My article of yesterday had many of us sharing our opinions on some of the things I touched on. What I know about Facebook is that a certain group of people I would love to have these discussions with are Social Media ghosts for various reasons. Many of course are elderly, professionals who do not want to get caught up in the so called ‘vawulence,’ and gross disrespect that a good number of people come to social media to dish out. Sometimes, I run into them and we talk about some of the things I write on here. Other times, they talk to someone who sends their opinion to me. Yesterday I got one of such. They touched on some points that made me feel like I need to go over certain things for the sake of clarity.
I am going to break down their reply to my article and live video into segments and address each segment. Their thoughts sort of overlap but I will try to address a specific point in each segment.
Anonymous: I understand what he's saying. The only club jersey I don ever buy na PWD Bamenda. We need to definitely think globally and act locally. And I agree that picking up arms was never smart to begin with. But he can't act like anglophones have not been trying to learn French or just sitting around waiting for the govt. We already had some of the best schools in the country so it no be like people nova d do those things already. If na for hardwork and hustle we d do enough already.
Me: I’m not one to cry over spilled milk. I am not interested in talking about whether picking up arms was right or wrong. The fact is that it happened and we are faced with a new reality because of that and we have to deal with it. When I spoke of Anglophones learning French, I didn’t say it is compulsory for us to learn it to become less marginalized. I simply said, if you can, please do because it can help you in life generally. What irritates me about this learning French argument is the people who say they WILL NOT learn it because it is a pathway to assimilation. That is foolishness that should not be defended. That’s like me saying I won’t learn my contri talk because I don’t want to participate in tribalism.
Anonymous: I actually think he's a courageous guy and ingenious too but he should not underestimate the role that attending one of the finest secondary schools in Cameroon has on your ability to achieve your goals later in life. Not everyone can learn another language because not everyone has the resources or time or capacity for it. English d first pass most pipo for village before you want make them learn na French.
Me: When I write an article on facebook or post one to our website, I do not do it expecting my grand mother in the village to read it or a wine tapper in Bamenda to read it. Once you have access to the internet, we have to be less tolerant of your ignorance. Many Cameroonians who didn’t attend one of the finest schools in Cameroon move to Germany and learn German because they understand it is important for their survival. There was one of them who says he speaks Italian. He lives in Italy and had to adapt to survive. There are many people who didn’t attend a fine school that speak better English and French than I do. My point is, anyone can learn a language if they make the effort, granted not at the same pace. Even the contri talk your grandmother speaks, she had to learn it.
I remember literally running from my house to spend time in Yaounde during one long holiday. Thank God phones were not common. I just lied to my uncle my mom knew I was coming. It is in that period that some of the French I had been studying in school started to sink in. My parents would not allow us go for holidays at the time. Instead, after doing well in school, we were sent for more holiday classes. What if those holiday periods were spent to send us to learn French intensively for example. My French would have been way better much earlier. We can expand those after school programs to include other things that will not only make us competitive in Cameroon but in the entire world. We can start doing for our kids what was not done for us. It is not assimilation if you are becoming more equipped to survive.
Anonymous: It's a very myopic way of analysing the situation which makes me think that he's considering mainly the people in his socio-economic bracket, and that's the minority. All in all an armed separatist movement was never a good idea. However the solution is not for the academic elite to say everyone should learn French.
Me: It is easy to sit and say I am speaking from my position of privilege. By all accounts, I am privileged. When me, with all my privilege and ‘higher’ education comes here to write articles and share my knowledge and some of the ‘underprivileged” come to comment — “Who is going to read this long thing?” Or “the man di member sey e get sense pass all man,” who is then fooling themselves. Yes I address the people in my socio-economic bracket. Maybe we are the ones with the capacity and resources to actually fight the government in place. And we don’t need a majority to solve the crisis. A majority of Cameroonians think the whole Cameroon is suffering and not just anglophones. Does that make the anglophone crisis unreal?
The crises is like a problem. Every company tries to hire the brightest people to solve its problems and improve its processes to increase its profit making potential. Why then do we not want to employ our brightest minds to find solutions to the crises. Maybe if we had the brightest people leading, they would have done their due diligence and not come out with the fat lie that closed our schools for years. Again on the French, it has never been my position that it is a solution to the anglophone crisis. I simply put it as a means of survival.
At let me ask you, if you wanted to explain the anglophone crisis to a francophone to gain their support in our movement, will you go speak to them in English even if they don’t understand and then start insisting to them that Cameroon is bilingual and they should know English? Again, since it seems to be taken out of context, learn French for your survival.
Can you become president of Cameroon today without speaking French? NO. The fact that Biya doesn’t speak English should not make you try to justify why you should be allowed to be president of Cameroon without knowing French. All you are doing is trying to kill the devil so you can take his place and not get rid of the devil altogether.
Unless you are a separatist then we can talk about that some other time.
Anonymous: Of course people are scared. A legitimate movement received a draconian response from the govt and spiralled into a conflict that has caused unimaginable pain and suffering to the people. People are trying to survive. Violent death has become a non event. I laud his courage but it's foolish to think that everyone would be willing to risk their lives especially after it turned into an armed conflict. It's kinda naive to think that people won't be skeptical about him gaining political clout on the back of their support when almost every 'leader' we know in that country has used people to make themselves wealthy and powerful.
Me: Yes, people are trying to survive. When you are trying to survive, you don’t have a lot of choices. Its the sad truth. People always tell me about my approach, I should be nicer etc. People who coat the truth and lies to sound nice in your ears are the politicians that end up getting your support and using you for their personal gains or deceiving you into positions that you later regret. I am not on a popularity campaign, I’m just speaking the truth as I see it.
In the article I wrote on Eto’o and power in Cameroon, I spoke of the traumatic relationship between Cameroonians and power which has led them to despise or at least be skeptical about anyone seeming to have any power. To call me naive on power dynamics in Cameroon is plain ridiculous.
In conclusion,
I have always been against protests, I have never called people to the streets where they will be killed. I am always proposing alternative measures. In my live video I specifically said that I am not going to buy any calls for protest from any of you because I am sure most of you will pick Tokyo at the first gunshot.
In my live video, I spoke of things we can do like after school programs for kids. Five days ago, we shared the story of Tunde Onakoya who is using chess to take young men out of the slums in Nigeria and give them a different perspective on life. He could go there and tell them the Nigerian government is the problem and they should organize a riot. Those kids with nothing to look up to will probably heed to his advise if he promises them a few dollars and supplies them with guns. But that is not what he is doing.
I am advocating for ideas like his. I explained in my video that it was such that what I wanted to do with the Anglophone Youth Conference but many came saying they want action - meaning street protest, which I am willing to do if I am sure I am with people I can trust to follow through with it. I just refused to engage in that because I believe many people are not ready for it, we have not been pushed to the wall. That is why I don’t but the idea that we have done everything in our power. If we had, no one will need to call for protests. It will just happen. Deep down we all feel guilty about the role we play in our current predicaments and that is why we have not gone Sri Lanka.
At the first shot of retaliation from the government, many of us will say “Who send me. No be me go die.” That is because there is no harmony. Through the kinds of programs I wanted to carry out with the Anglophone Youth Conference, we would have worked together to build something that is ours, in the process build trust amongst ourselves. There are some things you just cant play with. Like Eto’o he has shone so brightly that this government even though they must hate his guts, cant really do much to stop him or at least will find it harder. That what I want us to do. Shine.
The reason why all our leadership is failing is because it is coming from nowhere, no track record of working in the community. The AYC was meant to start building that leadership. We have countries like Sudan and Syria to show us just how long a conflict can draw out. One of the things that broke the leg of the crisis was the lofty sales pitch that was given by those spearheading it. They promised it will be swift. They said as soon as we stop school, the UN will cancel the academic year for the whole country and Biya will be forced to negotiate.
Everything I am proposing is the long walk to freedom but those of us fighting my ideas are in for the quick solutions that I am afraid won’t work. The AYC website is still on there and those who can sign in can do that and read the announcements I put on there, including the one sharing my vision for the organization.
For me to sit here and read what this guy said is painful. I write so much that 10 years from now, you will resume it and see that I have been consistent. You can’t accuse me of things just because. The proof is actually out there, one search and one click away.