Cameroon: Corrupt Practices In High Places

By Ntemfac Ofege

The turnover of every Biya government is about 6 months. What this means concretely is that persons appointed ministers are given a very short time and the license to steal before they are kicked out again. Now there have been over 600 ministers, junior ministers, and persons with rank of minister since Mr. Biya came into power in 1982. This has been very bad news for Cameroon’s public treasury. Name one Biya minister who has not been involved in one racked or another? Small wonder a little upstart Henri Eyebe Ayissi became Minister of Housing and Town planning when he had a rickety and wobbly “504”. He left several months later with 19 cars and a host of land titles.

Recently sacked Transport Minister, John B. Ndeh, is yet to clarify his role in a racket that demanded that all vehicles in Cameroon change number plates for over 10.000FCFA apiece and this with a company legalized by the Ministry of Transport. This racked as well as another racket to get all taximen in Cameroon to obtain badges authorized by the Ministry of Transport brought in a tidy pile in thousands of millions. JB and Nsahlai before him must have taken their cuts.

A local newspaper “L’Expression” published a 16-page special edition on how a Biya-hand, Tchouta Moussa, ravaged the Cameroon Ports Authority through fake contracts, fictitious deals, etc. A cartoon in “L’Expression” teased that instead of sanctioning Tchouta Moussa Mbatkam for swiping vast sums from the Ports Authority Mr. Biya, who was abroad at the time of the publication called up Tchouta Moussa and said: “Tchouta, où est ma part?” 

Pa Simon Achidi Achu, as Mr. Biya’s campaign Manager, was in charge of the cashbox during the 1997 election campaign. It is alleged that Pa Simon helped himself outrageously. Also, how water destined for the 150-milllion FCFA SANTA water project found itself instead at Achidi Achu’s farm remains one of those mysteries. Small wonder, rival Fru Ndi told a rally in Santa that the folks of the town did not have decent drinking water while Achidi Achu’s cows took showers and slept under electric lights.

Ahead of the 1997 presidential elections, Kontchou Kouomegni tried to table a fake bill of 1.1 Billion FCFA as the cost of printing Mr. Biya’s election portrait with SOPECAM.  L’Expression newspaper” claims that when Kontchou failed to get the 1.1 Billion FCFA he pilfered campaign money destined for SOPECAM.

The same Kontchou Kouomegni has never fully accounted for the vast sums collected during the 1994 “Coup de Coeur” operation to raise funds for the Indomitable Lions. In fact, the money never got to the Indomitable Lions in the USA.  Kontchou who claims that he even came back with some of the money only found time to suspend two CRTV Journalists, Daniel Anicet Noah and Therese Belobo, who opened the microphones of CRTV for gadfly Joseph Antoine Bell to insult Kontchou.

In fact, the level of corruption in Cameroon is most visible whenever Team Cameroon has to represent the country at international competitions like the World Cup and the African Nations Cup. Money destined to the team is always swindled and the players have to go on strike before their dues are paid. Ahead of the Korea-Japan World Cup, the players held a flight down at the Paris Airport and refused to train until their dues were paid. Small wonder Team Cameroon arrived late for the World Cup and failed going beyond the first round.

Le Messager No 685 reports that the then Minister of Youth and Sports, Joseph Owona diverted some 600 Million FCFA;  money destined for the Indomitable lions to buy bicycles and pay mission money for the 19 unauthorized members of his delegation. The then president of FECAFOOT, Mr. Vincent Onana even wrote to the Prime Minister to denounce Owona.

According to a 1987 edition of Jeune Afrique Economie, Tsanga Abanda, onetime Biya Minister of Commerce, and Industrial Development, stole whole shiploads of cocoa , which he traded off to the French concern SUCRES ET DENREES, and the America PHILIP AND BROTHERS. With the proceeds, Tsanga Abanda erected for himself a vast emporium in the valley below Cameroon’s presidency. Mr. Biya can see Tsanga Abanda’s ill-gotten house every time he looks from his bedroom window.

Regime eminence grise, Ombga Damase alone knows how much he garnered to replenish Cameroon’s armory, reportedly depleted after the April 6th 1984 Coup attempt.
Corruption may have developed into the monster that it is simply because nobody had been sanctioned. In 1987, following the jailing of Beti grandee, Nkolo Fanga, of Posts and Telecommunications for swiping public Funds, Mr. Biya declared: “Où sont les prèuves?” when he was asked by state-television if he was aware that there were many more Nkolo Fangas in the system. 

Whereas IGERA, the State Inspectorate in charge of Administrative Reforms, in charge of state auditing and control, has always tabled tons and tons of documents to the presidency and specifically for the “Haute attention du Chef de l’État” about high corruption and misdemeanor in high places within the Civil Service. Mr. Biya has never been known to act on the IGERA reports.

Between 1991-1992, the then Biya Minister of Public Service, Garga Haman-Adji, who went all-out on a hunt for the “baleines” – the whales or those responsible for eight-digit graft in the civil service, resigned when he was not making any headway in cleaning up the system. “He wanted me to do what I did not want,” a beleaguered Mr. Biya shamelessly told the nation ahead of the 1992 presidential elections and following Mr. Garga Haman-Adji’s resignation.

However, in 1997 Mr. Biya spontaneously directed that his one-time friend, collaborator, and personal physician, Titus Edzoa be thrown in jail for allegedly swiping the derisive 350.000.000FCFA .  A closer examination of the Titus Edzoa case shows that Mr. Edzoa was not hemmed by the steam-roller triggered by the then Secretary General in the presidency, Amadou Ali because of the 350.000.000FCFA but rather because he had the cheek to resign from Mr. Biya’s government and the even greater cheek to present himself as a presidential candidate for the 1997 elections. Several attempts by Edzoa’s tribesmen to seek Mr. Biya’s pardon notably through Biya son, Frank Biya, have failed woefully.

Comments

[Uche Eze Nkatta Idika]

The stench of corruption in Cameroon and Africa at large is nausiating more than a stale mentrual rubbish.
May God help us out

[AG]

No

[malondo]

I just want to say that the professor owona was the only minister of youth and sport to bring back 600 millions into the public treasury and not the contrary after the world cup 1998 and this is never happen before.It was mister onana who tried to sell outrageously the world ticket for him.
i think that there is always some charismatic stateman like j.o, sadou hayatou, justin dioro, ahmadou ali...

[lumumba]

What i feel about the state of corruption in Cameroon is really so depressing . Well its a plan system so that all his close associates should eat massively from the national Cake. The issue of Ministers of his gov't not staying long in one position is a oiled system to steal in the shortest time. I can say cameroon s teaching the world an expert way in corruption. My south African Pal read this article and was so shock that he coludn't belief that this really happens in real life. They cry about corrupt officials in south Africa and reading the Cameroon issue made them to realised that our system is so messed up.
Merits does n't exist in Cameroon. This lets to massive brain drained. Peolpe aren't longer proud of their country any more.
Hope can you cope in Cameroon being transparent????
The wheels of change is fast catching up on Biya and cronies. Look Bongo has gone with what?? So this should make him situp. But can we take the laws in our hands?? Definitely not because our civil society has been weakened by the forces of darkness and oppression. God bless the few stainless cameroon!!

[L T]

Great Article.
This is just exposing what's going on at the top. what's even more alarming is the fact that corruption has spread around into local businesses and kids. the way people think in Cameroon is so different now. "steal or you are a loser". you cannot get a service in Cameroon without corruption. it's everywhere, in the hospital, in the streets, at schools and so on. it's becoming normal to most and part of everyday life.There is only one way to solve this problem. Get a Leader who understand what it takes to serve the people.

[Larryson]

Corruption, embezzlement and homosexuality in Cameroon is the order of the day.

[JEO]

THAT IS NOT ALL FRIENDS, I LIVE IN CAMEROON AND I HAVE SEEN THIS ONE, EVEN IF YOU GO TO THE MORTUARY TO REMOVE YOUR DEPARTED CORPS, IT IS OBVIOUS THAT YOU DO NOT GIVE BRIBE, YOU WILL REGRET YOUR TIME BEING THERE, IT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE TO REGISTER A CORPS AND WHEN YOU ARE TO REMOVE A CORPS...........WE ARE ALREADY TIRED AND NOW WE ARE GETTING USE TO IT.
NO JOB FOR YOUTHS AND OTHER GROWING UP GENERATIONS IS NOW OUR NORMAL PRACTICES, STEALING AND SCAMMING IS NOW THE NEW JOB TO LIVE IN CAMEROON .
IN ANYTHING I WILL SAY THAT.
LONG LIVE CAMEROON.

[coach factory store]

Time is my property, my Tian Mu is time. ____ Goethe Abandoned people today, not tomorrow; and, yesterday, but to go to water. - John Locke

[coach factory store]

Time is my property, my Tian Mu is time. ____ Goethe Abandoned people today, not tomorrow; and, yesterday, but to go to water. - John Locke

[ClubPenguinCheats]

The stench of corruption in Cameroon and Africa at large is nausiating more than a stale mentrual rubbish.

[birkenstock]

This post fits nicely with what we are currently discussing. Its was a well thought out document….

[Moncler Daunenjacke]

well this blog is great i love reading your articles.