LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Subject: Amadou Ahidjo Told Bigger, More Convincing Lies About “Federation” Than Issa Tchiroma Bakary — And Whatever Tchiroma Is Promising Today Is Dead on Arrival
Sir/Madam,
At a time when Issa Tchiroma Bakary is touring the media with recycled fantasies about “federalism,” “national reconciliation,” and a supposed new beginning for Cameroon, it is worth stating one simple truth:
There is nothing Tchiroma can promise today that Ahmadou Ahidjo did not promise before — and break completely. If federalism died under Ahidjo, it cannot resurrect under his ideological descendants.
- Ahidjo’s Promises Were Sweeter, Stronger, and More Convincing. Before and during the 1961 plebiscite, Ahidjo made solemn promises to the international community and to the people of Southern Cameroons. Those promises were written, recorded, debated in the UN, and broadcast in public. Tchiroma today is offering only noise, unverifiable claims, and panic-driven rhetoric. Yet even Ahidjo — armed with the full machinery of state, international legitimacy, and UN oversight — still lied and dismantled every guarantee he gave.
- The Promises Ahidjo Made — And Broke. To persuade Southern Cameroons to join his newly independent Republic of Cameroon, Ahidjo promised:
a) Preservation of Anglophone Heritage. He pledged to safeguard the identity, institutions, and way of life of Southern Cameroonians, including: English common law system. Distinct Anglo-Saxon administration. Local police and civil governance. Anglo-Saxon educational traditions. Every one of these pillars was later attacked, eroded, or abolished.
b) Genuine Federalism. Ahidjo presented a vision of a two-state federation, equal in status, with each state freely managing its internal affairs. But by 1972, he destroyed that federation through an illegal, fraudulent referendum that violated: UN Resolution 1608 (XV). The 1961 Federal Constitution. The international treaty spirit that created the union. He replaced federalism with a centralized dictatorship.
c) Protection of English Language and Bilingualism. Ahidjo promised that English would remain a full national language with equal status.
Yet what followed was: Assimilation in public service. Francophonization of courts and schools. Administrative marginalization. Linguistic discrimination. Today’s “bilingualism” commission is merely an obituary for a policy murdered decades ago.
- If Ahidjo Lied With the Whole World Watching, Why Trust Tchiroma Today? Ahidjo was a statesman with international credibility. Tchiroma is a political actor trying to survive a collapsing regime. Ahidjo’s promises were delivered: Before the UN. Before Britain. Before Nigeria. Before the Trusteeship Council. Tchiroma’s promises are delivered: On Facebook, In WhatsApp groups, Under the shadow of a disputed election, With no constitutional power. If Ahidjo could not keep the federation alive even when he had the legal obligation to, how can Tchiroma revive it when he has neither power nor legitimacy?
- The Crisis Today Is Not New — It Is the Direct Result of Ahidjo’s Broken Word. The Southern Cameroons/Ambazonia crisis did not begin in 2016. It began the day the promises of 1961 were betrayed. When federalism was abolished. When Anglophone institutions were suffocated. When economic power shifted to Yaoundé. When the union became an annexation. Every attempt at “dialogue” since then has been a cover for more centralization.
- Federation Is Not Coming Back — It Was Buried by Ahidjo Himself. Federalism died in 1972. It was cremated in 1984. It was buried from 1984 to 2025. And now Tchiroma wants to sell its ghost for votes? Southern Cameroonians know better.
- The Truth the World Must Accept, A union built on deception cannot be reformed. A treaty broken repeatedly cannot be repaired. A promise violated for 63 years cannot suddenly be honored. That is why whatever Tchiroma is promising today is dead on arrival. The only viable path is restoration — not rehabilitation — of Southern Cameroons (Ambazonia).
History has spoken. Ahidjo broke the foundation. Biya cemented the betrayal. Tchiroma cannot resurrect a corpse.
Respectfully submitted,
Name withheld
