THE STAYING POWER OF JOHN FRU NDI

By CANUTE TANGWA(published March 30, 2006)

What explains the staying power of Chairman John Fru Ndi and his so-called gang of “illiterates” in spite of a spate of desertions from the intellectual fringe of the SDF that perceptibly constitutes its think tank? This commentary attempts to answer this question. 

I.    Politics is ‘serious business’. Albert Einstein was quick to note that politics was more nebulous than physics. A consummate politician is an embodiment of feline courage, chameleonic traits and the cunning nature of a fox. Politicians use these characteristics to protect vested interests and to gun for office. Politics in this sense is not the search for high ideals. It is the day to day jostling, jockeying and fighting for influence to protect interests even if it entails using the sledgehammer. As a business that deals primarily with an ever changing human nature and conduct, those who master the game of politics inevitably have a good reading of their environments and actors therein. Intellectuals who want to succeed in politics must play the game as the environment dictates. Intellectuals who want to succeed in politics by giving lessons on political good governance should borrow from Leopold Sedar Senghor, Julius Nyerere and Abdoulaye Wade: first take your message to the rural masses and all other political things shall be added unto you.    

II.    What is in a name? There is something in a name because it constitutes one’s identity. Socio-psychologists go further to identify certain character traits with certain names! There are certain names that conjure positive and negative images particularly in the minds of former West Cameroonians. Seemingly, the negative is more pronounced than the positive. Challenging Fru Ndi is the legitimate right of every SDF militant. However, continuously pushing forward a personality whose name is foggy is tactless and politically suicidal.

III.    He who comes to equity must come with clean hands. In Le Messager No.2093 of Monday 27 March 2007, Hon. Evariste Fopoussi Fotso, former SDF communication officer and MP for Khounghi Division who resigned from the SDF and created the Alliance des Forces Démocratiques (AFP) together with the late lamented Dr Samuel Tchwenko and others  and has recently been readmitted into the SDF-fold revealed the dirty hands of those who today « are making a lot of noise in the pages of newspapers in order to acquire a late-in-life dubious good reputation…even going as far as playing Danton or Robespierre of the French Revolution”. For example, « With hindsight, Ngwasiri’s band that signed the « peace agreement » in June 2002 with the CPDM is only a pale imitation of the master... he has never given an account of the millions of francs CFA that the Fondation Jean Jaurès put at his disposal to organize a seminar for mayors in Douala in 1997”.

IV.    Hearsay evidence is circumstantial. I must admit that I have a lot of respect for Prof. Tazoacha Asonganyi. However, in presenting reasons for his resignation he made one fatal flaw; hearsay. He had no hard evidence that Fru Ndi and his men have been eating fat from CPDM largesse. He spoke like an ordinary militant who listens to “radio one battery”. This plays on the psyche of militants and in the hands of those he is treading punches with.

V.    The Government in power understands current international trends. Cameroon is a member of the Commonwealth and other bodies that lay emphasis on good governance. It is not in the interest of Government to oversee a divided SDF. The international community must be aware that there is a force that checks government action. It is interesting to note that the Government has never appointed any “intellectual” who resigned or was dismissed from the SDF to a ministerial position. The Government has rather turned a blind eye or gave support to Fru Ndi in times of crises.

VI.    There is a lot of myth around Fru Ndi. It took one courageous act in 1992 to put Fru Ndi on an enviable pedestal. From then on stories were peddled on the near mystical cum magical powers of Pa Fru Ndi; a Ndeh Ntumazah of sorts.  Another aspect of Fru Ndi’s personality is his supposed Father Christmas nature, God fearing and peace loving character. The last two traits make him look like a latter-day John Ngu Foncha. It needs much time, energy, tact and patience to demystify Fru Ndi.  

VII.    Underestimation and intellectual snobbery. There is the tendency to underestimate a less educated Fru Ndi. This streak makes it difficult to tackle issues coherently and to appreciate in a level headed manner the actions of the opposing camp. There is no debate because there is a presumed intellectual mismatch. Where there is a semblance of debate, the intellectual adopts the posture of a pre-independence school master. Within political circles, intellectuals usually bond together; forming an exclusive club thereby keeping a distance from the pack. They always look upon themselves, wrongly or rightly, as victims since they feel that they are not often understood.  

The SDF party has come a long way. There is an urgent need for constitutional and structural changes. There is also the need to change people. How to go about it has been the bone of contention. Blunders have been made like convening another convention in Yaounde, appointing Hon. Paulinus Jua as parliamentary group leader, erroneous interpretation of certain sections of the SDF statutes, the use of Article 8.2 without due process, attempts at concentrating powers in the hands of the Chairman, blocking the candidatures of certain aspirants to the chairmanship and so on. It is hoped that the convenors of the Bamenda convention will live by its baptismal name, Convention of Rebirth.

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