Extract “Shabby
treatment of my person
Since taking office in 2006, I have been subject to repeated
disrespect and humiliation, publicly and privately, from across the board of
the party cadres. A few summarised instances of the unpleasant situation are:
· On the occasion of a visit to the United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP) facilities in 2011, the National Chairman
pushed my hands as I attempted to reach across a document to the then 2nd
Vice National Chairman, Comrade Joshua Osih;
· At a public rally in Kumba, that same year
the National Chairman rudely ordered me to take out chewing gum from my mouth;
· My signature as Secretary General has been
repeatedly and publicly challenged by party officials, to the knowledge and
acquiescence of the National Chairman;
· The use of the services of Private
Secretaries in carrying out our duties as Secretary General was, inexplicably,
misconstrued by the National Chairman though all of our predecessors availed
themselves of the same facility.
· It has been a tradition in our Party that
the Secretary General presents, to SDF Parliamentarians, the decision of the
National Investiture Committee which appoints some of them to various posts in
the Bureau of the National Assembly and in Commissions. During my stewardship,
Iwas rubbed of this role. I only get information of their appointments via the
media like any other party militant.
· Socialist International meetings are
supposed to be attended by both the National Chairman and Secretary General of
member parties; SDF often participates in such meetings conspicuously in the
absence of the SG as was the case of meetings held in France, South Africa, and
Namibia. Furthermore, no female representative has ever been designated to
attend any of these meetings;
· A party such as ours, having aspirations to
govern Cameroon, needs to avail herself of all the research findings and
publications of renowned national and international institutions. surprisingly
though, such publications were indexed by the 1st Vice National
Chairman as CPDM (Cameroon Peoples Democratic Movement) materials being
presented for discussion during a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.
Judging by the fact that no NEC member raised any objection to this utterance,
it would seem that the assistance was in accord with the insinuation from 1st
Vice National Chairman. But no, privately after the meeting, comrades came
scrambling for copies of the scientific journals published by the Cameroon
Academy of Sciences and the Institutes for Social and Human Sciences, Cameroon;
· On the occasion of a National Investiture
Committee (NIC) meeting, it was made known – contrary to the provisions of the
party constitution quoted above – that the role of a Secretary General is
limited to taking minutes exclusively at NEC meetings. Consequently, the SG
would never again be invited to any other Committee meetings of the party, such
as the National Advisory Council, (NAC) – notwithstanding the fact that she is
a statutory member. The role of the SG, during our stewardship, has been
reduced to mere window dressing through the dictatorial actions of the National
Chairman of the party;
· During the Camp David Meeting – a meeting of
party elders so coined and convened to instruct the SG henceforth, not to sign
any memoranda or letters directed to international bodies, diplomats or leaders
of other political parties. The purported reason for this was to impede the SG
from eventually assuming any executive function;
· The dates of NEC meetings, as well as the
meeting agenda, are normally fixed by the Secretary General in consultation
with the National Chairman, but recently such meetings (namely, the last two in
Buea and Bamenda) have been summoned with complete disregard of the Secretary
General;11
· I have been replaced as a statutory
signatory to the party’s bank account, without even being informed, in
violation with Section 13.5(d) of the Party Constitution;
· During the 2012 Elective Convention, I was
unjustifiably labelled in front of over 1500 delegates as stubborn. The
National Chairman even openly threatened to use his constitutional powers to
sack me from my post just by the stroke of his pen;
· My constitutional responsibilities as
Secretary General were assigned to other persons during the 2012 Convention,
when National Chairman arrogated to himself the formation of the various
Committees and their members; The Accreditation Report, prepared by me, in
consonance with the Constitution of the Party, was instead assigned for
presentation by Honourable Yoyo Emmanuel;
o The Convention Resolutions, prepared by the SDF National
Secretariat, were ordered by the National Chairman to be presented by the 1st
Vice National Chairman instead of the Secretary General.
· During the said Convention, the
constitutional role of the Secretary General, as stipulated in “PART II: AD HOC
COMMITTEES OF THE NATIONAL CONVENTION, Rule 8 on Selection of Delegates to the
Committees states:
Rule 8.1: Indication for Preference of Committee Accredited
delegates shall, on the first days of the Convention, submit to the Secretary
General, in order of preference three committees which they shall like to be
member during the Convention.
Rule 8.2: Secretary General not bound by the preference The
Secretary General shall not be bound to attribute any or every delegate to the
committees of their preference and may omit to attribute a delegate to any
committee.”
In defiance of these provisions, this role was taken away from me
– a woman – and conferred to Honourable Yoyo Emmanuel, for no justifiable
reason…………”
How will all of this and lots more happen to you and you still think
you are in your function? For sure she was long dismissed.
Hopefully following the reaction of “prophet” Ni John who claimed to have seen this coming a
good replacement will be made before another takes the place of the most
populous opposition party in Cameroon.