Of School Resumption and the sustainability of the struggle.

Let us be very clear that no one Southern Cameroonian loves to see their children home without going to school. However, be it as it may, the current shut down has some ripple effects which will take only genuine dialogue from the government in Yaoundé to make it happen. The government can never defeat the people no matter how mighty its military has become. Let me explain.

1. For school to begin next academic year or whenever the people of Southern Cameroons decide shall begin first by the unconditional release of all sons and daughters abducted and kept in Kondengui, Buea or elsewhere. That will be the primordial condition before anything else. Otherwise, the environment for conducive studies shall never see the light of day. There shall be cacophony. Recall that even the last person in the jail deserved everything as those of us out.

2. GCE 2017 has been hugely and massively boycotted. Its diplomas has been made useless and can’t be recognised. We have same boycott in FSLC and common entrance. Admission into form ones in all establishments in the supposed next academic year is a foregone conclusion. The same is true for admission into Lowersixth and Universities.

3. Promotion into the next classes for all establishments is currently not possible.

4. Students of form three, four and lowersixth have missed the entire academic year and thus they have missed to cover one academic year of GCE syllabus especially those in form four and lowersixth. If we assumed that these students go into the next class into form four, five and upper sixth, they will be busy covering syllabuses for that class and not what they missed in the last academic year and no matter what, the missed syllabuses can’t never be covered. Effective teaching will be impossible.

5. The same is true for class five pupils going into class six in primary schools.

This is the mess we have found ourselves into and therefore 2017/2018 academic year is already affected directly. It is an all for nothing principle. The few Southern Cameroonians taking the political GCE and Common entrance cannot be left to move at the expense of others. The solution to this crisis is simple.

Solutions:

1. The Southern Cameroons people must elect an interim Prime Minister with a government. All Southern Cameroonians must pay allegiance to this government.

2. The Prime Minister should issue a declaration for all Southern Cameroonians to be released and a truce should be signed to that effect.

3. Once all our people are released, the Prime Minister will issue a declaration for schools to resume in September only on one directives: Every Southern Cameroonian in Southern Cameroons will have to go back to his or her original class before the strike started. In fact, no promotion into the next class and no admission into form ones, lower sixth or University. Everyone repeats so that there is a balance with syllabuses and the huge majority who answered the boycott call. Schools and establishments who disagree with these operatives from the Prime Minister must be made to pay dearly. Point three will be done only if point two is effected otherwise everything stays as it is. Should point two fails, point three, four and the rest will fail and can’t continue. The only solution will be something else which we all know.

4. The Prime Minister should order his/her defence Secretary of State to engage and continue with classified heavy military operatives and guerrilla tactics both in our land and abroad so that a cost is inflicted on la Republique. Lives for colonial administrators living in Southern Cameroons must be made unbearable especially in the borders and hinterlands

5. The Prime Minister and his/her government will continue with diplomatic moves, negotiations and treaties abroad with friendly nations, allies etc.

6. In order to keep the steam home to ensure that we are still in the struggle, the Prime Minister will issue a Prime Ministerial order of Ghost Towns to held twice a month. First Mondays and Last Fridays of the month. These ghost towns must be respected and implemented by all and sundry. Our people will not feel the pinch as this current weekly Ghost Towns. These ghost towns will be used to show our strength and keep the struggle in check.

7. A compulsory monthly tax from all Southern Cameroonians. This could help supplement salaries of teachers both in government and private schools as well as keep the interim government in play.

8. Official directives from the Interim Prime Minister banning ELECAM and registration in Southern Cameroons. All Southern Cameroonians must not register for the elections, landlords housing ELECAM must be chased away.

9. Other directives will be issued as the need arises as well as the means of implementation are possible.

Now, these proposals will ensure that our children return to school, it will ensure that we also make life difficult for all colonial administrators in Southern Cameroons and it will at the same time build us a coalition of diplomatic support abroad. In this case, we are sure that the struggle continues as our people go on with their daily activities without too much harm on our people. This can go as long as possible until we see this freedom. The most important thing we must strive is that our people should follow the directives of our Prime Minister each step of the way.

These above proposals will make nonsense if our people continue to remain in jail. If that happens, then the struggle must be escalated in another way.

These are just my thoughts and mine only.

Mark Bareta
Bui/Manyu Counties.