Politique

“All Of Us Should Look To The Same Direction”

Par Eulalia AMABO
07 janv. 2020 11:02
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Christian Cardinal Tumi, Archbishop Emeritus of the Douala Dioceses.

You chaired the Commission on Assistance to Returning Refugees and Displaced Persons during the Major National Dialogue. How do you appreciate the outcome of the dialogue?
This is what my group was preparing for, to advise the President to convene a national dialogue. So he anticipated us and that is why when I was invited to the Major National Dialogue, I immediately accepted to be present because that is what we wanted. We wanted an avenue to dialogue and seek peace.

Why did you accept to participate in the dialogue and to chair a commission?
That is what we are studying (we are small group of Christian leaders). I think before that, there is no group that studied the situation as we did. What was our study? Our study was on the causes of the problem and propositions. One of the main preposition was that the President of the Republic should call a national dialogue to solve the Anglophone crisis. They invited me and I thought it was logical to be there. We had to go. So I went and was appointed Chair of one of the commissions because they know I had studied the matter seriously.

The Prime Minister, Chief Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute later on designated you to lead the peace caravan to the North West Region to explain the recommendations of the Major National Dialogue to the population. How was the mission and what concrete results did you obtain?
The mission was on peace. The explaining and sensitising of the population on the recommendations of the national dialogue was just a small agenda which was a campaign for peace. We were centered on a peace caravan, that all of us should look to the same direction as far as peace is concerned. We met with representatives of the divisions to tell them what they were to do. The people sent their reports, all the divisions of the North West Region sent their reports to me and those of the South West Region sent to the Bishop of Mamfe. And we met with the Prime Minister and his advisers to present to them what the people said. Many people back then and still now were interested in the content of the special status. They were asking then, what would be the content of the special status. Well, the content of the special status has been given and explained. I made a proposal on what should be in the special status. But quite a number of people are not satisfied. It is something, we cannot say it is nothing. It is something though not quite a number of English-speaking Cameroonians expected. Personally, I expected some sought of a mini government with a Prime Minister whom you can call the First Secretary of State and then Ministers who can be called Secretaries of State. And that is what I proposed to the Prime Minister as my own personal suggestion.