Joe Dinga Pefok (Uncle Joe)
But The Biya Regime Has Over The Years Been Treating Football As The Only Major Sport, Because It Uses Football For Its Politics. Billions Of Francs CFA From The State Coffer Go To Football Each Year, Even When Performance Is Poor, While Other Major Sports, Including Those That Have Been Winning Gold And Trophies For The Country At International Competitions , Are Treated Shabbily.
President Biya once declared in public, that there is no major or minor sport in Cameroon. The declaration was applauded or welcomed by many the way it was understood, and not that there actually are no major or minor sports in Cameroon. The President was understood to mean that the Government would be fair in its treatment or in its promotion of sports, especially the major sports in the country, which is normally what is supposed to happen.
But in practice, the story has been very much different. The Biya or CPDM regime in reality promotes only one sport discipline, which is football, even though the sport that Biya, himself, used to practice, is cycling.
But the real reason, why the Biya Government focuses only on football, is not because football is considered by many as the sport discipline that most Cameroonians like. It is rather because the Government exploits the situation, or better still, victories in football, for its politics. The Biya Government has over the years been treating other sports disciplines in the country, including the other major sports in the country, so shabbily, poorly, or unfairly. So much money is pumped into football, and very little for other sports. A contradiction to President Biya’s own words!
Discrimination In The Treatment Of Major Team Sports
In August 2026 for example, the female national volleyball team was kept waiting in Yaounde by government for several days, for air tickets to travel to Kenya to represent the country at the Senior Women’s Volleyball Africa Championship, which is like the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in football. At the same time, the Government was pumping hundreds of millions of francs CFA, for the participation of the senior female national football team that was participating at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON 2026) in Morocco.
When it comes to football, not only is a huge amount of money promptly disbursed or allocated by the government, but the disbursement is also rapidly done. Some people will say that is because of the Convention that the Cameroon Football Federation signed with Government in 2015. That is not true. It is a malpractice that has been going on for decades. Back in 2002 for example, the Government pumped in 3 billion francs CFA for Cameroon’s participation at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Mali, which the Indomitable Lions won.
But then when it came to the participation of the national teams of other major team sports like basketball, volleyball or handball in continental competitions, to which the Government allocates just the minimum in terms of funds, the Government complained that there was no money in the coffer. We saw that again play out last August in the treatment of the senior female national football team,, and the senior female national volley team.
Big Differences In Bonuses
Over the years, there has always been a big difference in the huge bonuses that the Government accepts to pay to the players of the senior national football teams, as compared to the senior national teams of the other major sports disciplines in the country, that are given chicken feeds as bonuses. A few years ago the senior female national handball team that brilliantly fought their way to qualify for the final of the continental competition, threatened to boycott the final if their bonuses were not paid by the Government. Upon departure for the competition, the promise was that the money would be sent to the girls out there. But when they got to there, the story changed, that they would be paid all their bonuses as soon as they returned home.
And what was even the amount! Chicken feed! For fighting their way was up to the final of the African Handball Championship, each of player at that stage was supposed to receive a total sum of money that was less than one million francs CFA. In fact the total amount of money that each of the players had to receive by getting to the final of the continental competition, which was just like WAFCON in football, was between 800,000 FCFA to 900,000 FCFA. This included the participation bonus. Come think of it, that just the participation bonus for the players of the female national football team at WAFCON 2026, was 30 million for FCFA each player, and the money was paid promptly.
2024 AFCON And Olympic Games
As aforementioned, the Biya or CPDM regime, has been very discriminatory in its treatment of sports federations, as everything is done in favour of one sport discipline – football. In 2024 for example, the senior male national football team had to participate at the Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON, which was hosted by Ivory Cost. Before the Cameroon’s national football team left the country for Ivory Cost in early January, each of the players received the participation bonus of 40 million FCFA. The national football team did not even perform well at the competition. They were knocked out at the 1 / 8 finals by the Super Eagles of Nigeria
.Meanwhile a few months later, Cameroon had to participate at the 2024 Olympic Games in France. A total of less than 10 athletes and players from Cameroon, who included wonder boy, Emmanuel Eseme, qualified to take part in the 2024 Olympic Game. The Olympic Game is of course much higher, and more prestigious than AFCON. But the government refused to allocate money for the few athletes and players that qualified for the Olympic Games, to go to training camps to prepare for the games. Wonder boy, Emmanuel Eseme, who qualified to participate in the very challenging 100 metre flat race (running), which is in fact the most difficult and highly competitive race at the Olympic Games, through his personal contracts was accepted at a free training camp in Germany, ahead of the Olympic.
The Cameroonian swimmer that qualified to participate at the Olympic Games, was abandoned to himself, and had to trained throughout in the country, to go and compete at the Olympics which guys from the United States, Europe , and so, who train in world class facilities. Also, the young Cameroonian table tennis lady based in the United States, that had to participate at the Olympic Games, was like the other Cameroonians abandoned to herself, as regard training.
Yet, President Biya travelled to Paris, France on the invitation of the French President, to attend the opening ceremony of that 2024 Olympic Games (Paris Olympics). The amount of money the Government validated for Cameroon’s participation at the 2024 Olympic Games was less than one billion francs CFA. That money largely went to covet covert the cost of the large Cameroon delegation (‘tourists’), that was headed by the Minister of Sports and Physical Education. Prof Narcisse Mouelle Kombi.
2025 AFCON – Gov’t Validated A 5 Billion FCFA Budget
Meanwhile, when it again came to the participation of the male senior football team at AFCON 2025 (35th edition of AFCON), which kicked off on December 21, 2025 in Morocco, the Presidency or the Biya Government, rapidly validated a budget of the colossal sum of 5 billion francs CFA, that was prepared by the Cameroon Football Federation, FECAFOOT. But again, the national football team did not even get to the semi –final of the competition. The team was knocked out by Morocco at the 1 / 4 finals. Ironically, Senegal that won the 35th edition of AFCON, in Morocco, had a modest budget of 1.5 million FCFA (One billion, five hundred million francs CFA).
The former Senegalese international football star, Ahadji Diouf, who accompanied the Senegalese senior national football team to Morocco, for AFCON 2025, made a mockery of Cameroon, by saying that the Senegal that won the AFCON 2025 in Morocco, did not even spend the entire 1.5 billion francs CFA that was budgeted. He said they returned home with part of the money that was left, and the trophy they won, while the so called ‘Le Continent “(Cameroon), that had a huge budget of 5 billion FCFA, was kicked out at the 1 / 4 finals. This also raises serious questions as to what the Cameroon delegation does with the huge sums of money that the Government always allocates for international competitions like AFCON, WAFCPN and the World Cup. This is tax payers’ money, being squandered.
It should be noted that at the 14th edition of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, WAFCON 2026, which took place in Morocco, and which was won by Cameroon’s Senior national football team (Indomitable Lionesses), the Cameroon Government pumped in a much as 2.7 billion FCFA (Two billion, seven hundred million francs CFA).
Emmanuel Eseme Won Gold For Cameroon At 2026 Commonwealth Games
Meanwhile, wonder boy, Emmanuel Eseme that has been sweeping medals for Cameroon, or flying Cameroon’s flag high, at several international athletics competitions, has after repeatedly conquering Africa in the 100 m flat race at Africa Athletic Championships, is now stunning the world stage with specular performances. He won for Gold for Cameroon at the 2026 Common Wealth Games, and has won several medals at international competitions.
Suffice to say the International Athletics Federation recently classified Emmanuel Eseme among the first eight best runners in the 100 metre race in the world. No Cameroonian has ever reached I this level
But wonder boy Emmanuel Eseme, has never been received at the Presidency, or even on high instruction by a minister in the name of the President of the Republic. This is also means that he has not been receiving financial incentives from the government, apart from the insignificant bonuses, if only the Ministry of Spots even pays them. Thank God, Eseme’s spirit remains high.
