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Cameroonians have been described as a peaceful people, which have been viewed as weak by some. These people have undergone experiences that would have people elsewhere given rise to popular uprisings or revolts. Though some analysts have found reason for this ‘peacefulness’ in the leadership of the country, others have pointed to the food self-sufficiency of the country. We can however identify other things like the love of alcohol, football, gambling, and the proliferation of churches, as equally contributing in making Cameroonians the docile people that they are.
Cameroon is one of the leading African countries as far as alcohol consumption is concerned. The quantity of beer that the Cameroon brewery industry turns out virtually beats any other product in the country. Local alcoholic drinks are present in all parts of the country, even when this is illicit. There is ‘bilibili’, ‘odonton’, ‘brukutu’, ‘afoh-foh’, amongst others. In some cases, some of these drinks are consumed to fatal levels, as was the case with ‘odonton’ in the South Province, which took the lives of some people. In many Cameroonian towns, bars can be found at an average of 20 to 30 metres. Some quarters are taken up almost entirely by bars, for example ‘carrefour beaucoup de bars’ at Mvog-Ada in Yaounde. In a town like Douala, visitors are easily treated to a breakfast, lunch, or supper of beer instead of food. A person prefers to offer you five bottles of beer (about 2000 FCFA), than 500 FCFA. Many claim that they drink to drown their problems, forgetting to know that sorrow knows how to swim. Cameroonians can therefore undergo any stressful situation like salary cuts, or increase in fuel or beer prices, so long as the beer stays.
Gambling is another activity in which Cameroonians are highly involved. Be it PMUC, Poker, or any other game, Cameroon seems to have been turned into a big casino. PMUC kiosks are always full of the young, the old and even women, trying in advance to designate the winning horse, or anxious to know the ‘arrivée’ (arrival). In most cases, one number is often missed, and the player retires home with the determination to win in the next game. This keeps these gamblers in constant hope of winning, and since they are so many, nothing of the present, no matter how biting, can take their attention off a successful tomorrow.
As for football, apart from the fact that it is often exploited politically, it appears as the sole uniting factor for Cameroonians. The degree to which football is adored in Cameroon has rendered many Cameroonians football fanatics and not just fans. Much attention is paid it, and as long as the Indomitable Lions are winning, other problems can wait- the Cameroonian will be contented even under the weight of a heavy burden. The authorities that seem to have realised this fact, no doubt the numerous receptions offered the various categories of teams at the prestigious Unity Palace. What is however conspicuously clumsy is the fact that despite the international success of Cameroonian football, the infrastructure in the country remains a disgrace. There is no doubt that without football, the apparent peaceful nature of Cameroonians would be different.
The last thing that we can identify is spiritual. The spiritual level of Cameroonians, if measured by the number of churches, can be described as very high. The proliferation of religious groups, especially since the beginning of the 90s when the law on freedom of association and worship was promulgated, has known no respite. Today, the number and fashion of worship is so high that individuals’ homes, hitherto booming business premises, are now being taken over by religious groups of several names. Religious tracts are now some of the most read literature in the country (just like the PMUC Bilto). Many, if not all of this born again churches preach of hope in the life to come, hence giving courage to stomach whatever difficulties or problems encountered now.
Though the above are not all the reasons that make Cameroonians docile, they are some of the key reasons that can be identified.
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AJI JAMES
I developed an interest in writing in primary school, where writing and documenting the stories that were told in the evenings when the family gathered around the fireside was a hobby.
This interest increased when I travelled to Nigeria for university studies. My thoughts found a way of expression through poetry, which I had hitherto thought very complicated.
I presently have over fifty poems, a little below twenty short stories, and several articles on diverse social issues.
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