2025 presidentials: PCRN holds congress at last, invests Cabral Libii.

This was during the Second Ordinary Congress of the political outfit. 

Delegates to the Congress voted overwhelmingly, investing Hon Cabral Libii, as the candidate of the PCRN for the presidential poll to hold in October this year. 

Addressing delegates at the Congress, Cabral Libii encouraged citizens to keep their hope for change at the helm of State alive.

He noted that despite Cameroon having a history of an opposition not having defeated the incumbent Biya, it is still possible to achieve such. He enthused that such is going to happen this year, thanks to the PCRN.

“Let us give ourselves the means to victory at the ballot box. Let us break out of learned helplessness. Just because a presidential change has never taken place does not mean it is impossible. Just because many people tell a lie does not mean they are right. Let us take the true measure of the stakes and assume our responsibilities,” Cabral Libii stated.

The PCRN National President further noted that when the party wins the presidential election, “… as will soon be the case, we will be able to respect the deadlines prescribed by law and, through realistic budgets, profoundly transform the lives of our fellow citizens”.

Markets general overhaul of Cameroon

In a detailed address at the congress, Hon Cabral Libii shared the vision of the PCRN for almost all sectors of national life. He said their proposals are a sharp contrast with what has obtained under the CPDM in the last 43 years. Cabral Libii insisted that the country needs a general overhaul to address the pressing needs of Cameroonians.

He noted that Cameroon is going through “…a pivotal period. The challenges are immense. The wounds are deep. The emergencies are numerous. But our commitment is unwavering. Our faith in this country is total. And our ambition is clear: to reconcile Cameroonians with politics, with the State and with their future,” he stated. 

Emergency recovery plan, fighting corruption

In line with the party’s philosophy of Community Federalism, Cabral Libii said the PCRN has an emergency recovery plan, which will entail giving every Region 3 billion FCFA and two billion FCFA to councils. 

He justified that the allocation, which will mark the start of work, is in line with the party’s “project based on administrative redistribution and regional autonomy, with substantial resources…”.

To ensure the money solves real problems, he stated that actions will be taken to tackle corruption and embezzlement. The population of every council area, he said, will be involved in the handling of such money to ensure transparency.

“With this special mechanism, we hope to achieve positive, effective and rapid results, free from corruption and misappropriation of public funds,” Hon Cabral stated.

On tackling corruption, he declared that: “The fight against corruption will not be an empty promise. It will be carried out without hatred, without complacency, without discrimination, regardless of the social status or political affiliation of those incriminated. No one is above the law”.

Fighting poverty as “60% Cameroonians live below poverty line”

Another top issue Cabral Libii said interests the PRCN party is dealing with poverty which he said is endemic in Cameroon. He declared that at least 60 percent of Cameroonians live below the poverty line with many unable to feed or afford the basics of life.

Sloganeering, he underscored, cannot deal with poverty except actions are taking on ground with interest on promoting entrepreneurship. 

“It can be fought by a more inclusive economy, where every Cameroonian has a place, a chance, an opportunity,” the presidential aspirant noted.

He is marketing the putting in place of what he calls “the National Fund for Local Economy”, to handle support the growth of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises, SMEs. 

The Fund, he stated, “will finance projects led by young people, women and rural cooperatives. This fund will not be managed from air-conditioned offices in Yaounde, but as close to the ground as possible, with transparency and fairness. Yes, we must protect the most vulnerable”.

He added that: “We are going to massively support small and medium-sized businesses, craftsmen, farmers and shopkeepers. They are the real pillars of our economy. They create jobs. They feed the nation”.

He equally talked of the institution of a minimum solidarity allowance for the poorest families, free healthcare for children under the age of five, compulsory health insurance and a national school feeding program.

Reforming legal, tax system to end power in hands of few

To further make the country the preserve of every citizen, Cabral Libii noted that his party is working on reforming the judicial system to protect compatriots and investments.

He decried the current state of things wherein power and the wealth of the country is concentrated in the hands of a few. 

The PCRN, he noted, “will reform the tax system to make it more progressive, fairer and more favourable to those who really produce”.

Boosting rural infrastructure

The politician also talks of a massive plan to boost rural infrastructure through the launch of a rural investment program.

“We will launch a major public investment program in rural areas, to build roads, markets and basic infrastructure,” Hon Cabral said, adding that, “development must not stop at the gates of regional capitals”.

Reform outdated education system

Another sector which Cabral Libii said is in need of emergency reform is the country’s educational system. The PCRN leader observed that, the entire education system does not align with the shifting demands of the job market. Across all levels of education, Cabral Libii said much of what is taught is basically theory that doesn’t address the needs of the job industry.

“The PCRN wants an educational revolution. A revolution that doesn't just build classrooms, but profoundly transforms the way we teach, learn, train and prepare for the future. We need to decolonize our education system,” the observed.

The world of today, he said, demands graduates and professionals with skills that can solve problems. He drummed a vision of promoting of promoting vocational education. 

“We're going to reform technical and vocational education to reconnect it with economic realities: modern agriculture, digital technology, energy, crafts, project management,” Cabral Libii stated. If voted into office, he said the PCRN government will liaise with the private sector to create more apprenticeship training centres.

The PCRN, added, “will launch a ‘One Student, One Tablet’ program in public institutions, with digitized educational content. We will equip schools with free internet connections and train teachers in digital tools”.  He also revealed plans for free compulsory primary education.

He enthused that things must change in terms of training to end the current situation wherein he claimed 70 percent of young graduates don’t have stable jobs.

Dual nationality to exploit potential of diaspora 

To further enhance national development, Cabral Libii disclosed that his party is in support of the institution of a law that recongises dual citizenship. 

This, he noted, will enable Cameroon benefit from its estimated five million compatriots living outside the country. The PCRN, he added, sees the country’s Diaspora as lever for wealth creation. 

“For us, it is inconsistent to claim to be a nation when a borrowed nationality deprives citizens of the full enjoyment of their essence. We need to revise the Nationality code and introduce multi-nationality. In more ways than one, our diaspora is not a danger, but an opportunity,” he affirmed.

Long road to Congress

The congress took place after over a year of wrangling between the government and the PCRN. The meeting had been programmed for December 15 to 17, 2023, in Kribi II Subdivision, Ocean Division of the South Region. 

Yet the Divisional Officer, DO, of the administrative unit, Bitanga Bebga Marie Suzanne, made a U-turn on November 23 of that year, cancelling an authorisation she had granted earlier on for the political gathering.

Then the DO had cited internal division within the party as being a threat to public order and peace. It was Robert Kona, one of the founding fathers of the party who emerged then challenging Cabral Libii’s leadership of the party.

Kona had filed a suit against Cabral Libii at the Kaele Magistrate Court in the Mayor Kani Division of the Far North Region. Kona then was seeking to reclaim the leadership of the party from Cabral Libii. 

The complainant had said since the 2020 twin polls, none of PCRN’s five Member of Parliament, MPs, had visited him as founding father of the PCRN. 

He had also claimed to be out of touch with developments within the party. Then, he prayed the court to cancel the resolutions of the May 11, 2019 First Ordinary Congress in Guidiguis, Mayo-Kani Division of the Far North Region. It was during the same congress that   Cabra Libii was voted PCRN National President.

Beyond this, Kona who proclaimed himself leader of a faction of the party has lost at least two legal battles against Cabral. The situation had limited the political activities across the country with administrators banning its meetings and stopping it from participating in national celebrations.

 Surprise appreciation

But Cabral Libii’s expression of appreciation to the administration and political leaders of the country at the Congress of Friday has left many pondering. 

Cabral Libii said the congress was an “… expression of a people who want to rise again, of a youth who want to build, of a country that wants to be reborn”, adding that some people see the holding of the meeting as, “a victory for democracy”.

He then quipped: “It is for this reason that I am delighted to thank the political and administrative authorities of this country for having brought joy and hope to the thousands of women, men and young people who are PCRN militants”.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3456 of Monday May 26, 2025