Constitutional Council Declares Its Incompetence To Dissolve CPDM

Emmanuel KENDEMEH
[18/04/2008]

The President of the Action for Meritocracy and Equal Opportunities (AMEC) lodged three complaints at the Council.

The Supreme Court sitting for the Constitutional Council, yesterday 17 April ruled on complaints, Joachim Tabi Owono, President of the AMEC lodged calling on the Council to cancel the bill to amend and supplement some provisions of the law of 18 January 1996 to amend the 2 June 1972 Constitution, dissolve the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) and sentence President Paul Biya.

The First President of the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Alexis Dipanda Mouelle presided over the public hearings at the Supreme Court room. Tabi Owono called on the Supreme Court sitting in for the Constitutional Council to declare null and void, the bill amending the 1996 Constitution (which was last April 14 promulgated into law by the President of the Republic).In the same light, he wanted the Council to declare the National Assembly incompetent to examine and adopt the bill amending the Constitution. He however, insisted that the 1996 Constitution be maintained and implemented completely, and urgently without selecting specific sections. Dipanda Mouelle, in his verdict, considered the complaint inadmissible by the Constitutional Council.

The Constitutional Council declared itself incompetent to rule on the complaint on the dissolution of the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM), Tabi Owono accused of being guilty of violating the constitution and rebellion against State institutions. According to Tabi Owono, the CPDM is illegal for it has not been registered as a political party. Professor Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo, one of the representatives of the CPDM at the hearings said, on 24 March 1985 in Bamenda, the Cameroon National Union (CNU) was merely transformed into the CPDM. The Constitutional Council, according to the First President of the Supreme Court was incompetent to dissolve the CPDM because, according to the law, only militants of a political party can dissolve it as well as the administration.

The First President of the Supreme Court equally declared the Constitutional Council incompetent to rule on Tabi Owono’s complaint seeking that the Council sentences President Paul Biya for high treason. He accused President Biya of abusive use of power, human rights violation and staging a constitutional coup d’ Etat. The Constitutional Council, the Supreme Court First President said, was incompetent to rule on the case because following the constitution, only the Court of Impeachment can judge the President of the Republic for high treason against the State.

After the court session, Tabi Owono told journalists, “we respect the decisions of the Cameroonian court. We are very grateful that the case was examined and we think this is good for democracy”.


Source: Pa Fru Ndeh via camnetwork@yahoogroups.com

The Worst of the Worst

BY GEORGE B.N. AYITTEY

A continent away from Kyrgyzstan, Africans like myself cheered this spring as a coalition of opposition groups ousted the country's dictator, President Kurmanbek Bakiyev. "One coconut down, 39 more to harvest!" we shouted. There are at least 40 dictators around the world today, and approximately 1.9 billion people live under the grip of the 23 autocrats on this list alone. There are plenty of coconuts to go around.

The cost of all that despotism has been stultifying. Millions of lives have been lost, economies have collapsed, and whole states have failed under brutal repression. And what has made it worse is that the world is in denial. The end of the Cold War was also supposed to be the "End of History" when democracy swept the world and repression went the way of the dinosaurs. Instead, Freedom House reports that only 60 percent of the world's countries are democratic -- far more than the 28 percent in 1950, but still not much more than a majority. And many of those aren't real democracies at all, ruled instead by despots in disguise while the world takes their freedom for granted. As for the rest, they're just left to languish.

Although all dictators are bad in their own way, there's one insidious aspect of despotism that is most infuriating and galling to me: the disturbing frequency with which many despots, as in Kyrgyzstan, began their careers as erstwhile "freedom fighters" who were supposed to have liberated their people. Back in 2005, Bakiyev rode the crest of the so-called Tulip Revolution to oust the previous dictator. So familiar are Africans with this phenomenon that we have another saying: "We struggle very hard to remove one cockroach from power, and the next rat comes to do the same thing. Haba!" Darn!

I call these revolutionaries-turned-tyrants "crocodile liberators," joining the ranks of other fine specimens: the Swiss bank socialists who force the people to pay for economic losses while stashing personal gains abroad, the quack revolutionaries who betray the ideals that brought them to power, and the briefcase bandits who simply pillage and steal. Here's my list of the world's worst dictators. I have ranked them based on ignoble qualities of perfidy, cultural betrayal, and economic devastation. If this account of their evils makes you cringe, just imagine living under their rule.

1. KIM JONG IL of North Korea: A personality-cult-cultivating isolationist with a taste for fine French cognac, Kim has pauperized his people, allowed famine to run rampant, and thrown hundreds of thousands in prison camps (where as many as 200,000 languish today) -- all while spending his country's precious few resources on a nuclear program.
Years in power: 16

2. ROBERT MUGABE of Zimbabwe: A liberation "hero" in the struggle for independence who has since transformed himself into a murderous despot, Mugabe has arrested and tortured the opposition, squeezed his economy into astounding negative growth and billion-percent inflation, and funneled off a juicy cut for himself using currency manipulation and offshore accounts.
Years in power: 30

3. THAN SHWE of Burma: A heartless military coconut head whose sole consuming preoccupation is power, Shwe has decimated the opposition with arrests and detentions, denied humanitarian aid to his people after 2008's devastating Cyclone Nargis, and thrived off a black market economy of natural gas exports. This vainglorious general bubbling with swagger sports a uniform festooned with self-awarded medals, but he is too cowardly to face an honest ballot box.
Years in power: 18

4. OMAR HASSAN AL-BASHIR of Sudan: A megalomaniac zealot who has quashed all opposition, Bashir is responsible for the deaths of millions of Sudanese and has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes. Bashir's Arab militias, the janjaweed, may have halted their massacres in Darfur, but they continue to traffic black Sudanese as slaves (Bashir himself has been accused of having had several at one point).
Years in power: 21

5. GURBANGULY BERDIMUHAMEDOV of Turkmenistan: Succeeding the eccentric tyrant Saparmurat Niyazov (who even renamed the months of the year after himself and his family), this obscure dentist has kept on keeping on with his late predecessor's repressive policies, explaining that, after all, he bears an "uncanny resemblance to Niyazov."
Years in power: 4

6. ISAIAS AFWERKI of Eritrea: A crocodile liberator, Afwerki has turned his country into a national prison in which independent media are shut down, elections are categorically rejected, indefinite military service is mandatory, and the government would rather support Somali militants than its own people.
Years in power: 17

7. ISLAM KARIMOV of Uzbekistan: A ruthless thug ruling since Soviet times, Karimov has banned opposition parties, tossed as many as 6,500 political prisoners into jail, and labels anyone who challenges him an "Islamic terrorist." What does he do with "terrorists" once they are in his hands? Torture them: Karimov's regime earned notoriety for boiling two people alive and torturing many others. Outside the prisons, the president's troops are equally indiscriminate, massacring hundreds of peaceful demonstrators in 2005 after a minor uprising in the city of Andijan.
Years in power: 20

8. MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD of Iran: Inflammatory, obstinate, and a traitor to the liberation philosophy of the Islamic Revolution, Ahmadinejad has pursued a nuclear program in defiance of international law and the West. Responsible for countless injustices during his five years in power, the president's latest egregious offense was leading his paramilitary goons, the Basij, to violently repress protesters after June 2009's disputed presidential election, which many believe he firmly lost.
Years in power: 5

9. MELES ZENAWI of Ethiopia: Worse than the former Marxist dictator he ousted nearly two decades ago, Zenawi has clamped down on the opposition, stifled all dissent, and rigged elections. Like a true Marxist revolutionary, Zenawi has stashed millions in foreign banks and acquired mansions in Maryland and London in his wife's name, according to the opposition -- even as his barbaric regime collects a whopping $1 billion in foreign aid each year.
Years in power: 19


10. HU JINTAO of China: A chameleon despot who beguiles foreign investors with a smile and a bow, but ferociously crushes political dissent with brutal abandon, Hu has an iron grip on Tibet and is now seeking what can only be described as new colonies in Africa from which to extract the natural resources his growing economy craves.
Years in power: 7

11. MUAMMAR AL-QADDAFI of Libya: An eccentric egoist infamous for his indecipherably flamboyant speeches and equally erratic politics, Qaddafi runs a police state based on his version of Mao's Red Book -- the Green Book -- which includes a solution to "the Problem of Democracy." Repressive at home, Qaddafi masquerades as Africa's king of kings abroad (the African Union had to politely insist that he step down as its rotating head).
Years in power: 41

12. BASHAR AL-ASSAD of Syria: A pretentious despot trying to fit into his father's shoes (they're too big for him), Assad has squandered billions on foreign misadventures in such places as Lebanon and Iraq while neglecting the needs of the Syrian people. His extensive security apparatus ensures that the population doesn't complain.
Years in power: 10

13. IDRISS DÉBY of Chad: Having led a rebel insurgency against a former dictator, Déby today faces a similar challenge -- from one of his own former cabinet officials, among others. To repel would-be coup leaders, Déby has drained social spending accounts to equip the military, co-opted opposition-leader foes, and is now building a moat around the capital, N'Djamena.
Years in power: 20

14. TEODORO OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO of Equatorial Guinea: Obiang and his family literally own the economy, having reportedly amassed a fortune exceeding $600 million while the masses are left in desperate poverty. Equatorial Guinea's extraordinary oil wealth puts its GDP per capita on par with many European states -- if only it were evenly shared. Instead, revenues remain a "state secret."
Years in power: 31

15. HOSNI MUBARAK of Egypt: A senile and paranoid autocrat whose sole preoccupation is self-perpetuation in office, Mubarak is suspicious of even his own shadow. He keeps a 30-year-old emergency law in place to squelch any opposition activity and has groomed his son, Gamal, to succeed him. (No wonder only 23 percent of Egyptians bothered to vote in the 2005 presidential election.)
Years in power: 29

16. YAHYA JAMMEH of Gambia: This eccentric military buffoon has vowed to rule for 40 years and claims to have discovered the cure for HIV/AIDS. (Jammeh also claims he has mystic powers and will turn Gambia into an oil-producing country; no luck yet.) A narcissist at heart, the dictator insists on being addressed as His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr. Yahya Abdul-Azziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh.
Years in power: 16

17. HUGO CHÁVEZ of Venezuela: The quack leader of the Bolivarian Revolution, Chávez promotes a doctrine of participatory democracy in which he is the sole participant, having jailed opposition leaders, extended term limits indefinitely, and closed independent media.
Years in power: 11

18. BLAISE COMPAORÉ of Burkina Faso: A tin-pot despot with no vision and no agenda, save self-perpetuation in power by liquidating opponents and stifling dissent, Compaoré has lived up to the low standards of his own rise to power, after murdering his predecessor, Thomas Sankara, in a 1987 coup.
Years in power: 23

19. YOWERI MUSEVENI of Uganda: After leading a rebel insurgency that took over Uganda in 1986, Museveni declared: "No African head of state should be in power for more than 10 years." But 24 years later, he is still here, winning one "coconut election" after another in which other political parties are technically legal but a political rally of more than a handful of people is not.
Years in power: 24

20. PAUL KAGAME of Rwanda: A liberator who saved the Tutsis from complete extermination in 1994, Kagame now practices the same ethnic apartheid he sought to end. His Rwandan Patriotic Front dominates all levers of power: the security forces, the civil service, the judiciary, banks, universities, and state-owned corporations. Those who challenge the president are accused of being a hatemonger or divisionist and arrested.
Years in power: 10

21. RAÚL CASTRO of Cuba: Afflicted with intellectual astigmatism, the second brother Castro is pitifully unaware that the revolution he leads is obsolete, an abysmal failure, and totally irrelevant to the aspirations of the Cuban people. He blames the failure of the revolution on foreign conspiracies -- which he then uses to justify even more brutal clampdowns.
Years in power: 2

22. ALEKSANDR LUKASHENKO of Belarus: An autocrat and former collective farm chairman, Lukashenko maintains an iron grip on his country, monitoring opposition movements with a secret police distastefully called the KGB. His brutal style of governance has earned him the title "Europe's last dictator"; he even gave safe haven to Kyrgyzstan's toppled leader when that country rose up this spring.
Years in power: 16

23. PAUL BIYA of Cameroon: A suave bandit who has reportedly amassed a personal fortune of more than $200 million and the mansions to go with it, Biya has co-opted the opposition into complete submission. Not that he's worried about elections; he

has rigged the term limit laws twice to make sure the party doesn't end anytime soon.
Years in power: 28









About the Author

George B.N. Ayittey, a native of Ghana, is president of the Free Africa Foundation in Washington. His book, The March of Freedom: Defeating Dictators in Africa and Around the World, will be published in 2011.

President Biya 's Praise Speech to France and Sarkozy.

At a time when reasonable Heads of State Like Paul Kagame of Rwanda have understood that they needed to get out of the grip of France in order to kiss the path of true development as we have seen recently; blind,unreasonable,old sit-tight stooges like President Paul Biya of Cameroun are looking forward to a long lasting and "promising" relationship with France.In his speech (posted below) made during the celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the independence of African States in Paris, chaired by young Nicholas Sarkozy of France; President Biya speaking on behalf of his fellow "enslaved" leaders thanked France for the wonderful "development assistance" while castigating criticisms made against“Françafrique". In order words, he does not see any harm in the existence of an umbilical cord connecting France and all its former colonies (Francafrique), which has consistently been the premise for France's exploitation of the resources of the continent while instigating coups and mayhem to challenge or eliminate dissident leaders in favor of the those dictators who are ready to kiss France's boots. This speech is not just shameful but a sound warning that dictators like Biya have not learned any lesson from history and are ready to keep their people in perpetual bondage as long as their grip on power is guaranteed by "Daddy" France. tHIS SORT OF SYCOPHANTIC PRAISE comes as no surprise, given that the 2011 presidential elections in Cameroon looms around the corner and President Biya desperately needs the full support of France to ensure his presidency. He is fully aware that any slip of the tongue will will land him in thesame boat as Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast. I guess this is the only lesson he has learned so far; a compromise he is forever ready to make at the expense of democracy and the economic flight of his country. As the world evolves and nations struggle to take their countries to different dimensions and levels, Former French colonies are marking steps, not to say regressing. This is a dilemma that the youths have to strategize on how to eliminate before they end up in a bottomless dungeon with begging pans like their predecessors.

SPEECH BY PRESIDENT PAUL BIYA AT A LUNCHEON OFFERED ON THE OCCASION OF THE CELEBRATION OF THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF AFRICAN STATES IN PARIS

Tuesday, 13 July 2010

The President of the French Republic,

Heads of State,

Representatives of Heads of State,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I feel honoured to take the floor on behalf of my colleagues at this luncheon offered on the occasion of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the birth of our States in Paris.

Mr President, I would like to begin by thanking you for your kind words. I would also like to thank you sincerely for the excellent initiative in convening this meeting. It will enable us to revisit our common history so as to come to terms with it, reaffirm our determination to continue building our future together more than ever before.

Various celebrations have already taken place in some of our countries. Others will follow in the coming months. The participation of a former colonial power in the commemoration of a historic moment for each of our States gives an added dimension to the significance of the event.

You have done so with sincerity, faith and conviction. On these different points, Mr President, we share your vision in essence.

For any country, accession to sovereignty means laying a foundation. It marks the end of one era and the start of another. It is and will remain boldly engraved in the history of the country concerned.

Furthermore, independence has a double significance for us Africans.

Initially, it was synonymous with freedom, whether won, negotiated or granted. In that regard, our nationalist leaders, like those of Central Europe in the 19th century, were the distant heirs of your great leaders of the Age of Enlightenment and the revolutionaries of 1789.

It equally entailed, for our predecessors, our elders, assuming responsibilities, being accountable for their actions, being liable to mistakes, becoming masters of their destinies, in short, regaining their dignity.

Such is the common moral legacy that we inherited. This is not surprising, given that we were all under the same power, irrespective or its form, either as a colony or a trust territory, its duration, from two centuries to a few decades, depending on the territories.

It is clear that colonisation was not a bed of roses. Fortunately, thanks to General de Gaulle and his understanding of History, it ended honourably. Since then, we have evolved progressively towards forms of government and methods of development that are adapted to our times.

Of course, we knew, on both sides, that our relations would change. Plunged in the “great ocean” of the international community, some amount of diversification of our relations with other countries, in our best interests became evident. For my part, I have never had the feeling that France has held it against us. That is why I object to terms such as “pré carré” or “Françafrique" often employed to qualify our relations. Mr President, you have yourself mentioned France’s opening up to other African States. This is confirmed by the participation of many non-French speaking countries at the last Africa/France summit in Nice.

Fifty years after independence, what assessment can be made of this long road we have travelled together?

Our presence here today is a first answer to that. However, to go further, I would say that it is especially an “aspiration to justice”, in all forms, which our peoples indisputably inherited from our common history. Indeed, this has often posed problems to us leaders. In addition, the use of a common language which remains an unparalleled instrument of communication and access to a prestigious culture which continues to develop as it diversifies.

On such common foundations, we have over the years been able to establish relations that are modern and void of complexes. In many areas, particularly with respect to global warming, food security and regulating globalization, our viewpoints are often similar or the same.

I will not fail to mention the development assistance to which France, despite its own difficulties, continues to be a leading contributor. The different pronouncements you have just made concerning aid are particularly significant in this regard.

Neither can we forget that France was a prime mover in negotiating the cancellation of the debt of poor countries, thus enabling most of us to return to growth.

Lastly, I believe that I do speak for my colleagues as I personally thank you for the initiative you have taken to grant the same retirement benefits to African ex-servicemen as their French comrades. Your decision will be unanimously welcomed not only by the persons concerned but also by all our public opinions.

As you did yourself indicate, the relation between France and French-speaking African countries can rightly boast of its “uniqueness”. Apart from the purely sentimental dimension that goes with a common past, both happy and sad, that relation has been able to adapt to changing times and this has given it fresh impetus. By not pretending to be an exclusive relationship and by leaving room for opening up to other horizons, it is sure to stand the test of time and trivialization.

Mr President,

On behalf of my colleagues, I would like once more to thank you for affording us the opportunity to meet here in this beautiful city of Paris, which we know very well, and together commemorate a crucial moment in our common history.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I now invite you to raise your glasses to the friendship ties existing between France and Africa!

Thank you for your kind attention.