allAfrica.com: Cameroon: Sustained Interest in Politics (Page 1 of 1)

How often do we hear people say politics is a dirty game. Others say politics is a clean game rendered dirty by bad people. Whatever it is Cameroonians have, over the years, been involved in politics with varied fortunes. From the colonial times through the nationalist struggle for independence till date Cameroonians have shown passionate interest in politics.

Going down memory lane, what comes to mind is the signing in 1884 of the Germano-Douala Treaty with King Akwa which propelled Cameroon as a nation into the world geopolitical stage. Then came the period of colonial rule during which Cameroonians fought along side their colonial masters against Nazism. Like in many African countries, this period gave rise to a new sense of political awareness among nationalists who eventually got involved in the struggle for independence. This new-found consciousness opened the gateway to the growth of political pluralism a few decades preceding independence which came for most countries in the late 50s and early 60s; hence the birth of the first political parties in Cameroon. With the attainment of independence in 1960, political pluralism which had become a reality attracted the interest of many Cameroonian nationalists. Much interest and massive participation in politics helped to shape the outcome of the plebiscite by which Southern Cameroons reunited with the Republic of Cameroun. After a brief period of multiparty politics, Cameroon plunged into monolithic governance between 1966 and 1990.

In 1990, Cameroon was caught up by the wind of democratic change from Eastern Europe ignited by the Soviet Union's Mikhail Gorbachev's perestroika and glasnosts. The launching in Bamenda of the Social Democratic Front in May 1990 paved the way for new-found freedom of assembly, speech and association and multiparty elections. Many Cameroonian citizens became interested in politics with the creation of many political parties. The government carried out many far-reaching reforms with the publication of new texts on rights and freedoms under the impulsion of the Head of State, President Paul Biya. The political scene in Cameroon was marked by great enthusiasm, effervescence and at times turbulence. This period of massive participation and interest began to wane with the passing of time when opposition political parties came to realize that it takes more than sheer rhetoric to capture power. Many have come to realize that the world of politics is characterized by intrigue and manipulation. This has caused some persons to develop an attitude of indifference or nonchalance towards involvement in political action.

Yet the number of political parties has continued to grow with more than 210 parties known to be in existence as at last year. The last council and parliamentary elections of July 2007 saw an unusually high percentage of abstaintion especially in the urban centres which could be partly attributed to frustrations caused by the failure of opposition political parties and civil society organisations to deliver on their promises. But this abstaintion was not a demonstration of the lack of interest. In fact, the general concern shown nation-wide about the debate on the amendment of the constitution proves that Cameroonians are as interested in politics today as they have always been.

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