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| 19/03/2008 |
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The Head of State’s declaration on the issue of constitutional reform was and still remains a response to the requests that have come from the base of the populations of Cameroon as to the necessity to reform the constitution. All that the Head of State said in his declaration is that he is not insensitive to the debate. He reiterated that changing the constitution is in line with the demands of democracy. If you limit the mandate of for example the Chief Executive, in a way you are violating the will of the people and democracy is necessarily premised on the will of the people. It is not the Head of State who has requested that there is the necessity to reform the constitution but the people of Cameroon who through motions and other forms of expression have said there is need to reform the constitution.
There is no moment in the history of the evolution of any democratic society when anyone can say this is the best. The best moment is when the people say this is the time. The people of Cameroon have expressed the will to have the constitution reformed. I heard the other day, the National Union for Democracy and Progress (NUDP) say they want the constitutional reform. The Cameroon Democratic Union (CDU) through its National Chairman say there are things that can be changed in the constitution. The majority party in Cameroon, Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) through its Sub-sections, Sections and through its Central Committee has expressed the need for the constitution to be changed.
What do say to people who believe that the idea of reforming the constitution is intended mainly to keep President Paul Biya in power for life?
Constitutional revision is not limited to one article. This is the mistake some people keep on making just because the CPDM has focused on Article 6 paragraph 2. It does not mean that when the bill to change the constitution is sent to Parliament or introduced in whatever form only one article will be concerned. The Constitution can be changed through parliamentary procedure, referenda or though decrees. When the bill is introduced, I can assure you that the people of Cameroon who want constitutional change will not limit themselves only to Article 6 (2). Let no one make the mistake that the clamour for constitutional change is limited to Article 6 (2). I can assure that the will of the people of Cameroon is that when the constitutional reform bill is introduced, it will not be limited to Article 6 (2). The debate for constitutional amendment is beyond article 6 (2). It is beyond an individual. Anyone who sees the debate from the point of an individual is seeing it from a very narrow-minded perspective.
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