At 12th Literary Café in Yaounde: CNPS drums public service over power abuse.

The gathering focused on the book ‘La République des Présidents; Regards philosophiques sur le leadership et la culture du pouvoir au Cameroun’, which roughly translates into English as The Republic of Presidents: Philosophical Perspectives on Leadership and the Culture of Power in Cameroon. It is authored by Dr Ngoupayou Houzerou. The session urged officials to serve citizens rather than misuse authority.

The cultural meeting drew a packed audience of literature enthusiasts, staff and invited guests. It was organised in three stages: a review by the moderator, a presentation by the author, and an open question-and-answer session.

Moderator, Hervé Akame, opened proceedings by framing the work as a call for a revolution of consciousness, an invitation to reclaim the concept of responsibility, placing service above self-interest. 

He described it as a deep reflection examining the relationship between power, civic behaviour, and the manner in which authority is exercised and perceived across all levels of public administration in Cameroon.

The book, he noted, dissects social behaviours driven by ego at the expense of the common good, exploring what Dr Ngoupayou describes as the creeping infiltration of the passion for command into everyday life.

Taking the floor, the author painted a frank picture of a sociological reality that undermines efficient public service.

“Our society is becoming increasingly difficult to live in, because of our behaviours and our mentalities. When you walk into a public office, from the security staff right up to the director, passing through the secretaries, each person at their level imposes their own rules rather than those meant to serve the user and then sends you packing. This is what breeds ills such as corruption, among others,” Dr Ngoupayou said.

He argued that this deeply entrenched anti-social culture is one of the principal brakes on the collective development that Cameroonians broadly desire. 

His book, he explained, is an invitation for every individual to interrogate their own conduct at whatever post they occupy, to ask not whether they wielded authority, but whether they were genuinely useful.

“Change is ourselves. Each person must be the change they wish to see, and it begins with the service we render every day,” he noted.

The debate that followed touched on the relationship between presidential culture and anti-social behaviour, the personalisation of power, and the broader stakes of a collective awakening. 

The discussions placed the author at the crossroads between the Africa of yesterday and the continent's aspirations for tomorrow.

The Director General of CNPS, Noël Alain Olivier Mekulu Mvondo Akame, who wrote the preface to the work, expressed his hope that the book would leave a lasting mark.

“May these pages inspire a new generation, that of the servants of a Cameroon reconciled with itself, where the leader becomes once again a guide, not a master; a builder, not an owner of power,” Mekulu Mvondo stated.

Constructive exchanges during the event also encouraged the author to consider producing a second volume. CNPS said the literary forum remains part of its wider programme promoting reflection, culture and civic values.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3781 of Wednesday May 06, 2026