Introduction
Cameroon, which derived its name from Portuguese sailor meaning shrimps, came under the German colony in 1884. The Germans invested in the Cameroon infrastructure by bringing in projects such as building extensive railways such as the Sanaga South railway branch and hospitals.
They tried to engage the Cameroon inhabitants to participate in the projects, but the natives were reluctant hence resulting to the Germans using excessive and forceful labor. However, at the end of World War 1 from 1914-1918, Germans lost leading to Cameroon being mandated by the League of Nations to the British and French administrations.
The French ceded the bigger portion of the Cameroon territory of East Cameroon while the British, who had invaded from Nigeria, took over a smaller portion of the territory of West Cameroon. The quest of independence, however, became rife prompting the natives to form a political group to fight for independence.
The outlawed Union of the Peoples of Cameroon political party began the fight for independence in 1955 in French Cameroon causing loss of lives in the armed struggle. They finally got their independence on January 1, 1960, subsequently changing the name to the Republic of Cameroon.
The British Cameroon territory was divided into two with one part joining Nigeria and the other integrating with the Republic of Cameroon to become the Federal Republic of Cameroon in 1961. The French influence, however, remained predominant in independent Cameroon especially in the capital city, Yaoundé.
The Political Development Since Independence
After attaining its independence, the Cameroon natives were headed by the first president Ahmadou Ahidjo, who ruled under his party the Cameroon Union. He promised to build a strong capitalist economy and to further the relationship with France. Through his tenure, Cameroon became a one-party state where civil rights were rarely upheld.
In 1982, President Ahidjo resigned from presidency causing a major dramatic change in Cameroon politics. Paul Biya took over the presidency two days later while Ahidjo remained the Chairman of the Cameroon National Union, the only political party then. This caused political turmoil as Ahidjo was not ready to relinquish his powers of political domination.
However, Biya built a strong coalition in an attempt to overthrow Ahidjo leading to a bloody uprising by both sides in which Biya succeeded. The Cameroon National Union became Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement under Biya’s leadership. The political arena of Cameroon has had major developments under the governance of Paul Biya.
In the 1980s, a new electoral procedure was set up paving the way to civil rights and press freedom. This enhanced efficiency in the government and contributed to the creation of several constituencies. In 1991, a political reform process was initiated to introduce a constitutional amendment to provide for an establishment of multi-parties.
Later in the year, Cameroon achieved to become a multi-party state from a single-party state by legalizing and registering several parties. In late 1994, a new constitutional review committee was formed which paved the way for the country’s new constitution. Through many challenges, the new constitution was finally promulgated in 1996.
It provided for elections that would be held both locally and regionally, it also increased the powers of the executive branch of the government and further enhanced the presidential term of office from five to seven years. Another major development was in 2002 when the parliament passed a bill which called for the creation of the observing body due to the pressure from the opposition parties.
The body’s mandate was to ensure free and fair elections by supervising and controlling all the phases of the electoral process. It should, however, be noted that though the political arena in Cameroon has developed since independence, there have been many flaws that have threatened and hindered further development. The body politic has been accused of thriving in political gluttony.
Most of the people in power have been accused of stealing public funds for their personal use yet no action has been taken against them. Corruption has been associated with such impunity acts in the political arena causing major political upheavals. The legislative elections held in 1997 led to pre- and post-election violence due to alleged irregularities, intimidation, and defective registration voter list.
This brought political tension to the country. Though the freedom of speech has been enhanced, the opposition parties remain weak and divided under the influence of the predominant leading party. A good example was in December 1999 when an opposition party seized a radio station in protest, and the members of the party were arrested without trial.
Economic Developments Since Independence
The economy developments gained momentum during the reign of President Ahidjo when he adopted a policy of Planned Liberalism which was meant to promote investment. In 1973, during the Green Revolution, the government was for the opinion that the country would become sufficiently self-stable by relying on its export crop which provided the required capital.
In 1970, Petroleum was discovered in Cameroon, and this became the major source of export hence improving the economy drastically. The income from the petroleum was used to pay the country’s expenses such as materials imports, construction of financial reserves, bring in new technology, and also increasing the farmers’ revenue.
However, the government used the petroleum revenue to invest in unplanned expensive projects hence leading to a near collapse of the economy. The economy however improved from the growth of agribusinesses and local companies producing goods that were sold locally. This led to the expansion of facilities such as schools, transport, and the country was able to produce hydro-electric power.
Despite economic growth, the country was faced with major economic problems. Most of the citizens in Cameroon live below the poverty line and can hardly provide for basic needs. The situation has been blamed on many things such as corruption in the government. The crisis was also blamed on poor planning of some projects by the government which led to massive loss of the country’s revenue.
Commodity prices decreased and the export revenue that Cameroon relied on on drastically dropped. However, the government adjusted its budget by cutting costs, and the World Bank intervened with a structural adjustment program. This has resulted in some positive economic growth being felt especially since the late 1990s.
Conclusion
Cameroon has been able to achieve a somewhat stable political arena compared to most of its neighboring countries since independence. However, there is great potential for political unrest calling for further opening of the political scene. The situation has attracted interest in both the local and international communities with major concerns on human rights abuses. It should also be noted that despite Cameroon making economic progress since independence, the economic nature of the country is still unstable to date.
Bibliography
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