CI-NEWS

THE ESSAYS AND LETTERS OF BÂTONNIER AKERE TABENG MUNA

2020-09-01

No: 527

THE ESSAYS AND LETTERS OF BÂTONNIER AKERE TABENG MUNA

Compilation, Preface and Biography by Dr Paul Chiy,BSc (Hons), MSc, LLB (Hons), LLM, PhD, MCIArb, FCiLEX.

The essays and letters of renowned Barrister and Bâtonnier Akere Tabeng Muna are uniquely bold, timeless and penetrating in their insight. He is unapologetically unafraid to take a position that is potentially contentious in the face of an impending crisis when others will not. As a result, many seek out this legal luminary when facing a crisis or reaching an impasse.

It is impossible not to recognise his voice, work and point of view. On sharing the title of his penultimate letter (“the Indivisible Nature of Freedom”) with a senior barrister, I received a text message a few seconds later. “This must have been written by Bâtonnier Akere Muna”. Upon further cross-examination, the colleague went on to state, “…few exotic intellectuals other than Professor Bernard Nsokika Fonlon are capable of such bold and in-depth critical thinking”. I agree. He is to good governance what Socrates is to philosophy. Barrister Akere Muna’s sharpness of mind, fearlessness and the rigour of his analysis have distinguished him in the legal profession. He was described by Bâtonnier Luke Sendze as “…one of the sharpest minds I have ever interacted with, who has an indefatigable memory…with an eye for detail.” This penetrating eye for detail is a constant in his published essays and letters.

The content of his first letter, “Letter to my Francophone Brother” (published in the Newspaper “Génération” Hors série no. 1 25 to 31 January 1995) is truer and more relevant today than it was when it was written more than 23 years ago and was unsurprisingly republished in late 2019. This letter to his Francophone brothers examines the elements of what has come to be known as the Anglophone problem. It highlights the challenges of living in a hypothetical Cameroon state by reversing the position of the players – putting Francophones as the victims of the issues that are in reality faced by Anglophones.

In his hypothetical Cameroon, the population is one-quarter Francophone and three-quarters Anglophone; there is an Anglophone president and for the past 30 years (at the time the letter was written) no Francophone had occupied a key political or ministerial leadership position in a ministry or state-owned enterprise; and the main language of the country was English rather than French. Most of the examples in the letter are more valid today, 20 years later, than they were when the letter was published. He asks his Francophone brothers to imagine “…when you complain, we treat you as a secessionist or enemy in the house or, better yet, we ask you to go home to Gabon [the corresponding context in the Anglophone problem is Nigeria]”.

Bâtonnier Akere Muna concludes his letter with the thought that the bridge to the future must be built on the memories of the past and at its core the strength of the people “must remain in our diversity.”

In 2016, Cameroon Common Law Lawyers demanded the provision of an English version of the Organisation for the Harmonisation of Business Law (OHADA) law. This action took place fifteen years after Barrister Akere Muna published his article ‘Is OHADA “Common Law Friendly”?’ in the journal ‘International Law Forum.’ In it, the learned barrister observes: “…no one can reasonably require the courts and jurisdictions to apply laws in a language which no one understands. The translations of the Uniform Acts are literary and less than adequate. They do not translate known legal notions of the Common Law System and allow most of the Common Law Judges and Legal Practitioners to apply this new law by sheer approximation. In cases where there is simply no equivalent, courts in the Common Law Jurisdiction have continued to apply pre-OHADA Laws which, by strict application of the OHADA, have been abrogated.” He further warned that the constitutional aspects of the process of adopting the law may pose serious problems for countries that follow the common law tradition. This is one of the issues that forms part of the complex Anglophone problem.

Barrister Akere Muna wrote his “Letter to my South African Brother” as a response to his horror at watching Africans being rescued off the Italian coast and his fear that another 700 had drowned on a fishing boat off the Libyan coast. Sadly, these scenarios have become more frequent occurrences with refugees fleeing from Syria and other war zones. The key question the author sought to answer was: what desperation causes a human to put the life they are seeking to improve at such mortal risk? The author recognises that although the answer is a complex one, the solution to the desperation lies in finding unity: A unity based on dialogue, working together and cultural exchange.

In his essay, “Mourning in the Face of Avoidable Tragedy”, the author departs from the commonly held belief that, to heal, we must go past mourning and reflection alone. Rather, argues the author, it is the actions taken by a country in the face of tragedy which “…stands the chance of enabling the distraught families to one day accept to have been random victims of the ultimate sacrifice, that awoke a nation to the simple fact that governance must have a human face”. Far too often, he suggests, we have been reminded of the vulnerability of our nation and the fragility of our system of governance. Yet despite these constant reminders, we continue to function like people “who have learnt nothing and forgotten everything”.

Bâtonnier Akere Muna was shocked at the insensitivity during the Eseka tragedy and places the responsibility on Bolloré, the owners of Camrail. During this tragedy, injured Cameroonians lay in hospitals without help and the desperate rescue and recovery efforts lacked coordination. He felt that the management of the humanitarian aid was sadly lacking in the face of such a disaster. He compares the kind of care given in other countries after similar disasters and queries whether Bolloré views Cameroonians as subhuman, given even animals like birds and fish are better treated after an oil spill.

Bâtonnier Akere Muna’s essay on “The Management of Diversity and the Cry of Common Law Lawyers” responds directly to the plight of common-law lawyers by drawing extensively from his experience during his two terms (6 years) as the President (Bâtonnier) of the Cameroon Bar Association and a decade (3 Terms) as President of Pan-African Lawyers Union. In his essay he reminds the nation of the vital role that lawyers play as defenders of those without power and as the watchdogs of the rule of law. He declares that lawyers in the streets are the last thing any government should wish for. In the face of such a spectacle, citizens will feel unsettled and the existence of the rule of law in the country would immediately be questioned.

Barrister Akere Muna identified the root cause as the mismanagement of our diversity and reminded the government that “The legal system of Cameroon is bi-jural constitutionally, politically, socially, culturally and intellectually. Disregarding this fact is an assault on the very foundation on which our nation is built.”

Indeed, he laments that what started as a lawyers’ strike had degenerated into a struggle, including some Anglophones calling for separation. BâtonnierAkereMuna’s merit and his distinct style are illustrated by the two essays, the “Inevitable Nature of Change” and “Cameroon Is One and Indivisible: Which Cameroon?”

This merit is better understood within the context of the summons that Bâtonnier Akere Muna received on 20 March 2017 to appear at the National Defense Secretariat (SED) three days later, on 23 March 2017. As he had prior commitments in South Africa on that day, he notified SED of his intention to fulfil his professional commitments, offering instead to appear before them on the morning of 24 March 2017. He complied with the summons and was accompanied to the SED on the Friday morning by the President of the Cameroon Bar Association, four former Presidents of the Bar and members of the Bar Council. On arrival, he found more than a hundred lawyers waiting outside.

The turnout of support from across the ranks of the legal profession speaks for itself. They waited patiently outside whilst the learned barrister was being heard by a Lieutenant of the National Gendarmerie, who levelled the following charges against Barrister Akere Muna: Hostility towards the Homeland, Advocating Terrorism, Secession, Revolution, Insurrection and Compromising the Security of the State - charges which have come to be known as Charges against Anglophone Cameroonians. These charges reflect consistently with the charges against more than 150 Anglophones (both individually and collectively) arrested in connection with the events over the last 11 – 12 months.

In terms of Bâtonnier Akere Muna, it is difficult to fathom from the interview how the charges applied but reference was made during the interview to two articles - "The Inevitable Nature of Change" in which he examines the futility of resisting change and "Cameroon is One and Indivisible: Which Cameroon?", in which he discusses the questions of unity that plague Cameroon.

The “Inevitable Nature of Change” was a call-to-action for Cameroon to learn from Canada and cited examples of unfulfilled promises that shook, to the core, the bond between a government and its citizens. In the letter Barrister Akere Muna reminds his readers that the 1996 Constitution provided for autonomous regions with elected officials. He was surprised that, after 20 years, this had still not been implemented. The learned barrister, a known and respected international anti-corruption champion, bemoans the rise of corruption and failed governance, concluding by citing the words of Tony Robbins, “change is inevitable, progress is optional”.

In the second letter discussed at the SED interview, “Cameroon Is One and Indivisible: Which Cameroon?”, Barrister Akere Muna condemns Cameroon’s denial of its own history and its failure to initiate any genuine dialogue about the problem. These failures have allowed the problems faced by the country to fester. He concludes that it is the “real” rather than the “official” Cameroon that we must face to consolidate our national unity and to do so through genuine dialogue, starting with horizontal dialogue across the divides.

In “Things fall Apart”, the Bâtonnier provides a snapshot of and insight into the current state of Cameroon, using his unique perspective and discerning eye. He lays out how to change the course of the country and where and how to begin the healing. His letter entitled “Second Letter to My French Brothers and Sisters: The Indivisible Nature of Freedom” builds not only this but the foundation he laid in his first letter “Letter to our Francophone Brothers “. He demands that all Cameroonians proclaim the indivisible nature of freedom and embrace a nation where “we are you and you are we.” Bâtonnier Akere Muna explains that he has no problem saying he is Francophone if it means identifying with what is right and what contributes to the building of our nation.

The most recent letter from Barrister Akere Muna, “Urgency of the Moment”, responded to the renewed, widespread mass protests that broke out in several towns and villages across the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon on Friday 22 September 2017. These were in direct defiance of administrative orders in these two regions, orders imposed to suspend rallies and restrict the movement of the local population. It was reported that as security forces responded with bullets and teargas there were a further eight deaths and several protesters were injured.

Fearing that even more lives could potentially be lost given events planned on 1st October 2017, Barrister Akere Muna’s last letter called on the international community to urgently intervene in the crisis rocking Cameroon. He asked the international community to call for the Government of Cameroon to quickly implement the solutions required to avert the impending disaster that threatened the country. This and subsequent letters triggered immediate responses from the United Nations, United Kingdom, European Union and African Union which may have prevented a further loss of lives above those who had already died.

His most recent article, “Vox Populi Vox Dei from Touboro to Harare,” was written on the day that President Mugabe resigned after 37 years in power. Bâtonnier Akere Muna sounds a warning. He opines that the voice of the people in any democracy can only be suppressed for so long.

Using Mugabe’s resignation as a jumping-off point, he mourns how “The lustful dream conjured up by articles 55 to 61 of the 1996 constitution about decentralization was totally emptied of all substance by Law No. 2004/017 of July 22nd 2004 on the Orientation of Decentralization.” Articles 66 to 70 of this law allowed the recapturing of all the powers of elected officials from regional presidents to mayors and invested them in government appointees such as governors and prefets. Bâtonnier Akere Muna illustrates the impact of this through the events in Touboro where, after the death of an incumbent Mayor, a Prefet deferred the election of a new mayor in favour of a budget approval, something that fell within the Prefet’s area of interest. He asks if this is government “by the people and for the people.” Bâtonnier Akere Muna proposes that the answer lies by giving the Voice of Vox Populi back to the people in the New Republic.

Bâtonnier Akere Muna has provided and hopefully will continue to provide a voice of challenge, reason and hope for all those in Cameroon and the African continent. His opinions, well-admired and considered, deliver a unique and perceptive point of view on matters that have stood the test of time. His is a voice to be cherished.

Paul CHIY, BSc (Hons), MSc, LLB (Hons), LLM, PhD, MCIArb, FCiLEX

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THE ESSAYS AND LETTERS OF BÂTONNIER AKERE TABENG MUNA