Our 12th PRO document
(CO554/2265XC3406, dated July 21st 1961) is the continuation of the
Foumban Constitutional Talks, the second and closing Session of the Conference.
The speeches by Ahidjo, Foncha and Endeley deal with what has been accomplished
during the Conference, leaving other matters not covered for the forthcoming
tripartite talks in Yaounde in August 1961. The frankness and spirit of
fraternity demonstrated in the speeches makes one to wonder why things changed
against Southern Cameroons after unification on 1st October 1961.
FOUMBAN CONFERENCE
SECOND SESSION 4:45PM JULY 21ST 1961
HIS EXCELLENCY THE PRESIDENT AHIDJO
I declare the Session open. The
floor is given to the Prime Minist of the Southern Cameroons.
Your Excellency, I wish to make
just a few remarks on the proposals we made on the draft proposal submitted for
the Southern Cameroons delegation. I do not wish to comment on all of the
points we have presented to you, but it is my place just to say the spirit in
which we make those recommendations. For three days, we sat over the papers
Your Excellency produced for us and we looked into all the clauses and we found
many things quite agreeable to us and we found some, though agreeable, needed
some little suggestion from us and we did so. We had heated debate on some of
the points and I can assure you that it stemmed from the fact that we wished to
produce the best for our country. Our recommendation, therefore, has nothing
inamicable but something we feel the future Federation of Cameroon will be
proud of if we take the pains to reason well and put down just what is
practicable.
I do not at this stage want to
claim that we are perfect in our recommendation but I want to assure you that
what we suggest is not far from being perfect if Your Excellency and your party
will consider those points seriously and take them. I want to remark this: that
the recommendation we made stem out of the brotherly feeling we have towards
the Republic of Cameroon. We feel that we are building our house, and not
building a house for anybody, and any suggestion that we make to strengthen
that house you may be sure stems from our very best interest.
I must be frank and say that in
my opinion we have done a greater part of the Constitutional points which
should be agreed upon if we all can agree upon the points so far produced. I
envisage a further meeting, but the meeting will merely be to iron out the few
words which are not understood either by you or by us and to add some of the
things which we might not have put properly. I have said that I do not want to
make any comments on all that is put down here, but this general remark, then,
will give the floor to Your Excellency also. But perhaps before Your Excellency
speaks, it would be necessary for Dr. Endeley, Leader of the Opposition, to
reaffirm some of the things which I have said with regard to the draft.
DR. E.M.L ENDELEY
Mr. President, Honourable
Ministers, Gentlemen, I have great pleasure to associating myself with my
colleague, the Premier of Southern Cameroons. I must say that in my last talk I
said we were here with an open heart and to work as a team. We have succeeded
in working as a team in looking through the proposals which were placed by your
Government before the Southern Cameroons delegation.
There were proposals which were
the result of great thought by experts, legal experts, and therefore, it took more
time than we thought it would take. We do not presume that we have found the
answer to the problems which will unify the two Cameroons, but we have given an
indication of what we think and what we feel. All we request is that you should
receive our proposals as an indication of our good intentions and goodwill for
a union. It is like a young brother who is anxious to live with an elder
brother. If the elder brother receives him very coldly or doesn’t give him any
encouragement he may feel very discouraged. Much of the desire of the people of
Southern Cameroons to unite with their brothers will depend on the attitude of
the Republic of Cameroon and the manner in which they treat these proposals.
I am very happy for one thing,
and for this, I have again to thank the Sultan of Foumban and his people. That
we have been able to continue our discussion in very good humour and under very
happy atmosphere. We do not feel that we are in a strange country at all. And
this, I think we owe to the friendliness and the peaceful atmosphere of
Foumban. In the midst of work we have been able to relax.
Finally, Mr. President, I would
wish to say one thing and this I would try to convey through you. This is to
our brothers who have gone wild in the bush. If I, as Opposition Leader, and my
colleague can reconcile with Mr. Foncha, I cannot see why those who are the
opposition and have gone will in the bush cannot reconcile with your
government. I have had great reason to feel that Mr. Foncha is an enemy to me
and I would not work together with him, as the terrorists have failed against
President Ahidjo.
We have come to set an example,
that by working together we can make a better country. If by this example which
I have set with my colleague, we cannot produce a peaceful Cameroon, then we
will be a laughing stock to the country.
Many people thought that this
Conference would be a failure and that it would not work, as it is the first
Conference and it has succeeded.
I am convinced that all other
conferences after this will succeed. And therefore, Mr. President, I am
appealing to those brothers who have gone wild to cease fire and cooperate with
us and come back to help make Cameroon a peaceful country. We should not use
our arms against our brothers; we should use them against our enemies.
Mr. President, I do not believe
that what we have taken four days to answer you might find an answer to every
clause that we have put before you. As my colleague, the Premier, said, we only
concentrated in dealing with the more urgent matters which would make union on
1st October possible. There are other matters which I think we can
treat as secondary and which we can deal with later on.
Finally, Mr. President, on behalf
of my colleagues, I am very grateful for the indulgence you have given us to
look through your papers and your proposals at a time which was convenient to
us. I pledge our loyalty and determination to be at your service any time you
wish, any time you think necessary for the betterment of Southern Cameroons.
Thank you very much.
