Ambazonians Must Start Learning How to Accommodate Alternative Voices
If Ambazonians are yearning for freedom from the colonial fangs of La Republique du Cameroun (LRC) today, it is because, their minority voices have been drowned for 56 years in a supposed union of two States, equal in status. A union, which has turned out to be an act of total enslavement and assimilation into French culture. For 56 years and running, Ambazonians have been groomed to abandoned their democratic cultures of leadership critique, which put leaders on their heels, to a culture of Yes Sir, Yes my President, Yes my general etc. If Ambalanders believe that Providence is taking them out this 56 years of slavery, then they must also start learning to leave behind all the assimilative characteristics acquired from LRC, and begin realigning themselves back to their anglosaxon identity of accepting stiff opposition to and critique of government actions.
In the past couple of hours, veteran Journalist, Comrade John Mbah Akuroh, has been in the duck of the Ambazonian Facebook tribunal, for allegedly campaigning for the overthrow the Interim Government (IG) or President, through the formation of a parallel government. While others lampoon him for bringing his concerns against the IG to the public space and question his loyalty and commitment to the revolution; others simply abandoned the issues raised and confronted him with heavy insults, blackmail and hate speeches. But the truth is that, when one has knowledge of wrong doings that go on inside any government, and has failed in an attempt to privately call the leaders to order, the next thing will be to go to the fourth estate, which is the media.
Is Comrade John Mbah Campaigning for a New Government?
It is kindergarten reasoning and baseless for any right thinking Ambazonian to believe that John Mbah is campaigning for a new government at this point of the revolution. That is the dangerous narrative which proxies of the IG have put out there. In fact, at this level of the revolution and considering the achievements so far in international circles, the world shall not hesitate to laugh and mock at Ambazonians as jokers and amateurs, if they suddenly appear to present a new Interim President or government. That would be a good evidence of a colonized people not prepared for self governance. Comrade Akuroh is aware of this fact and had in his last video release asked but legitimate questions to the IG, which BaretaNews strongly supports, as part of the new system Ambazonia intends to build.
However, what BaretaNews did not support, was Comrade Akuroh, questioning Comrade Atam Milan’s nationality as an Ambazonian, which we told him boldly that it is a none issue and therefore not necessary at this time. Historians would remember that the political equation of Bamileke-Ambazonians and Bassa-Ambazonians in the history of Southern Cameroons, has always raised concerns of loyalty and commitment to freedom from LRC, by any of the Comrades from these extractions or with such roots. John Ngu Foncha was accused of same, that it was because of his Dschang ancestry in LRC, that he unapologetically canvassed for unification with LRC. But history is witness to the fact that before his death, Foncha had apologized to the people for the mistake of campaigning for unification, and became committed to a free Ambazonia. Thus, questioning a fellow Comrade’s loyalty to the revolutionary course because of his purported LRC ancestry in this era is a none issue and this should not border such Comrades or cause them to relinquish their commitment to a free Ambaland. Ambazonians, no matter their ancestral backgrounds, must therefore allow the actions of fellow comrades towards the revolutionary course, to speak louder than their various perceptions.
Nevertheless, surrogates of the IG are not answering the questions raised by John Mbah Akuroh. They have been running from the facts raised and lambasting him left and right. If Ambazonia has a government in place then, it is the duty of all Ambazonians to question that government and put it to task or else, the government becomes another group or a movement that allows only its members to talk and act. So long as we are all citizens under this government, sealing our lips from talking will never happen because, talking, asking responsible and critical questions, and setting the agenda is not only the duty of the press, but also that of any true citizen, committed to his/her freedom and the wellbeing of all Ambazonians.
Akuroh, was very professional in his video and there is nowhere in it that he campaigned for a new government or even showed disrespect for the current government. Rather, he asked some pertinent questions. These questions, we saw them in SCACUF, Governing Council (GC) and now the IG. We at BaretaNews believe that, since these questions have refused to die, but keep coming up repeatedly, it is high time Ambazonians mounted pressure on all those concern to boldly address these questions once and for all, and concentrate on issues related to the enemy.
What Akuroh is doing, is what journalists typically do. They set the agenda for government, by asking the right and pinching questions that provoke discusses, in order to get the right answers. Comrade Chris Anu, who is now the IG’s Communications Secretary did same thing during the Consortium, SCACUF and GC days. Comrade Anu, made critical commentaries and asked hard and bold questions using his powerful audios more than what John is doing now? Those who followed him (Anu) closely will agree that his contributions greatly contributed in setting the agenda for the leadership metamorphosis in this revolution. If Chris, was not in the IG now, he would have been doing same; this is a sure fact. so what stops John Mbah Akuroh or others from asking those questions?
One of the issues John raised in his video, is the Restoration Council. This has remain a burning issue. The council is supposed to be a somewhat legislative arm of the IG, which checks the President cabinets, vets his appointments etc. What happened to the Council? Has it been formed? If yes, when and how was the process done to get the members there? What is its composition? Can the President sets up a council that is out to checks him and his government? If it has not been set up, then what and who are they waiting for? Who has been veting and checking the appointments and actions of the President so far? These are questions which needs answers, not because someone thinks we hate the IG and wants to overthrow it, but because we want to see a functional government running on a typical anglosaxon spirit of checks and balances.
Last week, BaretaNews CEO, made a Facebook post about the Restoration Council, asking some of the questions Akuroh had asked in his video. He promised coming back forcefully with an editorial on it. In an attempt get additional information from Comrade Chris Anu, as the Secretary of Communication, to write a balanced editorial, Chris said he had no idea if the Restoration Council is already in place or how it will be composed. He however promised to investigate and get back to BaretaNews. So far, we are still to get the information.
But from what BaretaNews knows, the Restoration Council has been formed. The Chairman of Southern Cameroons Belgium did inform the Belgian team, that one of theirs had been elected into the Restoration Council. The immediate questions that came to mind were: Who elected her? How and when was it done? How come the Communication Secretary of the IG had no idea whether the Council is in existence or not? These are issues and questions Ambazonians must raise in this revolution to build a transparent process.
While BaretaNews continues to wait for the Communication Secretary’s feedback to conclude the hard editorial, it will be unreasonable and naive for any one to come up and say that Mark Bareta or any other Comrade critiquing the IG is angry he was not appointed, Mark wants a new government, Mark is against the IG etc. We have become used to these lines of attack daily and they are no longer necessary.
Proxies of the IG are used to calling people names when they ask questions. They hide under the banners of this person want to overthrow the government, this person does not support the IG etc, to run away from the real issues. We all support the IG and we will not fail to raise our voices to put it on the right track. That is even more proof to show that we support it, because we cannot afford to see it fail and take us back into slavery.
Why would people even think that Comrade John Akuroh’s action of asking hard questions is tantamount to supporting a rival government? Ambazonians must be careful not to put the IG at a level where no one can touch or call them to account. We have consistently maintained that, if this revolution is the people’s revolution, then the IG is equally the peoples government. It belongs to ALL Ambazonians who are all stakeholders in this revolution. Leaders will come and go and Ambazonia shall remain.
Answers are needed. We need people who can challenged Akuroh’s claims. People who can do it as he did without insults, blackmail or name calling. The cycle of aimless blackmail and insults to alternative voices on social media must stop. None addresses the issues raised.
BaretaNews and its crew do not support any rival IG formation, but this government will have to get its actions straight. They already are doing great. However, they should be ready to receive now and again write ups which challenges them, put them on the hot sit and push them to act in the right way, for better and transparent performance.
As we run away from a colonial master that has operated a closed and dictatorial system, caging our voices and destinies for 56 years, we must also be very cautious not to inadvertently create another system, operating in like manner. We must learn to run an open system at this level of the revolutionary voyage, in order to get a continentally and globally admirable system in a post revolutionary Ambazonia. That is only when we can truly say we ran away from a closed system to an open system.
Mark Bareta, with Contributions from James Agbor
10 comments
The authors of this article are very very naive. Journalism is not for everyone. Before you publish something please do your homework.
Information is only as good as the credibility of the source. Mr Akuroh is not a credible source for any information regarding this struggle.
Did you learn anything from the last conclave. The story line before and during the conclave was that Mr. Milan had misappropriated money, Mr. Tassang was being prevented from participating in the conclave, the conclave has started while Mr. Tassang was still on his way, etc, etc. At the end of the day none of that was true. Did you participate in spreading any of that falsehood? If you did, did you learn anything?
Please, before you comment, compare and contrast how revolution are organized and function, do some historical research. That will help you know what you are talking about. In this case you are clueless.
Research great revolution like the American revolution and the ANC struggle in South Africa.
The birth of the United States of America for example took place behind closed doors. A handful of people said in a close room in Pennsylvania for days, designd the new nation, drafted the constitution, and presented it to the people. In your naive world I guest you will call that a dictatorship because it was done in a closed setting by a few people and they were no checks and balances.
When you engage in a revolution, you are agreeing to put your faith and destiny in the hands of a few. If you think that is undemocratic and lacks checks and balances, then do not engage in a revolution. Go do something else.
I gave my point of view on a whatsup that gave highlighted same vision of open democracy, open criticisms of leadership..etc. as a foundation of building a solid future for the Ambazonians. such an argument can be right under certain conditions and wrong in other conditions.
What are the conditions we are facing now?:
1) We are struggling to establish ourselves as a force to reckon with behind the IG with numerous power/interest/incomprehension atmosphere looming with a negative consequence in front of both the enemy and its allies as well as in front of the entire world. Such a situation is highly beneficial to LRC as they are good in looking for fault lines and investing in it to destabilize any uprising as has been the fate of the Fonchas and Munas….. and as has been the fate of many multiparty politics in Cameroun.
2)we are in a situation where our people have been under serious hardship for over a year today because our people said enough is enough and our territory is under state of emmergency. Killings, imprisonment, torture and now open war with growing refugee crisis.
3) we are in a situation whereby children are not going to school, people have lost shops, businesses and many are on the run without a future…
This is the situation in which we are exercising our journalistic talents of asking the IG to take as priority in addressing questions that bother us most such as: the identity of Milan Atam, the IG should be most preoccupied in telling us which procedure led to the metamorphosis of SCACUF to the IG even if people have pressed for and welcome such move. Surely we would like to even get an explanation on why the leadership of the struggle is no more the consortium,…. why are teachers and lawyers not the ones leading the struggle….Mr Mark are these the questions our informed journalists are interested in at this moment? Then they need to find out why Ben laden, ISIS, Russia, Syria, Kadhafi are painted black by the west when they want ot achieve a goal. Does it mean those western journalists are afraid to criticise their own governments? no they use their journalism to fight a war… I agree that the IP should be speaking to the people and communicating to the worries of the people but I think they should focus on what matters to the life of the people at stake – now. You journalists should get information from the IP and other stakeholders and communicate to our people – you journalists should help the IG play the role of giving the information that matters to address their worries and build the fighting spirit. If all those people killed or imprisoned, on the run… were your relatives….you would not be concerned of finding out who is a Southern Cameroonian or not while your kinsmen are dying out there in the bushes without shelter nor food.
Southern Cameroonians need responsible journalism that know how to play their part in the struggle not people who seek to kill the struggle with their untimely and unnecessary questions in time of war.
But I would recommend the IG communication desk to make some clarifications to the questions asked as they are already in the air.
I will continue to call on you Mark and others on the communication desk to strategize and make the communication war real and professional. The world needs to know.
Fotoh Paul
Mark what John did is horrible.You have tried to explain quite nothing in defending him.
I am wondering that there are still people who think that Mr. Milan has misappropriated money. I propose the IG to engage a third party (PWC or similar) to check the books. People should start reasoning John Akuroh is the best buddy of Tassang Wilfred. Is it possible that they try to miscredit Mr. Milan? Why doing that in a public forum? Can Mr. Tassang or John Akuroh not directly speak with the IP? But I agree with Bareta news that the IG urgently needs to install checks and balances. We need straight forward working. I wish that the IP will address those issues and worries.
Concerning the ancestors of Mr. Milan. I am absolutely shocked about that accusations. If the aim is to install a racist state then I immediately leave this revolution. How can we copy the mistake of LRC? Tribalism will kill this revolution. I don’t want a Rwanda style state. I fight for an open society. For a modern African country.
PWC will charge you $200 to $300 per hour. The total amount in question is about $16,000 which was accounted for.
Remember we had an independent auditor who audited the records and did not find any misappropriation.
These are people with a hidden agenda trying to use Mr Milan’ s name to achieve their goals. Unfortunately, some of our people are blindly following them.
A revolution is not for everyone. Either you trust you leaders to take you to the promise land-Buea- or go do something else. It is not that complicated. Nobody is forced to support the revolution.
The nightmarish situation in which we find ourselves in today is mostly due to this idea that “my way is the best and it should not be questioned”.
If Pa Foncha had listened to many Southern Cameroonians who had ideas that were different from his, we would not be in these predicaments today. To imagine that Pa Foncha was secretly dealing with Lucifer Ahidjo while keeping many in the KNDP party in the dark to the extent that he traveled to Foumban with a deligation that was clueless as to why they were going to Fumban should serve as a wake up call to some of us. But then, while on his dead bed, he apologized for the gross mistakes he made that has resulted in the total destruction on the economy as well as the premature dead of many Southern Cameroonian.
To add insults to injury’s you will think that Pa Muna will learn a lesson or two from the mistakes of Pa Foncha. On the contrary, he only made a bad situation worst to the extent that he connived with Lucifer Ahidjo to seal our faith. And guess what like Pa Foncha, while on his dead bed, he also apologized for not listening when Southern Cameroonians were complaining about their marginalization as well as the thievery and excesses of many in LRC.
Consequently AMBALANDERS, let us not allow history to repeat itself. We have to speak up when something is going wrong. A problem should be tackled as soon as it starts to rear it’s ugly head. We should it sweep it under the rug until we get to a position no return as was typical in the time of Pa Foncha and Pa Muna.
We cannot denounce the mischievous ways of Musonge, Patrick Ekema, Atanga Nji, Elvis Ngolle and others yet we want to play it easy when something is wrong with the IG.
However, the social media is no place to discuss every thing. It is my understanding that the IP will be in America towards the end of December and is open to meet with Ambazonians. Let us use this occasion to address sensitive issues. Also, there are leaderships in certain regions to whom concerns can be channeled. We cannot afford time and time again to be shooting ourselves in the foot as if our actions are inconsequential.
I stopped reading Baretanews (which I have occasionally contributed financially to the platform) when I found out that it peddles reckless defence propaganda for a quack facebook defence group. However, I saw this article on twitter an wanted to get this off my chest.
What lousy alternative voices does this article refers to? I mean, what is journalistic about the type of persona conveyed in the JMA video? Allegations are not facts and to be pushed as facts in the manner that he did and you call that journalism brings to question Baretanews’credibility if that is journalism by your own standard.
A revolution is not a democracy. If any leader in a revolution lose his usefulness to the course the revolution simply toast him/her. A revolution has a way of self purifying its course and purging traitors/detractors. A bunch of guys sad and decided that Balla (consortium), Tapang (consortium), Mark (consortium), Tassang (Scacuf), Sisseko (AGC/IG) will lead us and that was it. What democratic elections were conducted in this cases? If this seems to anyone as a dictatorship, then that is the nature of a revolution. ANC organized and killed traitors within the movement yet it formed one of worlds greatest free democracy today. When the people will feel that the IP no longer represents them, he will be removed and a new leader will be put in place without any democratic election.
I am from Bali-Nyonga, a graffi and I hereby distance myself from the discernible (in some cases subtle) graffi mafia (Boh, Cho-A, JMA, ROA, Mark etc against the humble servants of the people.
This is Milan’s response below from his facebook account and hope you publish it fairness sake
Atam Millan
7 hrs ·
Good morning. This is Millan himself!
What gives John the right to question my paternity? If the norm was to ask everyone to present their credentials as bona fide Southern Cameroonian I would understand. Shouldnt he have started by presenting his? Especially for one born on the verge of our borders…which makes him easily a native of another country!
How have we been able to determine the origin of everyone who claims to be Southern Cameroonian? Simply by them saying so or by them presenting their credentials? Not too long ago I was bundled together with Tassang and John Mbah Akuro as being from Momo. Some even went as far as saying I was from Nigeria. What was the purpose of all these digging into my origins? What makes people start to question the origin of someone who is supposed to be their Comrade? The Momo allegation was to try and find tribalism. The Nigerian allegation was to try and find foreigness. And now the Baum allegation is to try and find treachery. How low can some people get? Especially people one might dare consider leaders of our tomorrow!!!
Well I have come to the conclusion that people who descend to such lows resort to this for the following reasons:
1. The targeted individual constitutes a threat. It is fear that drives insecure people to start digging into the lineage of an adversary. This is because they cannot match that person on an ideological level. John makes allusion to Barack Obama. It was not his nationality that his adversaries feared. It was his personality and what he represented. They were looking for ways to take him out of the race because they understood they could not beat him in a fair and square competition. In my case now that fictitious claims of missing funds have failed, they have now resorted to claims of nationality. When that too eventually fails, what would they turn to? That I’m a Martian?
2. Shouldn’t John and all those like him start by presenting their credentials and who their parents are? It is the same kind of rumour they started on a certain Ivo Tapang when they did not know how else to handle him. Until we start to be an honourable people, we do not deserve the freedom we seek as we may end up worse than LRC.
Has it occurred to anyone that by going on global media and discussing my family John Mbah Akuro is deliberately putting my parents in danger? And I mean the word DELIBERATELY!!!
Finally my friend let me state that I have refused to discuss my family until the time that suits me. Not because some insecure individuals request for it and I will tell you why.
I am defending the rights of those who may not be 100% Ambazonians. There is a certain witchhunt, which if not exorcised now will be used against people with mixed parentage in the future. Let me in all confidence of my origin be the wall that protects those who may be part, half, or completely non-Ambazonians but who subscribe to our cause and who show loyalty. The moment I jump to claim my 100% heritage, I am by that mere act leaving those whose parentage may only be 50% to the mercy of the John Mbah Akuros.
I stand here waiting for the individual courageous enough to challenge me in my fatherland on the basis of some fictitious foreign origin.
Millan Atam.
This is Dr. Sako’s response to the garbage by JMA.
I also ounce contributed to this garbage called baretanews, You and this John Mbah Akuroh character think you are 60 minutes on CBS or HardTalk on BBC, you are amateurs, the media does not have to know everything, you point fingers and ten fingers point back bat you. You are typical of what happens in lrc, you are braimwashed. Anglophones who wanted to get ahead in lrc were famous for writing letters of petitions about other Anglophones to gain favour out of jealousy, low self-esteem or lack of qualification. We were famous for backstabbing, that’s why they called us anglofools They complain about everything, even if it rains, they blame somebody for it. Let it be said one more time. The people in the IG are sticking their necks out, open to danger. You criticised the webmaster and Milan, they did something positive, you hide behind your forum asking for contributions, I challenge you to declare how much you have received from citizens and any advertising revenue.John Mbah Akuroh can also declare how much he has contributed. They are people contributing heavily to make things happen, they don’t complain, only losers complain. The “Donate” button on your site goes to you. You have never encouraged people to contribute to IG or give information where people can send messages to the world like EU, AU, UN friends who are helping to encourage us. All I read from you is gossip, complaints and criticisms, you seem pessimistic by nature. All we need to do is contribute financially, politically and intelligently.
We Ambazonians don’t ask for something (GC, IG, PM, goverment, …) because we want it but because our intelligence tell us it can help us solve problems and keep us going.
If the IG can not solve a single damn problem we gonna trash it, it serves us no good.
I don’t want to see that nonsense of Audit, that is not why people are paying their money. What sense dose that makes when grown up men with education, family, … can solve a single damn thing. We are not going to keep listening to people because they keep telling us thing they think pleases us.
Ambazonian dose not belong to no single group or person and I can tell all those at the front line, your mistakes are yours, we will not sit and take anything you sent down our throat just simply because we put you there.
I personally believe that right now, all these groups have been hijacked and they themselves have not even realize it. It is very clear now that this restoration process should not take a single monolithic structure with a single leader alone dictating everything. We need independent groups that are sitting down together and sharing the task while keeping each other in cheek. Any other thing is failure.
What ever the case, we the people of Ambazonia will not allow our selves to be tricked like all other African countries were tricked, I can guarantee us all, it will not happen.
Success is not judge by unity or disunity but by who is in control. We the people of Ambazonia are in control, not the UN, not OAU, not EU, not CW, not the IG or who so ever and we are going to be in control till Buea.
No body, no entity scares us and we are not afraid of anybody.
Ambazonians, I think we have to refrain from overreacting. Just as Mbah Akuro made a major mistake by being sanctimonious, some of us are also making a big mistake by lashing out at everybody. BaretaNews I believe has done an excellent job in this struggle and like everyone they have made some mistakes. Hence it will be wrong to judge BaretaNews solely on some mistakes that they have made.
There are a lot of things that some of us do that are very disturbing to our struggle. But then I try my best to focus on the plight of our people in Ambaland so that I do not allow anything to compromise my financial obligations to the dignity of our people. Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year in advance.