Camerounese and Federation: How they get it wrong

Different kinds of federation.

When people say they are federalists, what do they really mean?

I just wish to explain that there are different kinds of federations. There is the federation between states with the different states managing a sub system and regional governments (e.g Canada, Tanzania, etc) and the federation that a government may decide to implement to effectively decentralise governance (e.g Nigeria).

What our parents agreed with La Republique du Cameroun before the referendum was to create a federation of two states with equal status. We agreed to maintain and manage our institutions while French Cameroun will maintain and manage theirs. In effect, Southern Cameroonians practically had all their administrative functions headquartered in Buea.

As an example, we had a seperate parliament based in Buea, a seperate Prime Minister as the head of our West Cameroon government, ministerial heads, public works department, etc. On the economic front, the government of West Cameroon created and managed businesses like Cameroon Bank, Santa Coffee Estate, National Produce Marketing Board, Cameroon Air Transport, etc. La Republique du Cameroun came in and practically destroyed all these institutions. They were trying to Francophonise our legal and educational system before some brave lawyers and teachers stood up to them.j

It is because of this understanding that the lawyers and teachers made it clear that only a “two state federation or outright independence” can solve the Anglophone problem. Our parents negotiated but for a two state federation with La Republique du Cameroun with equal status and not anything like decentralisation or a federation of 10 states.

When Francophones and CPDM surrogates talk about the founding fathers uniting the two Cameroons, they should accept that the agreement was to create a federal Cameroon with two states of equal status.

Rexon