Withdraw your obnoxious decision
- CANPA urges SW Governor and MINCOM
Delegate
CANPA Condemns South West Governor,
OkaliaBilai Bernard Attempts to Stifle Press Freedom in Violation of
Constitutional Provisions
The Governor of the South West Region,
Bernard OkaliaBilai on the 13th of December, 2016 at the premises of the
Regional Administrative Office in Buea, verbally threatened the freedom and by
extension the lives of three English Speaking journalists; Buddih Adams, Kum
Leonard and AtiaTillariusAzonwi following a press release they published on
Saturday the 10th of December making known their intentions to storm out of
every event and maintain a blackout on same if all press documents were
distributed only in French in an Anglophone Region where English is the
predominant language of expression. Cameroon’s constitution confers equal
status to the English and French languages.
The
Governor warned the journalists to immediately dissolve a trade union they
formed to protect their rights and interests in the face of so much injustice,
marginalization and other attendant discrepancies that make the discharge of
their duties not only difficult, but complicated and risky. Several journalists
have found themselves in trouble in the recent past because they did not fully
understand what was said at public events mainly in French, in an area where
the great majority of the population speaks English.
As
if the public threat in the presence of top officials of the forces of law and
order were not enough, the Governor reportedly instructed the Regional Delegate
of Communication in the South West Region to issue an injunction on Monday the
12th of December, back-dated to read the 1st of December, 2016 ordering that; “Owners of Private Radio and TV Stations are
called upon to stop all round table discussions
on their networks concerning the current political atmosphere in the
South-West Region....Government’s social communication and editorial policy
should be highly respected by broadcasters and users of radio and TV Stations”.
It
is important to note at this point that Governor Bernard OkaliaBilai who is
aware of the constitutional provisions guaranteeing, promoting and protecting
freedom of expression and of association, coyly pushed a delegate who has no
powers to take such a decision, into the error of moving onto troubled waters.
The intention behind such an unfortunate, callous and irresponsible outing is
clearly to further provoke the already embittered Anglophone population still
aggrieved by the unacceptable torture, humiliating treatment and rape meted out
on their kith and kindred by police and gendarmes at the behest of the same
tyrant of a governor!
Governor
Bernard OkaliaBilai’s actions and decisions decisively are at variance with the
public declarations made by the Minister of Communication and Government
Spokesman, IssaTchiromaBakary on National Television, alleging that the Head of
State had instructed his close aides to engage in frank dialogue with the striking
Common Law Lawyers and teachers. His actions also reveal without doubt, that
the government is not sincere in calling for dialogue, leaving the skeptical
masses to swallow the conspiracy theories being propagated on social media that
President Paul Biya and his cronies are simply playing for time. Such wanton
and uncalled for excesses shall only render the work of the Ghogomu Paul-led
commission charged with finding lasting solutions even more difficult, with the
possibility of regular stalemates.
Members
of the Cameroon Anglophone Newspaper Publishers Association, CANPA call on the
Governor and his Delegate of Communication to immediately withdraw those
decisions that bring to mind the events of another unenviable period in the
history of Cameroon. The decision is at variance with the country’s
constitution, international instruments to which Cameroon is a signatory and of
course good conscience.
We
are by this same token calling on our colleagues of the South West Region to
ignore such empty threats, baseless and illegal decisions and go about their
professional activities responsibly in line with the canons of the noble
journalism profession. We are also pledging our total support with our battery
of lawyers in case any single journalist is arbitrarily arrested, brutalized or
poorly treated in any way.
We
express our profound regret that the already retired Governor of the South West
Region would want Anglophones to seal their lips while their Francophone
colleagues and others in other parts of the country discuss their future for
them. Without any doubts, the said Governor is looking for rewards that may
keep him permanently away from retirement; he should take note that such an
ambition, legitimate as it may be, shall not be got at the expense of the hard
working and peace loving people of the South West Region.
Finally, we are inviting the national and
international community to note that the lives of our colleagues; Buddih Adams,
Kum Leonard and AtiaTillariusAzonwi are in danger and were anything to happen
to any of them, Governor Bernard OkaliaBilai should be held solely responsible.
Meantime,
we once more pledge our support to the striking Common Law Lawyers and
Anglophone Teachers, whose grievances are in the words of the Minister of
Communication and Government Spokesman- IssaTchiromaBakary “Well founded”.
Signed:
John MbahAkuroh Ojong Steven Ayukogem
President Secretary General
Copies:
- Presidency
of the Republic
- Prime
Minister’s Office
- Ministry
of Communication
- All
diplomatic Missions in Yaounde
- The
Commonwealth Secretariat in London
- The
Committee to Protect Journalists
- Freedom
House
- Amnesty
International
- Human
Rights Watch
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