SDF Asserts That Current Unbearable High Cost Of Living In Cameroon, Is To A large Extent Caused By Bad Governance and Incoherent Gov’t Policies

Demands that 2025 State budget should drastically reduce superfluous and overpriced functioning expenditure, and Gov’t’s luxurious lifestyle

 Strongly condemns Gov’t’s inability to properly address the alarming and worsening humanitarian crisis in the Far North Region

 National Executive Committee starts laying out plan for party’s effective participation at the next presidential, legislative and municipal elections

Cameroon’s frontline opposition party, the Social Democratic Front, SDF, has expressed concern over the current increasing and unbearable high cost of living in Cameroon, and has asserted that the very disturbing situation is to a large extent caused by bad governance and incoherent government policies.  The   party has called on the ruling CPDM Government to immediately take appropriate measures to arrest the situation.

The concern of the SDF, over the increasing and unbearable high cost of living in Cameroon, was expressed by the National Executive Committee, NEC, of the party, that met in Yaounde on October 12, 2024, under the chairmanship of the party’s leader, Hon JOSHUA NAMBANGI OSIH J. The package of resolutions that were adopted by NEC, at the October 12 meeting, was signed by the National Chairman of SDF, Hon Osih.

 Government’s Luxurious Lifestyle

Meanwhile, in a resolution that was adopted by NEC, as one of the possible measures that Government should take to curb the increasing and unbearable high cost of living in Cameroon, the SDF has demanded that “the 2025 budget should drastically reduce superfluous and overpriced functioning expenditure, as well as government’s luxurious lifestyle, in order to make those funds available for the social welfare of Cameroonians”. It should be noted that the Breton Woods Institutions (IMF and World Bank), have repeatedly criticize the persistent luxurious   lifestyle of the Biya Government, which has not changed even at a time that the country is neck – deep in debts.  Unfortunately, the government has in practice maintained the luxurious lifestyle, even when Cameroonians are dying of misery.

Meanwhile  the SDF has also demanded that the investment budget be reflective of the real cost of the investments to be  achieved , and has as well called on the CPDM  Government to put an end to over the  counter procurement  commonly known in the country as ‘gre –a – gre’. The SDF says this method of procurement is a ‘legal’ avenue for mass embezzlement.

The SDF has as well called on the government to assume its full responsibility and take appropriate measures to ameliorate the business climate in Cameroon. The SDF has also demanded that the government to go a significant step further in local content protection, as well as the promotion of “Made in Cameroon”.

Water, Electricity And Mobile Phone Services / Bad Roads

NEC members a t the October 12 meeting also discussed the scarcity of water and electricity, as well as “the very poor service offered at a very high cost by mobile phone companies” in the country. The SDF, through a resolution at the NEC meeting, has condemned Government’s inability to play its supervisory, protective and regulatory role in the provision of Water, electricity and mobile phone services to consumers. The party has called on the government t “to immediately introduce significantly, repressive reparatory measures to be paid by various companies to flawed customers, for their rampant lack of service delivery”.

The SDF has also expressed concern over what the party termed the disappearance of the national road infrastructure in the country.  The party has condemned the Government’s inability to properly maintain tarred roads as well as rural roads, “for which the tax-payer spends enormous amounts of money, every year”.

Humanitarian Crisis Caused By Man – Induced And Natural Catastrophes

One of the issues that the October 12 meeting of the National Executive Committee of the SDF so much focused on, was what the party referred to as  “ the man- induced  and natural catastrophes  that have ushered in a severe humanitarian crisis in many parts of the country, and especially in the Far North Region as a result of the rampant floods”. On the issue, the SDF has condemned “the government’s inability to properly address the alarming and worsening humanitarian crisis in the Far North Region”.  The party has called on  the  Government  “to immediately put in place repair works for  the entire Logone and Lake Maga dikes , and develop through efficient hydrography engineering, a sustainable water containment and irrigation system”,

2025 – 2026 SDF Political Programme

As regard   the upcoming elections in the country, the NEC meeting of the SDF started by blasting Government’s, or better still, the President of the Republic’s  decision to postpone the legislative and municipal elections that  were supposed to hold  in February 2025, to 2026.  This of course is not the first time. It would be recalled for example that the last legislative and municipal elections that were initially supposed to hold in 2018, were postponed twice by the Government, or better still by the President of the Republic, and the elections only finally held in February 2020.  Worse still, the government always gives some flimsy excuses for the postponement of these elections.  The SDF has in a resolution that was adopted at the NEC meeting of October 12, 2024, thus condemned ‘the repeated extension of the mandates of elected officials without a sound justification that would allow for such, which is seriously undermining our democracy”.

Meanwhile as regard preparations for elections expected to hold in the country in 2025 and 2026, that is, the presidential, legislative and municipal elections, the National Executive Committee of the SDF at the October 12 meeting, took cognizance of the draft 2025 – 2026 SDF Political Programme ,and empowered the party’s  Secretary General to lead and compose a team that will organize the launching of the programme in the nation’s capital, Yaounde.  NEC also adopted a plan that after the programme is launched in Yaounde, the SDF National Chairman, will embark on a national tour to present the programme to the Cameroonian people. This is definitely in line with the party’s ideology that power belongs to the people.

SDF To Participate In Legislative And Municipal Elections In All 10 Regions

It should be noted that at past multiparty legislative and municipal elections in Cameroon, no major opposition party, for one reason other, was able to put up candidates or effectively participate in the elections, in all the 10 regions of the country. Interestingly enough, the National Executive Committee of the SDF, is working to ensure the effective and fruitful participation of the party at the next legislative and municipal elections, in all the 10 regions of the country.

In this light, NEC at its October 12 meeting requested all SDF Regional Chairpersons “to act appropriately to ensure that their regions are actively represented in the upcoming 2026 municipal and legislative elections, by working hard to ensure the availability of winning candidates”.

As regard probably the 2025 presidential elections, NEC at the October 12 meeting reminded all Regional Chairpersons of the SDF, that they have to provide their complete lists of polling agents , as well as the complete lists of regional and electoral district executives, and with their numbers as well, on or before November 15, 2024.

  Tiko  And Bafoussam 1Electoral Districts Of The SDF

Meanwhile, as for issues concerning the life of the party (SDF), NEC at the October 12 meeting, among other things congratulated and adopted the report of the NEC team led by Rev .Dr FONUNDAM EMMANUEL, which was assigned to conduct a re-run of the hotly contested district election in the Tiko Electoral District of the SDF. This time around, things went on well, and TEBOH GEORGE was elected as the new District Chairman of the Tiko Electoral District of the SDF.

Meanwhile, the NEC meeting of October 12 also congratulated Senator Ngam Honore, wo was assigned to conduct another election in an electoral district of the SDF, precisely in Bafoussam 1 Electoral District. The October 12 meeting of NEC, adopted the report of the Bafoussam 1 Electoral District of the SDF, and confirmed the new Bafoussam 1 Electoral District Executive Committee, with TOUKAM ANDRE as the new  Bafoussam 1 Electoral District Chairman.

Absence Of President Biya From The Country

Another issue that the October 12 NEC meeting looked at , was what NEC blasted as the cacophonic outings of various government officials on the President of the Republic’s absence, including the order banning  debates on  the President’s health , issued  by the Minister of Territorial Administration.  SDF in a NEC resolution pointed out to the government that the rumours surrounding the whereabouts of the Head of State, ‘are fueled by the fact that we have an absentee landlord”. The SDF condemned “the ever increasing cacophony which is enough evidence of the blatant lack of leadership at the summit”.