«We were invited to the meeting of the great national debate and we agreed to participate,» declared the religious leaders who had organized in August the Anglophone general conference aimed at finding a solution to the crisis in the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon.
On September 10, the President of Cameroon, Paul Biya, announced the convening of the great national debate to be held from September 30 to October 4 in order to discuss the country’s major problems, first of all the question of the north-west regions and of the south-west that since 2016 are in the throes of a secessionist crisis born from the request of the local English-speaking populations to be able to use the English language instead of the French language at school and in the courts. The protest degenerated into an independence movement that clashes with the regular army, reported Fides News Agency.
«As religious leaders, we pray that our country finds peace because we cannot forget the sufferings of hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens, some of whom die of hunger and diseases», say the English-speaking religious leaders, including His Eminence the Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi Archbishop Emeritus of Douala.
In announcing his participation in the national debate, Cardinal Tumi said: «We are obliged to do everything possible, even at the cost of our lives, to bring peace back to Cameroon». The Cardinal then praised the initiative of the Head of State, calling it «a great thing». We are on the right path».
Cardinal Tumi explained that he met the Prime Minister to whom he delivered a report from the answers to a questionnaire submitted to the inhabitants of the English-speaking region of Cameroon. «Over 1000 people responded and based on their answers we produced a 400-page document in three parts that focuses on the causes of the English-speaking crisis and offers proposals for a solution», he said.
