IS OUR CAMEROON FINISHED?

The present posting has been motivated by the one posted on the Camnet forum recently by Rexon Nting. In the piece, Nting affirms: "SDF Chairman declares his wealth on Cameroon Voice". He also quotes the Chairman, Ni John Fru Ndi, wondering loudly what the Diaspora has done for the advancement of democracy in Cameroon . Now, that is exactly where I come in.

And I do so to point out that we of the Diaspora, far from being active participants, have become ardent critics. We spend our time criticizing and looking for more things to criticize. Hardly do we stop and ask ourselves: "What am I doing personally to improve the situation?” In a way, the situation is reminiscent of the famous American writer who once complained that everybody complains about the weather but, nobody does anything about it. However, I do not solely blame the Diaspora for this negative attitude, for even those at home have now made it a habit to always announce deaths as many times as possible, to the detriment of births about which one hears nothing at all, as if Cameroonians were only dying and not being born.
I agree that there is a lot wrong with our country: blatant and unbridled corruption, laissez faire, etc. But there are other areas for which we deserve the thumbs up. Better still, there are many areas in which we can make a positive contribution and thereby create jobs for some Cameroonians and put smiles on faces. Here is an example: some years ago, a Cameroonian who had lived in the States for years returned home and opened a microfinance institution. With time, the structure grew into a fully fledged high street bank on the same footing as any other major bank in the country. The man in question, Awanga Zachariah, has handed the day-to-day running of affairs to other professionals (while remaining CEO) and branched off to run an insurance company as which he has opened. I understand he is also constructing a top notch hotel.
But then it doesn’t have to be only Awanga. Surely, there are other success stories that abound. What is important is that there is room in the country for everyone, even those who are permanently overseas and seem to believe that Cameroon is finished. Lucrative areas in which those out there might want to get involved include, microfinance, hotel and catering, the opening of (bilingual) nursery and primary schools as well as colleges, and of course real estate. For the latter, bear in mind that houses are always in demand in Cameroon, whether for private residence or business. Think about it.