THE GRAVE PAIN OF CAMEROONIANS (1st of 2 parts)

There is growing discontent on the part of Cameroonians regarding a problem which if the government were flexible enough, it would handle and spare everyone the pain of going through the consequences. It is the now only too common power cuts that have come to characterize daily life in the country. In fact a day without power cuts in Cameroon has now become the exception rather than the rule. The effects are far reaching. The monetary loss incurred by businesses is huge, with there being no likelihood of compensation. Patients have been known to die in hospitals because there was no power supply for equipment and other instruments to ensure a successful operation. Fun and enjoyment like on television for the family or for those listening to the radio have been abruptly interrupted. Researchers and other users of information technology equipment have been suddenly plunged into darkness. In the process, large volumes of valuable work on computers have been lost for ever. Pupils and students who rely on electricity have had their work unduly interrupted. Yet, not only do consumers generally not receive compensation from the National Electricity Corporation for the damage, AES-SONEL, but usually, the company does not even apologize to its customers. So it appears as if AES-SONEL is doing Cameroonians a favour, instead of Cameroonians doing them a favour by patronizing with its hard-earned cash. Instead, users of the service whose supply has been off for a good part of the month, usually still receive bills commensurate with those at the time when they received full supply. In some cases, after long periods of cuts, bills that arrive even carry a heavier than usual bill, paradoxically as it may sound. There is no gainsaying that the privatization of the electricity sector in Cameroon has gone terribly wrong, whether the government likes it or not. AES-SONEL has become very unpopular. In fact it must be the most unpopular state corporation in Cameroon currently. This is noticed whenever the employees march past at public events such as the National Day or Labour Day. Their arrival is usually heralded, accompanied and seen off by boos from the jeering public.