THE GRAVE PAIN OF CAMEROONIANS (Part 1 of 2))

AES-SONEL has been an abysmal failure and frankly speaking, many are the Cameroonians who often affirm that the company was much better when it was still a state corporation under its then General Manager, Marcel Niat Njifenji who is today President of Cameroon`s Senate. The problems that Cameroonians face today with electricity supply were largely unknown in Niat`s days at the helm of affairs. As might be expected, questions are being asked as to why once things started going wrong, President Paul Biya who privatized the erstwhile SONEL did not solicit Niat`s skills, even as a consultant to remedy the situation. Whatever is the case, Paul Biya must accept blame for the current state of affairs, since he was the one who handed SONEL to the international consortium, even if Cameroon still has shares in it. Come to think of it: while power failure has become a nightmare for the ordinary Cameroonian, it is clear that the top brass are not affected by this downturn in fortunes. The President of the Republic, the President of the Senate, the President of the National Assembly, the Prime Minister and Head of Government and Ministers – to name those – are protected by a myriad of different measures, including free allowances, free electricity and so on. You watch this: Buea is the scene of in intense preparations for Paul Biya`s arrival – most likely before this year ends – to celebrate fifty years of reunification. It is a near certainty that while Biya is in Buea, every effort ...