Another Investigation Commission

President Paul Biya of Cameroon

The aftermath of the train derailment at Eseka in Cameroon has come with a litany of accusations and counter accusations. The state through the minstry of Transport, Public works, Camrail and its main partner Bolloré have all had to defend themselves against media reports, testimonies on what might have caused the accident. With growing national and international pressure, it was but normal that the Head of State had to create a national investigation team to probe into the root causes of this derailment. But Cameroonians are sceptical and (rightfully so) about the commission put in place by the Head of state.

President Paul Biya Reacts:

The commission has the Prime Minister (Philemon Yang) as president and members being; the Minister of Justice and Keeper of the Seal (Laurent Esso), the minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation (Rene Emmanuel Sadi), Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of Supreme State Control (Mbah Acha née Fomundam Rose), Secretary of State to the Minister of Defense, in charge of the Gendarmerie (Jean Baptiste Bokam) and finally the delegate general for National Security (Martin Mbarga Nguélé). The secretary of this commission shall be the Permanent secretary of the National Security council (Paul Atanga Nji). This commission has 30 days to avail its report. Three problems can be identified with this commission. Namely; the problem of Credibility, Historical experience from previous commissions and the confidentiality of reports.

1. Credibility:

In many ways, this investigation team is fundamentally wrong. All of the members of this team are of the executive arm of the government. It is not morally and professionaly right for them to investigate actions in which they are the main initiators. There would be a huge problem with independence and conflict of interest. It will be difficult for them to identify the root causes of the accident and report as such. Besides, what if it went that during the investigation the PM was found wanting? Not only would it be difficult to write against him but it will also be impossible to incriminate their hierarchy. Above all even if the commission ends up having a wonderful report, Cameroonians wouldn’t give any credibility to the report given this composition. Credibility is a very sensitive issue. Once people lack confidence in a team, suspicion comes in, it’s difficult to rebuild.

In most advance countries, either an independent commission is used or a parliamentary inquiry team. Talking about an independent commission, there are men and women of valour in Cameroon who have unanimity as to their moral probity, neutrality and diligence. Couldn’t we have taken some of our religious leaders, civil society actors and media men to do a thorough investigation? The victims of the accident may well be thinking that, if these same people who caused us this misery are the same to investigate, then it’s not worth of any optimism.

2. History of unproductive commissions:

Cameroon is noted and notorious for creating an avalanche of institutions to solve a single problem. Corruption, Unemployment, Water Crises etc are some of the sectors with a plethora of insignificant and miserable institutions. Cameroonians are not new to Commissions of Inquiry decreed by the head of state. Let me list a few for our understanding;

• During the 1990 world cup, Cameroonians contributed money to support the national football team. That money got missing between Cameroon and New York in the hands of Augustine Kontcho K. A commission was created-Where are the results?
• Another commissionwas created to unravel what happened during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa-We are yet to see the Recommendations, because fecafoot and sports in general is still poorly managed.
• Renowned Journalist, Bibi Ngota died while in pre-trial detention in Kendengui prison and the reasons to his death are still unknown-At least to the public.
• Vanessa Tchatchoua’s Baby was stolen from a hospital in Yaoundé. Till date, she hasn’t had her baby even though a commission was created to investigate.

3. Confidentiality:

It is true that the report of certain investigations cannot be made public for safety and security reason. But issues of public concern should be treated as such. This case warrants that the general public should be informed of the recommendations. We are not interested in names, but  the systemic issues that can remedy and prevent a reoccurrence.

Conclusion

When I remember how the Head of Sate left the Airport on Sunday to the Unity Palace, i am tempted to ask. Would it not have been ideal to stop at any of the hospitals in Yaoundé where victims and mourning family members were? Nonetheless, this is neither peculiar nor extraordinary. When Cameroonian soldiers were slain during the fight with Boko Haram, Idriss derby of Tchad came to Cameroon and visited injured soldiers in Hospital, while President Paul Biya was in his mansion in Yaoundé.  It’s about time the powers that be take responsibility and show some respect to Cameroonians. The executive arm of the government cannot continue to play with the intelligence of Cameroonians. The commission that was created flies in the face of logic and is repugnant to natural justice. Its again time for more ethnic and tribal cleavages amongst the elite in Yaoundé at the detriment of the man on the street.

I hope one of the recommendations that will be arrived at, would be to reduce the size of the government. Too many ministers and some don’t even know what they are doing. A country that has 5 Ministries just for Education is doomed. The crises in Eseka showed how uncoordinated government actions are. Nobody knew what to do and were acting in Silos. Had there been communication amongst the Ministerial portfolios, Cameroonians would have been informed that a temporary bride could be available in about 8 hours. I am sure that the mad rush to the train stations would have been avoided, and Camrail would not have decided to add the 8 extra Coaches. That was a sign of no leadership, no vision and no coordination. 

Moses Ngwanah