BaretaNews Editorial: The Economic Interest of the Church Overrides The Suffering People’s Interest

The calls by the mainstream churches for schools to resume without certain preconditions have taken millions of Christians and Southern Cameroonians to an old age. Not only have they received rebuttals from their Christians whenever these announcements are made, it goes a long way to explain the economic interest of the Church rather than the social and suffering position of the masses. While we understand that education is a basic right, however, the right to education involves as well a serene and conducive atmosphere as well as quality education, both of which are hugely missing.

We recalled that the Church in just some months back were adamant on No School Resumption. They gave several conditions and this was made loudly when Bishop Kleda paraded the entire Anglophone Dioceses. What has changed between then and now? Is it the students who have been untaught for one academic year? Is it the promotion to the next class of students without any knowledge or studies of their previous class? Is the release of Southern Cameroonians detained which the church requested? Is it the atmosphere which still remains hostile and not serene? Is it the demilitarization of our towns? Is it the solutions to the problems which first of all took the teachers out? Is it fear of the court case against them? What really has changed that will cause the churches to call for schools resumption without thinking particularly of those in jail and the prevailing situation?

As far as BaretaNews is concerned, the only thing which has changed is the economic position of the Church. Schools are brisk business for the Church. While they pay their teachers and other staff meager salaries, the church uses the gains from the school and state subvention to promote their own social and economic agenda within the church and its pastors/priests. Oh yes, last year, students had already paid fees, a large number of them had paid fees. Economically speaking the Church was fine. They had enough cash to get them going, the gains were even more as they suspended salaries of their teachers thereby feeding fat from the gains of students fees. Yes, the economic interest of the Church has changed. The milk from the cow is finish. As another school year approaches, the Church has made a 360-degree change from their previous stand months ago by calling for School resumption? Why? Not because they care about the security and quality of education. Not because they care about more than 200 detainees in jail. Not because they care about the current state of affairs. The Church at this stage only cares about their Economic Interest- they need the fees from the students so that they replace the already worn out cow. They need parents to register, pay fees so that had it that school again failed to resume or does not resume effectively or even resume but shut down along the line as a result of security actions, the money remains with them. At that stage, the economic interest must have been reloaded. At this stage, the Laity as the Catholic calls the common man can take care of themselves-who cares. The move by the Church is thus powered by greed and the need to refill their economic basket.

The Church at this stage only cares about their Economic Interest- they need the fees from the students so that they replace the already worn out cow. They need parents to register, pay fees so that had it that school again failed to resume or does not resume effectively or even resume but shut down along the line as a result of security actions, the money remains with them. At that stage, the economic interest must have been reloaded. At this stage, the Laity as the Catholic calls the common man can take care of themselves-who cares. The move by the Church is thus powered by greed and the need to refill their economic basket.

The Church is supposed to stand by its position. If education is a right then it is the right for all including those in jail. The Church is supposed to rally behind the people to ask government as a basic condition to release those in jail. Now we see Priests and Pastors actively preaching and campaigning for school resumption without even mentioning the release of our people. The cow has been milked-it must be reloaded.

The PCC Synod Clerk in February 2017, Rev Babila Forchang openly called for a Church Commission to resolve the stalemate. Hear him: “.The crises that has rocked the Anglophone regions of Cameroon for the past months culminating in deaths, indiscriminate arrests, detentions, vandalism culminating in a massive boycott of Youth Day celebrations on 11th February 2017 in the English regions only go to confirm the profound assertion of the psalmist that “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain. There is need to set up a Commission of Church people to arbitrate in this matter so that this stalemate can be surmounted!..” PCC Synod Clerk

Those were the words of the PCC Synod Clerk in February. It is clear nothing has changed. The stalemate still remains and yet the Church wants the people to resume schools in this condition. We ought to be serious.

To buttress more on this, a BaretaNews Informant from within the church in kumbo told us that there was a meeting of priests in the Cathedral where Church finances were analyzed and put on the table for the Priests to see. The informant said because the education business is the most lucrative, the church saw that it is losing a lot and such is the much pressure for schools resumption. The case is true for other churches and denominations. Their equal pressure for school resumption is bound on the fact that their finances have been hit hard. The informant pondered that churches pretend to be for the people but have failed in their duty of evangelization and are now driven by immediate monetary gains forgetting to know that if they stand with the people they will make a better image in the eyes of the people but they rather prefer immediate gains against the needs of their Christian. The Informant went further to give a short description. He said Saint Augustine College Kumbo for example with over 500 students has got each student paying over 300000 CFA as such the church sees this money going for this year and when you take other schools across Anglophone Cameroon, the situation is the same and they are afraid to miss that. That is the main reason for the back to school pressure- the church does not care about education and all its components that come with it. We should shame them indeed.

Mark Bareta
BaretaNews
Founder and CEO, Bareta Media And Communications