At Yaounde rally: Kamto weeps for country of scandals, Cameroon.

Kamto made the accusation during a rally in the Mendong vicinity of Yaounde on Saturday May 6. Though being a gathering to install the executive bureau of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement, MRC, for the party’s Centre I Region, Kamto highlighted several social issues. The issues, according to him, paint a picture of the Biya regime having failed in several facets.

He told hundreds of MRC supporters and sympathisers at the gathering that “our country continues to descend into hell”, before lamenting about what he says is widespread suffering nationwide with citizens not having access to the most of basic social services.

Decries “rising” insecurity 

Kamto said the general security situation of the country is worrisome and needs urgent action. 

He cited the case of the late journalist, Martinez Zogo and the questionable circumstances under which the orthodox priest, Jean-Jacques Ola Bebe, was found dead and many others as telling that Cameroonians are not safe.

The MRC leader said the North West and South West Regions are yet to come out of the grip of a raging armed conflict. He stated that Boko Haram has in recent times been attempting to make fresh incursions in the northern parts of the country.

In the case of Zogo, Kamto said “we are told that the accomplices of his torture have been arrested, but not the perpetrators of his murder”, before asking, “does this mean that Martinez Zogo is not dead, and that he was only tortured?”.

He intimated that since Zogo’s brutal killing, “we have been shown his remains. This was followed by the no less horrible death of Fr Jean-Jacques Ola Bebe,” adding that in the North West and South West Regions, civilians and security forces continue to die because of what he said is “a senseless war that could have been avoided. The armed conflict in the North West and South West Regions must be brought to an end without further delay”.

Recent attacks linked to Boko Haram terrorists in the Northern part of the country, Kamto said, are “again causing death and destruction, especially among our poor and abandoned people”.

The politician and lawyer said he has never been able to come “to terms with these tragedies”. He accused the government in place of being ineffective and “complacent” in handling the security threats.

‘Cameroonians suffocating under rising cost of living’

He bemoaned that “socially, life is crushing Cameroonians,” before recalling what he said, he had predicted was going to follow after the hosting of the Africa Cup of Nation, AFCON, in early 2022.

Since after the ambiance of that tournament, Kamto said Cameroonians are now face-to-face with the difficult reality “which the current regime has plunged us into. Since then, we have been suffering the pangs of high cost of living”.

Between when that football tourney took place in Cameroon and now, Kamto said, the prices of basic commodities have skyrocketed. 

According to him, “A packet of Bobolo (processed fermented cassava), that used to cost 450 FCFA now sells at 1,000 FCFA in Mbankomo; a litre of vegetable from 1,100 FCFA to 1,600 FCFA; a litre of palm oil has risen from 800 FCFA to 1,100 FCFA; a kilo gram of rice from 350 FCFA to 450 FCFA,  a kg of meat from 2,700 FCFA to 3,000 FCFA; a litre of fuel from 620 FCFA to 730 FCFA and a litre of diesel from 575 FCFA to 720 FCFA”.

The politician said the rising cost of living could push some husbands who don’t understand the realities in the market to scold their wives.  Such an assessment, Kamto averred, can be made after one has taken the temperature of prices in the market.

To address the situation, he urged the powers that be to review salaries upwards generally. 

He remarked that: “It is true that there has been an increase in minimum wage, but the state must carry out a general increase in salaries to increase the purchasing power of some households.”

‘Electricity, potable water still a disgrace despite huge investments in sector’

Added to the catalogue of what Kamto considers as making the Biya regime a failure, is the disturbing situation of potable water and electricity supply. 

He slammed Yaounde for having promised to address the situation with multi-billion projects over a decade ago but the same challenges are still there in 2023.

“In our homes, the water that flows from taps is muddy and reddish.  Most of the times, the taps are completely dry while River Sanaga flows freely into the sea,” he regretted. 

Electricity, he said, has remained epileptic, irrespective of the several dams which have been under construction for years. 

The situation, he also said, has worsened to the level where even in Yaounde, citizens are using bush lamps in their homes.

He submitted that the situation is no better in the health and education sectors, adding that “the assault of misery is spreading in the towns and villages at a high velocity.” 

“I won’t even mention the situation in health facilities and schools, where our children have become corrupted and addicted to drugs and pornography,” Kamto quipped. 

The situation for the young, he further said, has been complicated because of the “mirage of the easy life conveyed by those who call themselves influencers”.

‘Cameroon moving from one scandal to another’

Like the eldest Member of Parliament, Hon Laurentin Koa Mfegue observed during the March session of Parliament, Kamto too was in tune with her that Cameroon is now a country of scandals.

The MRC leader said financial scandals and the misappropriation of resources from the public till have become the norm.

From 2019 till now, Kamto shared the view that the mishandling of public finances has remained alarming. 

He cited billions allocated for the hosting of AFCON 2021 which took place within the first two months of 2022 since 2019 as telling of how recklessness has taken hold of public office holders. 

He said it is same thing that happened to the billions borrowed from the International Monetary Fund, IMF, to fight COVID-19. 

He also raised concerns about the report of Swiss multinational commodity company, Glencore, having bribed Cameroonian authorities to the tune of billions of FCFA to seek favours. Such actions, he stated, further contribute to tarnish the image of Cameroon.

‘The times are unpredictable’

Beyond x-raying the situation of things nationwide, Kamto averred that the times are uncertain and anything can happen at any time in Cameroon. He stated that elections could take place in 2024 or 2025. The MRC, he declared, will not miss out.

“Anything can happen at any time,” he stated, adding that “we need to be ready now, regardless of the opponents our party will face”. 

“The upcoming elections which could take place this year, in 2024 or on the official dates in 2025, will be a turning point for our country. We cannot afford to miss them,” he told supporters.