stolen loot.
It makes no sense to keep thieves in jail while they continue to enjoy the fruits of their iniquity.
As a Cameroonian,I am of the opinion that high level officials should not be arrested at this time with the intention of diverting attention from the crucial issue of Biya´s bid for another term of office.Cameroonians are fed up with all these political games and with the present situation in the country,these socalled economic criminals recently arrested are being used for propaganda purposes.The truth is that our country is deteriorating and we need a new leader,who will cause Mr.Biya and his cohorts to give account of this mess.Cameroon is not a kingdom to be,and will never be one.Mr. Noway.
I have no intention of abusing anyone,but if you think so,then it is a misjudgment and misinterpretation of my commentaries which you asked for.Is Amadou ALI on the right track?If yes,more grease to his elbow,but not in the 26years old government we all know.
All those who have been arrested and all with proven records of looting public tills yet to be arrested, should be put under housearrest with all their accounts in both local and foreign financial institutions frozen, until they do restitution to the Cameroonian people, if this exercise must be taken seriously to bring to fruition the good intent of it. A public probaity bureau should be set up to deal with such matters as corruption, restitution, etc. Whatever is recovered from these brothers of ours will make a favourable difference in vamping the economy. We will forgive them if they... [Read Full Text]
All those who have been arrested and all with proven records of looting public tills yet to be arrested, should be put under housearrest with all their accounts in both local and foreign financial institutions frozen, until they do restitution to the Cameroonian people, if this exercise must be taken seriously to bring to fruition the good intent of it. A public probaity bureau should be set up to deal with such matters as corruption, restitution, etc. Whatever is recovered from these brothers of ours will make a favourable difference in vamping the economy. We will forgive them if they... [Read Full Text]
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