Is Biya ready to act now?

After blaming govt for failure:

Is Biya ready to act now?

BY ADOLF MONGO DIPOKO, TARHYANG E TABE, NOELLA BISONG AND ATIA TILARIOUS

The president of the Republic, Paul Biya, has held the government responsible for gross failure to achieve the necessary goals which present economic trends have made available.

In his end of year speech last Tuesday, President Biya lamented bitterly that “ we have a growth and employment strategy which guides us towards our goals”  but wondered why in some sectors of our economy, state action often seems to lack consistency and clarity.

“Why is it that in many cases decision-making delays still constitute a bottle-neck in project implementation” he asked

Surprisingly, the president only now seems to have discovered that no region of the country is able to achieve a Public Investment Budget execution rate of over 50%, talk less of the usefulness of certain projects monitoring committees which are unable to take any decisions.

The president in a very hard tone said we are an individualistic people, more concerned with personal success than general interest, accusing the government of remaining susceptible to private interest, which is most often in conflict with national interest.

He warned that such trends must not be tolerated in a modern state and that the time to act is now.

Though attached to our communities of origin, he cautioned this should not prevent us from being fervent patriots whenever national honour is at stake and that what we need in the coming years is real contingency plan.

Our short-term priorities are to correct our growth curve by creating jobs and maintain a high level of performance over several years in a row and to do this, the president emphasises the need to set timelines on our road maps and strictly adhere to them.

Panic grips ministers

The echoes of the president’s address to the nation have sent jitters to ministers in Yaounde ahead of an inevitable cabinet reshuffle, likely to shake the whole government.

The president should be noted lamented on the present state of Cameroon despite the abundant resources and the ongoing reforms.

The president told Cameroonians that it will be absolutely imperative that together Cameroonians address the causes of their weaknesses by removing sticking points, areas of dispersion and duplication.

“Would we be unable to do what some other countries comparable to ours have done or are doing? I do not think so. We have talented, resourceful, well-trained and enterprising men, women and youth, who are capable of meeting these challenges. We have abundant and diverse natural resources as well as modern and democratic institutions. Our country is peaceful and stable.” He said and asked, “What then do we lack?”

Biya had a ready answer to the question “I think we need to improve in two key areas: prioritizing general interest and coordinating our efforts.” He said.

According to the Head of State, at a time when Cameroonians are beginning to see many concrete signs of the democratic, economic and social progress, he is inviting Cameroonians to embrace a new spirit of patriotism. He says he believes Cameroonians can do a lot better.

“I am not asking for your sweat, or blood, or tears; rather, I am merely urging you to commit yourself wholeheartedly to this new phase of our Grand National plan”. He said.

President made a social economy speech-Fako SDO Zang III

On December 31^st 2013, pressmen in Limbe gathered at the residence of the Senior Divisional Officer SDO for Fako, to watch and listen to the Head of State’s traditional address to the people of Cameroon.

After the 22 minutes address, the pressmen confronted the SDO Zang III to get his reaction, his words: “The head of state made a social economy speech, underlining some issues and challenges in 2013. He also spoke about the democratisation of our country, which he said it is possible that next year might witness the establishment of the constitutional council. He talked about the improvement of the well-being of the people of Cameroon, the issue of employment and the improvement of living conditions. He underlined also the fact that our country has a lot of potentials, being natural, b economic, and human. But, we have to transform these potentials into development, that is why he appeals to all Cameroonians that we have to work together to transform our country, because we have a lot of potentials but we still have problems of development.

He talked about security in our borders, especially about the situation in the Central African Republic, and he said that we have to be proud to be living in a country where there is peace and security, as we can develop because of these virtues”. “For me”, the SDO continued, “I think that the Head of State went around all the problems faced by Cameroonians, and he made it clear that we have to put general interest ahead of selfish, egoistic and personal interests, in order for us to serve the vision of developing our country. I think that it was an appeal for all Cameroonians and it was a very great speech”.

When asked about his reaction to the fact that the Head of State did not make any mention about the reunification celebration, Zang III said “What do you want me to say about that? If the Head of State did not talk about reunification, I don’t have anything to say”.

To his population of Fako division, the SDO said “I want to wish the best for my population, health, success and prosperity. I hope that they will achieve what they hope to achieve in 2014, and they have to believe in state institutions, to believe in the public services, as we are here to accompany them and they have to be confident of the state institutions in improving their living conditions”.