Richard Kwang Kometa
30 October 2009
On the invitation of President Paul Biya, his counterpart from the Republic of Chad, Idriss Deby Itno paid a two-day official visit to Cameroon that ended yesterday October 29. Such a summit meeting between the leaders of Cameroon and Chad cannot be under estimated. It is not just the bond of friendship that both leaders share, but the multifaceted regional and sub-regional engagements that condition links between Chad and Cameroon.
One of the high points of the visit, which was the toast at the Presidency, brought out the scope and depth of the visit as President Biya said "the solidarity spirit thus established will gradually lead to the sense of community belonging ."
Chad has for years known serial spates of instability and it may not be an over statement to say "when Chad sneezes, Cameroon catches a cold". "Your security is also ours", President Biya told his Chadian counterpart. The influx of refugees, the spread of arms and other destructive weapons that cross into Cameroon through rebels and fugitives from Chad have been at the centre of insecurity in the Northern region of Cameroon and the situation has lasted for so long that many would not imagine that President Paul Biya will invite his peer from Chad for that alone. Yet the issue is of such capital importance.
Rebels have been known to create havoc at border regions of both countries and even beyond causing enormous loss of lives and property. No leader can afford to remain indifferent in the face of such insecurity. It would not even be a bad idea to make citizens better aware of the danger that such marauders constitute through the publication of regular data. This could have the advantage of winning the support of the affected masses that stand a better chance to denounce such risky individuals and ease the work of law enforcement officials.
With talks between both leaders having gone for over two hours at the Unity Palace on October 28, the signal was clear that both Heads of State had much to examine. Looking at the context of the financial crisis that the Bank of Central African States, BEAC, is facing, the summit meeting of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central African States, CEMAC, being announce soon, the just ended extraordinary session of the Economic Community of Central African States, ECCAS, in Kinshasa on October 23 that gave President Deby the Chairmanship of the gathering and Cameroon confided the responsibility to spearhead reforms, it was imperative that both leaders concert.
With the diverse nature of issues that commit Cameroon and Chad in the months ahead, it could easily be understood that Presidents Paul Biya and Idriss Deby meet to chart the way forward.
Fortunately, the two leaders not only recalled their past joint achievements like the Chad Cameroon Pipeline but equally sounded sanguine about the future of the CEMAC passport, the movement of goods and people within the sub-region which have lagged behind for just too long now. President Paul Biya was even clearer on the point when he said in his toast at the Unity Palace diner that CEMAC member countries have been holding on to egoistic nationalistic tendencies, long outdated in today's global village where information and technology have narrowed and even faced out national frontiers at certain levels.
Should the next project of Cameroon providing electricity to the Republic of Chad come to fruition, then it will be laudable at several fronts. It would mean Cameroon overcoming her own energy shortage and catering for the needs of her valuable neighbour like Chad. President Paul Biya was definite about the issues when he declared in his toast that "in future, moving in the opposite direction, the electricity generated by our power stations will be supplying the energy needed by Chad." The President was thus looking at the Pipeline project that earned both nations world admiration.
Other infrastructure like roads which President Biya also announced as well as the highway between Chad and Cameroon are among urgent projects that will always justify the need for the flame of solidarity to continue burning between both countries especially at such a summit level.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 Cameroon Tribune. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
