Youth in Cameroon, 13 years of disappointment from the CPDM

Young people in Cameroon today are growing up in an environment of increasing corruption in the public services and education. They are experiencing today mass unemployment and poverty.

For some, the only available alternative is to join the armed forces for the luckiest to secure their future or to try with a major risk of life wasted  the rough way of going on exile or on adventure in Europe.

 Having experienced 13 years of disappointment from the Cameroon People Democratic Movement, the main political party in power in Cameroon for more than 28 years and with less power sharing with some of those who have been in government and lost their confidence from Paul Biya and joint the opposition to create political parties, young people are not at all optimistic about the CPDM.

 Biya administration has abolished many grants and opportunities for young people in secondary school and universities. There is no financial stimulus to encourage young people to create their own business or to access high level of studies abroad. Only a minority with government help is able to do that.

The criticism here is that, that minority is within the secular group of those who collude with the government. Biya administration has trimmed many other opportunities for young people through cuts in funding for training services.

 For the next presidential election, members of  the same political party and ideology will soon go out again and try to attract more and more young people with false ideas and promises for a better future in case they voted for them again  and give them  more time ( 7 more years of disappointment)  to fix the economy and the country financial situation. ( What they have not been able  to  do earlier for the past 13 years). 

 This will be another huge and enormous lie from the government ministers and Paul Biya. What they have promised to young people in 1997 to do has not been done and they are now preparing to do the same for the next coming elections. Their free schools policy does not work around the entire country.

Some areas are experiencing problems receiving government help while others are just abusing the system.  Could Biya`s political party  offers anything different after 13 years of disappointment? 

In his recent address to the youth, Biya said <.....we must revisit this issue altogether, develop rice and maize farming, revive plantain farming and foster the growing of other food crops. In that way, we would not only be able to feed our population, but also to sell our surplus produce to neighbouring countries. This, of course, will require opening up farm-to-market roads in some parts of our country, where farmers find it difficult to market their produce. We can easily imagine the incidence of such a policy on employment and the standard of living in our rural areas. Many of you could play a key role in this policy....>

But how much money have been put in youth projects to encourage them to return to farming? It is very hard and even because of a poor communication and information government policy to have a single idea of where and when the money has been sent.

Since day one at the  Etoudi palace, the only issue Biya government has wanted to tackle was the fight against corruption and embezzlement.

 But unfortunately nothing was done since then and many members of the close family of the president have found themselves infected by corruption and embezzlement.

 More than £2000 millions have been distracted in Cameroon in the last 10 years by members of previous and actual government  acting in different ministerial departments with the help in some how by the head of state and his allies according to, a recent report from Prescriptor, a leading independent economic and  financial analyst and engineering on economy agency based in Yaounde in  Cameroon and many Non governmental organisations working in Cameroon and specially in these poorest areas.

 There can be no doubt these distractions of public funds and fake government policies have and will continue to  make young people`s live more difficult and even  miserable.

 And there are more bad news to come before the presidential election in Cameroon that will be held next October 2011 or before that period.

 Young people now have the ability to say that,  they want the change and a real change and not the renewal of the previous ideology and fake promises.

More than 65% of Young people in Cameroon have lost public confidence while a minority is still following Biya`s political program to rebuild the country financial and economic system. They do not trust any more the government.

That minority is part of those who strongly believe that with Biya again,  they can or (..might..) overcome poverty and corruption through a stronger and sustained commitment...