UN 79th General Assembly presidency race: Gov’t seduces African Diplomatic corps with Yang’s towering pedigree.

Philemon Yang, who is Grand Chancellor of National Orders, was designated by the Head of State, Paul Biya. His candidacy was officially presented to African diplomatic corps accredited to Yaounde, by the Minister of External Relations, Mbella Mbella. Cameroon will be competing alongside South Africa for the post. 

This was during a ceremony which held at the auditorium of the Ministry of External Relations last Thursday, July 6. The election of the President of the 79^th General Assembly of the United Nations is billed for 2024.

Minister Mbella Mbella used the ceremony to literally seduce the African diplomatic corps with the towering pedigree of Cameroon’s candidate for the top job. 

“He has been a very good collaborator of the President of the Republic and also, he has been playing key roles in the domestic politics and policies of Cameroon,” Mbella Mbella said. 

“He is very kind, firm, wise and very dynamic,” Mbella Mbella told the members of the African diplomatic corps comprising High Commissioners, Ambassadors and Chargé d'affaires.

ECCAS backs Yang’s candidacy 

Philemon Yang, it should be said, is in pole position for the race to the presidency of the 79^th United Nations General Assembly, after getting the backing of Heads of State and Governments of the Economic Community of Central African States, ECCAS.

ECCAS leaders took the decision to throw their weight behind his candidacy during their 23^rd Conference, which took place in Libreville, Gabon, on July 1. The ECCAS leaders equally urged the entire African continent to rally behind Yang’s candidacy. 

Minister Mbella Mbella represented President Paul Biya at the meeting which was chaired by the president of Gabon, Ali Bongo Ondimba.

“The Conference pledges to give him its full support. It calls for the solidarity of the Community and its member states, as well as the support of other African countries, to ensure that this candidacy is supported by the African Union," partly read a communiqué issued at the end of the proceedings.

It should be said that Yang is running for the UN top job under the Motto of “Support Intercultural Dialogue”.

Snippet of the profile of Cameroon’s candidate 

The multi linguist is Chair of the African Union Imminent Personalities to discuss key issues on the continent. Yang served as Prime Minister from June 30, 2009 to January 4, 2019.

He served as Ambassador, High Commissioner Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Cameroon to Canada for at least 20 years. 

He was Assistant Secretary General of the Presidency, with the rank of minister, from 2004 to 2009. He served in the government from 1975 to 1984 and was Cameroon's Ambassador to Canada from 1984 to 2004. 

After studying law at the University of Yaoundé, Yang became a prosecutor at the Court of Appeal in Buea in January 1975. He was appointed to the government as Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration on June 30, 1975, and promoted to the post of Minister of Mines and Energy on November 8, 1979. 

Yang remained in the latter position for more than four years before being removed from the government on February 4, 1984. He then became Cameroon’s Ambassador to Canada on October 23, 1984, remaining in that post for 20 years; his title changed to High Commissioner when Cameroon joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1995. He also served as the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in Canada for about 10 years.

He headed Cameroon's delegation to the negotiations on the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety from February 1998 to January 2000. After the Protocol was adopted on January 29, 2000, he became chairman of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Cartagena Protocol, ICCP.

Just recently, Yang was appointed Member of the Wise Committee of the Economic Community of Central African States.