La Republique du Cameroun is shaken by socio-political problems including the Boko Haram incursions in the Far North region. The Southern Cameroons crisis is slowly but surely turning into a guerrilla war, the economy is crumbling at catastrophic rapidity, crime rate is increasing at an alarming proportion and hospitals are closing down. For all these, the 84 year old French Commissioner to Cameroun Paul Biya has remained silent.

After more than a year of the crisis in Southern Cameroons, the so-called Head of State has not made any concession or even stage a visit to the Anglophone territory. Biya has also not spoken publicly on the subject outside his end-of-year speech in December 2016, where he said that La Republique du Cameroun was “One and Indivisible and intends to remain so”.

For the French Cameroun dictator, it is necessary to sustain what he describes as “heritage” of the founding fathers, in a country where a large majority now think that “federalism” is the only way out of the current crisis.

Biya made a mockery of the Southern Cameroons crisis when he tweeted in October 2017 from his hotel room in Geneva and condemned the violence that had rocked the nation.  The Francophone leader was referring to the killings of hundreds of Southern Cameroonians by troops loyal to him and his government during the October 1 celebrations. These deaths were attributed to the Francophone dominated security and defense forces.

Ever since the October 1 killings, no one in Yaoundé has taken responsibility, no has apologized and no one resigned. This is typical of Francophone politics. On the ground, grumbling is growing and the Members of Parliament from Southern Cameroons are getting involved.

Indeed, the parliamentarians of the Social Democratic Front (SDF) are now advocating a boycott of the current legislative session, devoted to the examination and adoption of the budget. For a week, the SDF MPs have been asking for the Southern Cameroons crisis to be included on the agenda for the National Assembly to have a debate.  At the same time, the Francophone MPs who are the majority are breaking through the SDF blockade and are examining the budget for the year 2018. It is evidently clear that the Federal Republic of Ambazonia has come to stay.

By Ikome Peter