As the Nigerians leave Bakassi tomorrow August 14^th 2006, the retreat has brought to the fore many things.  First, it has demonstrated that, Nigeria’s superiority over Cameroon is not just based on population and economic teams; it is also a military one. It has also shown the limits of a section of the Cameroonian Press, that over rated their Armed Forces that are good at terrorising armless Cameroonians and which, without French military backings, the superior and much more disciplined Nigerian Army would have munched her pathetic defence and ride all the way to Yaoundé and pre-empts Biya’s fall or cause an internal mutiny. 

This may mean that, Biya may have negotiated the territorial disputes not based on patriotism as some Cameroonians are thinking, but much more on a personal need for the preservation of his rule. The fear of a super power or a regional power, as it is the case with Nigeria, is the beginning of wisdom for any dictator. Saddam played down the Anglo-Americans threats and paid it dearly. Other dictators who have suffered the same fate are Amine Dada of Uganda or Moboutou of erstwhile Zaire. So Biya is not simply a fainthearted- feeble voice-fool as stupidly presented by his disorganised home based political opponents.  

Finally Cameroonians, who often enjoy badmouthing Nigeria or snubbing her, will now have their mouths sealed forever and also swallow their pride, certainly grudgingly. However, Nigeria’s retreat shows that, Africans are not just excited war mongers, but people who are also zealous lovers of peace. All merchants of weapons who were preparing to smile to the banks as both countries were sabre-rattling are now very disappointed, especially those who had made advance loans from banks to be reimbursed from their sales of Arms to both countries. While most people thought that Nigeria were the ones to renege on her engagements, it now seems the dishonest partner in the accords is Cameroon. That is, if the reports published in the Nigerian daily Guardian, of Sunday August 13^th 2006 is to be believed (1).

 

Problems long solved 

But above and beyond any other considerations, August 14^th 2006 is just a symbolic date, for the remaining or the maritime part of the border disputes between Cameroon and Nigeria has long been solved. It happened on the 22^nd of October 2002. On that fateful day, the International Court of Justice seating at The Hague ruled in favour of Cameroon. And recently again, the Green tree agreement came to cement the earlier decision, but also posed the question of such an agreement, after the initial ruling that Nigeria has long promised to respect. And in keeping with her promise, Nigeria has started withdrawing from the disputed and allegedly Oil rich peninsular.  

However, the Green tree accord was as though the UN was aware that, its engineered resolution of the disputed territory was not the best. The legal victory of Cameroon over Nigeria was never expected and even came like a fluke, perhaps it happened because Nigeria was just leaving its pariah status orchestrated by the rule of its former leader, late General Sani Abacha. Currently with Nigeria’s status in the world, Cameroon will not register such a victory.  
 
 

But it is a victory all the same and conceivably the greatest success of Paul Biya, a man who has been leading Cameroon for the past 24 years and have succeeded a sinister feast of transforming his country from an intermediate economy to join the club of very poor and indebted countries. The man who has presided over the economic demise of Cameroon has something in his teeth now to show off.

 

Cameroonian extrapolations/ Nigerian lamentations 

He and members of his ruling CPDM party will use the legal victory in next year’s municipal and legislative and also presidential elections (in 5 years time) campaigns, which he and his party are certain to win. While the legal victory has given room to wild joy and expressions of funny extrapolations in Cameroon like those published in the August 11^th 2006 edition of Le Messager, a French-language Cameroonian weekly or the a cautionary and much more professional one of the government own bilingual daily Cameroon Tribune of the same date and day, there are some lamentation and bewilderment in Abuja.  

Most Nigerians and other observers in the globe have not yet come to term or can’t comprehend how and why Nigeria lost that legal battle to little Cameroon. However, Abuja doesn’t need to lament much, for the decision to hand over Bakassi, even though approved and encouraged by the international community, Nigeria knows fully well that, she was not compelled to abide to, but decided nonetheless to respect the ruling and her words. All out of free will. Another reason which is perhaps the most plausible which may have forced Abuja to give up Bakassi is the continental and world ambitions of Nigeria. This is because, a country such as Nigeria, that wants to assume grandiose roles on the continent and beyond, must preach by example.  

Nigeria’s action automatically gives her the moral wherewithal to take part as mediator in similar cases in Africa and the world. She could act as mediator in the Ethiopian/Eritrean border dispute or the Israeli/Palestinian/Lebanon and Syrian border disputes in the Middle East. And other parts of the world such as the Bolivian/Chilean territorial dispute in South America, that has remained unsolved for all 50 years or the Pakistanis/Indian dispute over Kashmir in the Far East. 

Warnings to Cameroon 

On the part of Cameroon, Bakassi may have made some officials in Yaoundé to start salivating, for it is claimed in some quarters that, the peninsular may hide under its waters large deposit of Oil. For a country like Cameroon whose Oil deposits are dwindling and more so relies on Nigerian crude Oil which is refined in her lone refinery in Victoria (Limbe) and sold locally, Bakassi is like manna from heaven.  But looking at things keenly, Bakassi may appear more like a poisoned gift to Cameroon from the UN/ICJ. For the government of Cameroon will be judged more on how she integrates her new set of English-speaking population/citizens.  

This is because, for the past 40 years, her first group of Anglophones that she inherited courtesy a controversial UN sanctioned referendum organised in  October 1^st  1961, have only their eyes to cry in the hands of a cavalier French-speaking dominated central government based in Yaoundé, that has done everything to destroy the English-speaking identity of its minority(2). Cameroon has to work extra hard to win the confidence of its new citizens and respect of the international community.  
 

Signs of good will from Yaoundé to indigenes of Bakassi will be to elevate the peninsular to a full-fledged province, create or increase parliamentary seats at the Cameroon National assembly in order for Bakassi indigenes to be represented in parliament, employ Bakassi indigenes in the military, police and the civil service.

 

Elected Bakassi indigenes should be bona fide dwellers of the peninsular and not people from the continent or some regurgitated political figures who might want to refurbish their political careers by metamorphosing as natives of the peninsular. And finally, encourage good relationship between Cameroon and Nigeria and also trained its roguish security officials to respectful in particular its violent and corrupt Gendarmes who prey on Nigerian traders and citizens. These Gendarmes who always consider Nigerians especially traders as milking cows are the prime cause why Nigeria decided to secure her citizens because of the inability of the government of Cameroon.  

Before that could happen, news has been gathered that, Bakassi indigenes have decided to declare independence from Nigeria and Cameroon (3). Such reactions from people who feel cheated and who also know the treatment that Anglophone Cameroonians that they will become part are witnessing was certainly expected. Already the dissatisfaction of English-speaking Cameroonians has forced them to create the Southern Cameroonian National Council (SCNC), a pressure group agitating for the independence of the former British Cameroons. But because they are disorganised, their demands have never materialised or even ruffled the central government.  

Necessity for strong Cameroon/Nigeria relationship 

However the Bakassi nationalists might bring into the English-speaking nationalists of Cameroon some new vigour if both entities team up and it may spell chaos and the end of the current kangaroo unity of Cameroon. Hence the necessity for both countries to forged stronger ties, for it is only through such ties that problems common in both countries can be solved or lasting solutions sorted out (4). After the ICJ ruling in favour of Cameroon was made public, those who knew the situation on the ground knew that, the UN brokered settlement contained much more problems than, those working at turtle bay thought they had solved.  

Hence in an article in titled Bakassi: why joint administration offers the best solution, the author championed direct negotiations between Cameroon and Nigeria, for the author thought direct talks would take into consideration the aspirations of the aboriginals much more than the UN and its far away court has done. In case direct talks/negotiations were perused, it might have ended with Bakassi being jointly administered by both countries with a special status for citizens of the peninsular and would have enabled them to have dual citizenship and which also would have been beneficial to all.  

Interestingly had the second option succeeded, it would have been perhaps the first of its kind in Africa but not in the world. In the Caribbean, the island of Saint Martin is jointly administered by France and the Netherlands. In Africa, there are also cases of joint administration in oil explorations between Nigeria and Sao Tome and Principe.  

Such experiences would have best for Cameroon and Nigeria especially that, offshore explorations are onerous while joint exploitations are the only means to bring down cost and increase benefits in Oil fields that are located in maritime borders/block like in the Atlantic Ocean.

 

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Notes:- 

1 read Sunday 13^th August 2006 edition of the Nigerian daily newspaper Guardian or log on to http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/news/article03  

2 read Celebrating 44 years of Cameroon’s unification: Has it succeeded? Published in Post watch magazine of October 2005 or by logging onto http://www.postwatchmagazine.com/2005/11/celebrating_44_.html  

3 read or log onto http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5251712.stm  

4 read Cameroon-Nigeria united in one fate now and in the future by logging onto http://eliesmith.blogspot.com/2006/05/cameroon-nigeria-united-in-one-fate.html  

4 read Bakassi: why joint administration offers the best solution published in the May/June 2005 edition of the magazine African Renaissance.

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