French-speaking youths pose as Southwesterners to praise Biya for creating ENS Buea

Dozens of French-speaking youths in the South West’s regional capital, Buea, under the banner of the Cameroon National Youth Council (CNYC), marched to the office of Governor Bernard Okalia Bilai on Tuesday, May 28, to thank President Paul Biya for creating a higher teachers training college (ENS) in Buea.

Despite posing as youths from the six Divisions of the English-speaking South West, many of the youths could not express themselves in English.

From their background conversations in French and inability to speak English during press interviews, many of the youths posing as South West youths were not sincere.

The youths brandished President Biya’s image and chorused the Cameronian cliche, “We thank the Head of State”.

The higher teachers training college, known by its French acronym, ENS, was created last week by a presidential decree dated May 24. It will be part of the University of Buea.

Although trainees of the school will not be directly recruited into the civil service, as it used to obtain in the past, some youths view the institution as a favour from the president to curb rampant youth employment.

Abwa Takang, South West president of the CNYC, said they came to the Governor’s office to thank President Biya for granting a request they had made earlier on.

“Over the years, Southwesterners have been requesting for a higher teachers training college to be created in the South West, many of the city of the Southwest… And finally, it’s here. When you make a request and it’s granted to you it’s also very necessary to say thank you,” Takang said.

He also blamed joblessness among youths as one of the factors that caused the ongoing armed conflict in the English-speaking Regions, which first started as a general protest against marginalization and underdevelopment before morphing into a quest for seccession.

Abwa Takang definitely has a different view about the root causes of the Anglophone Crisis.

“Joblessness has created so much havoc in our society. The crisis today is because of joblessness and of course I don’t think that anyone who has a job wants to drop that job and pick up arms,” Takang said.

“It’s the key problem and I believe that this school is one of the permanent solutions to the Anglophone Crisis.”

Some observers deemed the youths’ march in Buea as a political move masterminded by pro-regime elite in the South West in a build up to next year’s elections.

The elections are promising to be decisive, with outpouring calls for youths to massively register and vote, amid growing public discontent over President Biya’s 40-year-old regime.

Youths in the South West have often availed themselves for pro-government demonstrations, including those aimed to thank the President when a native of the Region is appointed to a top government position.

However, these youths have been criticized for refraining from calling on the government to peacefully resolve an ongoing armed conflict in the Region where thousands of people, most of them youths, have been killed.

©Mimi Mefo Info