socam prosperity pact

SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT (Draft) The Economic, Political & Constitutional Plan for Republic of Ambazania

© Copyright January 2008, Ministry of Finance & Economic Planning, British Southern Cameroons of 89

Table of Contents Item No Description Page

Preamble

i Contextual Map 5

ii Origins of Quest for Self‐determination of the BSC 5

iii Termination of Trusteeship and Denial of Independence 6

iv Opposition of French Cameroun to Reunification with the BSC. 6

v The Transformation of the BSC into a Colony of French Cameroun 6

vi Formation of Restoration Government of the BSC 7

vii Building Prosperity from Scratch 7

viii What is The Socam Prosperity Pact? 8

Part I Political Organization of the British Southern Cameroons

1.1 The official Name of the Country 10

1.2 Territorial Organization of the Republic of Ambazania 11

1.3 Future Political Capital 12

1.4 Administrative Cantons 13

1.5 Dispersion of Centers of Power within Each Canton 15

1.6 Signature Census 16

Part II Economic Model for The Republic of Ambazania

2.1 Economic Goals 17

2.2 National Solidarity Account 18

2.3 Strategic Fiscalization of the Economy 19

2.4 Agriculture 22

2.41 The CDC 22

2.42 Pamol 29

2.43 Ako Aya Oil Palm Initiative 24

2.44 Ako Aya Earth Roads & Bridges Programme 26

2.5 Manufacturing 27

2.6 Petroleum Development Policy 29

2.61 Petroleum Exploration 29

2.62 Petroleum Refining 30

2.63 Establishment of an International Oil Refining Complex in West Coast 31

2.64 Participating in the Activities of the Joint Development Zone JDZ 32

2.7 Forestry 34

2.8 Tourism 35

2.81 Mount Cameroon Challenge 35



2.82 Culture Tourism 36

2.83 Landscape Tourism 36

2.84 Health Tourism 36

2.85 National Tourism Infrastructure 37

2.9 Transport Infrastructure 39

2.91 Policy on Road Infrastructure 40

2.92 ECOWAS Link Roads 41

2.93 Use of Community Labor 42

2.94 Airports 43

2.95 Sea Ports 44

2.96 Policy Regarding the Bakassi Peninsula 45

2.10 Energy Independence for the Republic of Ambazania 49

2.101 Negotiation with the Government of French Cameroun 49

2.102 Menchum Falls 50

2.103 Interconnection with the Federal Republic of Nigeria 50

2.104 Wind Energy 51

2.105 Potential Sites for Wind Farms 53

2.11 National Telecommunications Backbone (NTB) 55

2.12 Monetary System 57

2.121 Introduction of a New Currency 57

2.122 Demonetization of the FCFA 57

2.123 Creation of the Reserve Bank of Ambazania 58

2.124 Monetary Cooperation between the RBA and the Central Bank of Nigeria 58

2.13 Banking & Finance 59

2.14 Education 60

2.141 Free Universal Basic Education 60

2.142 Compulsory Secondary Education 60

2.143 Standard Testing of Secondary Graduates 61

2.144 Competitive and Quality Tertiary Education 61

2.145 Policy on Languages 62

2.15 Anti Corruption Strategy 63

2.16 Establishment of Commissions 64

2.17 Membership of ECOWAS 65

2.18 Relations with la République du Cameroun 65

2.19 Negotiation of Separation 67

2.20 Relations with the Federal Republic of Nigeria 69



2.21 Relations with France 69

2.22 Relations with the United Kingdom 70

2.23 Conclusions 70

Part III

A Constitutional Framework for the Republic of Ambazania

3.1 Introduction 72

3.2 Fear of Domination 73

3.3 Democratic Principles 74

3.4 The Democratic Caricature 74

3.5 Performance vs. Identity Politics 75

3.6 System of Autonomous Cantons 76

3.7 Bakassi Peninsula 77

3.8 Cantonal Control of Elections 77

3.9 The Signature Balloting System (SBS) 77

3.10 Role of the Clergy in the Electoral System 78

3.11 Cantonal Administration. 79

3.12 The National Solidarity Account (NSA) 79

3.13 Balanced Development 80

3.14 Contribution to the National Cake 80

3.15 Democracy and Demography 81

3.16 Nationality 81

3.17 Citizenship and Nationality 82

3.18 Bicameral Chamber 82

3.19 Dispersion of the three Branches of Government 82

3.20 Parliamentary vs. Presidential System of Government 83

3.21 Council of Traditional Rulers (CTR) 84

2.22 The National Council of Culture and Tradition (NCCT) 85

3.23 How to Choose a Head of State 85

3.24 Constitutional Nomenclature 86

3.25 Political Parties and Freedom of Association and Assembly 87

3.26 The Role of Law Enforcement Agencies 87

3.27 The supremacy of the Courts and the Judiciary 88

3.28 Adoption of the Constitution by Signature Balloting System (SBS) 89

3.29 Conclusion 89



Preamble (i) Contextual Map (ii) Origins of Quest for Self-determination of the BSC. The British Southern Cameroons quest for self‐determination started in 1954 when Dr. Emmanuel Mbella Lifafa Endeley led the Southern Cameroons members in the Eastern House of Assembly in Enugu Nigeria to break away from the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC), the political party of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe. The reason was because the Ibo‐dominated Eastern House of Representatives had no time to focus on the development problems of the United Nations trust territory of British Southern Cameroons which had been attached to the Eastern Region of Nigerian for purely administrative convenience. During the constitutional conference which was organised in Lagos in December 1954 by Sir John Lyttleton, the British Colonial Secretary, pressure from the Southern Cameroonian group under Dr. Endeley, led to the British Southern Cameroons being granted the status of a “Quasi Federal Territory”. The 1954 Constitution of the Nigerian Federation further authorised the creation of the Southern Cameroons House of Assembly in 1954 based in Buea in the British Southern Cameroons. This crucial step moved the British Southern Cameroons one step closer to full independence. During the following years, the Southern Cameroons House of Assembly



passed legislation creating some key institutions on which the development of the Southern Cameroons was built. (iii) Termination of Trusteeship and Denial of Independence The abrupt decision of the United Nations to bring an end to the trusteeship system in 1960 led to a chain of events which culminated in the plebiscite of February 11, 1961 under which the British Southern Cameroons had to choose to become independent either by joining French Cameroun or the Federal Republic of Nigeria which had both become independent in the course of 1960. The British Southern Cameroons was never offered the option of independence even though that is what its leaders wanted and expected. Independence was also the goal towards which the administering authority was supposed to prepare each trust territory. (iv) Opposition of French Cameroun to Reunification with the BSC. A slim majority of the electorate of the British Southern Cameroons finally voted in favour joining French Cameroun primarily because the alternative was to go back to the Ibo domination of the Eastern Nigeria. However, the Ahidjo Government was advised by France to vote against UN General Assembly Resolution 1608 (XV) on April 21, 1961 which was the basis on which the United Nations authorised a federal union to be formed between the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun Republic, based on the plebiscite result of February 11, 1961. The reunification which, for public appearances, was celebrated on October 1, 1961 was never really implemented in legal terms primarily because the government of French Cameroun, under President Ahmadou Ahidjo, thought mistakenly that there was no need for a legally binding union agreement to attest to such a legal fusion of territories having taken place. The combined effect of all these errors in political judgement on the part of the Ahidjo government is that the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun have remained since 1961 two legally distinct territories under international law. (v) The Transformation of the BSC into a Colony of French Cameroun. However, following public celebrations of October 1, 1961, the Ahidjo government went on to show bad faith and duplicity at all levels particularly and including the introduction of the unitary state in 1972 and the subsequent dismantling of all the political and economic structures which had been built in the British Southern Cameroons since the creation of the Southern Cameroons House of Assembly in 1954. This was followed by the adoption of an unspoken state policy, at all levels in French Cameroun, of treating the citizens of the British Southern Cameroons, not even as second‐class citizens, but rather as non‐persons. The creation of the unitary state with all the constitutional powers vested in the Francophone President in Yaoundé was followed by decades of neglect, insults arrogance and contempt on



the part of the Francophone government towards the citizens of the British Southern Cameroons. At the same time the Francophone government in Yaoundé engaged in the most rapacious exploitation of the resources in the British Southern Cameroons which had been transformed into its colonial backyard. These are the factors which gave birth to the separatist movement in the British Southern Cameroons which started timidly at the All Anglophone Conference in Buea in 1994. As no people in the history of mankind have ever accepted to live perpetually under colonial domination, it was only a matter of time before the people of the British Southern Cameroons would finally rise to this challenge. (vi) Formation of Restoration Government of the BSC It is against this background that the meeting which was held in South Africa in December 2007, leading to the formation of the Restoration Government of the British Southern Cameroons assumes great historical significance. This meeting was convened and attended primarily by Southern Cameroonian Youth, born after 1972. They got tired of living as non‐citizens and non‐persons in the French Cameroun Republic which was clearly not their country. They decided that the time had come to restore the government of the British Southern Cameroons, which was dismantled by President Ahidjo in 1972, and charge this government with the task of rebuilding the political and economic structures which were dismantled by the Ahidjo Government after 1972. They selected Southern Cameroonians from all over the world, most of who were not even present at the meeting in South Africa, and allocated ministerial portfolios to them. This decision was inspired by the legal reality that the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun are not bound by any union agreement; hence the delay in the formation of the Southern Cameroons Restoration Government was due entirely to the people of the British Southern Cameroons themselves. (vii) Building Prosperity from Scratch The formation of the Restoration Government was welcome by the people across the entire territory of the British Southern Cameroons. The restoration government has raised the expectations of the people with the promise that the independent British Southern Cameroons will deliver to them benefits which they were denied during the 47 years of loose association with French Cameroun, namely, Prosperity, Security and Dignity, in that order. This has placed on the restoration government the duty to plan well. The Economic Planning Ministry has a historic duty to rise to the challenge and to meet the aspirations of these young men. It is with these goals in mind that the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning has decided to assemble a package of ideas which will constitute the structural framework of the economy of the British Southern Cameroons in the years to come. The economic framework document shall henceforth be known as the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT.



The SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT is essentially an economic plan. However as a foundation plan, it must be built on some sound and enduring principles which can stand the test of time. As an economic plan it must also be built on a political and constitutional platform which will enable it to produce the expected prosperity and security for the people. One of the most important principles on which the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT must be built is the idea that the economic, political and constitutional system of a country are not three different set of ideas which can be considered separately and independently from each other. The march of times has enabled us to observe from other countries that the economic, political and constitutional systems of every country must been seen as three interlocking beams in one single sovereign architecture. Unless the three beams are mutually reinforcing, the people of that country can never know enduring prosperity or even stability. Sooner or later, the country will collapse as a sovereign state and make way for a complete redesign of the economic, political and constitutional system of the country. (viii) What is The SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT? The SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT is therefore a pact between the economic, political and constitutional framework for the British Southern Cameroons. The success of the economic programme shall depend on the capacity of the British Southern Cameroons to attract foreign direct investment into key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, forestry, tourism, health, education, telecommunication, banking, petroleum and petrochemicals. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) can come into the economy only if the political and constitutional system is seen as being stable, efficient and corruption free. The fourth invisible element in this pact is the people. While the Restoration Government must adopt the economic, political and constitutional framework as a working document, subject to whatever changes the members of government will contribute in order to enrich and improve on it, the Restoration Government must ultimately sell it to the people at large. It is the belief of the Ministry of Economic Planning and Finance that if the Restoration Government of the British Southern Cameroons adopts this pact, and goes on to sell it to the people of the British Southern Cameroons, through a concerted communication strategy which truly carries the people along, the result shall be prosperity, security and dignity for the people of the British Southern Cameroons in the years to come. The Restoration Government of the British Southern Cameroons has a unique opportunity to build everything from scratch. It consists of a highly educated group of strongly motivated Southern Cameroonians who have experienced the political systems of other countries as well as having 47 years of first hand knowledge of why the political, economic and constitutional system of French Cameroun failed to deliver prosperity, security and dignity not only to them but also to the citizens of that country. The Restoration Government can therefore avoid the errors that have been committed in other countries in Africa.



We also want the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT to send a powerful signal to the international community that not only do we know how we want to govern ourselves but that we are ready to do so. Consequently it is in the best interest of peace and stability in Africa, starting with our immediate neighbours (the Federal Republic of Nigeria and French Cameroun Republic) that the British Southern Cameroons should be admitted without further delay into the community of nations, rather than for it to be considered as part of or associated with French Cameroun, which rejected the very principle of reunification at the United Nations in 1961. Any attempt on the part of anyone to unduly delay or frustrate the independence of the British Southern Cameroons, following the creation of the Restoration Government of the British Southern Cameroons, will result in political instability for everybody. If this unique opportunity in nation building is successful, the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT shall be studied throughout the world as a model in nation building because many countries around the world shall be interested in knowing how we went about transforming the British Southern Cameroons, a tiny mountainous nation of less than 10 million people, sandwiched between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and French Cameroun, into a beacon of prosperity. The SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT shall also be a platform for mobilising support from many benevolent nations around the world which have watched the peaceful, but purposeful and determined manner with which we have gone about pursuing the independence and self‐determination for the British Southern Cameroons.



Part I Political Organization of the British Southern Cameroons

1.1 The official Name of the Country It is proposed that the GBSC should adopt the name “Republic of Ambazania” as the official name of the British Southern Cameroons. In proposing this name, is fully recognized that no consensus has been reached

amongst Southern Cameroonians on what the name should be. Nevertheless, there is a need to start somewhere in order to reach such a consensus in the future. This consensus can only start by way of the tabling of a formal proposal. This proposal is based on the following reasons:

Many of the ideas contained in the Socam Prosperity Pact are largely adapted from the Economic and Political Blueprint which was prepared by SCAPO and published on the website found a www.ambazania.org; wherever the ideas in the SOCAM PROSPERITY

PACT coincide with the SCAPO blueprint, appropriate acknowledgement shall be given to the SCAPO copyright.

The adoption of the name Republic of Ambazania by SCAPO and the subsequent release of several policy documents under this sovereign brand have generated strong brand recognition on the web and in many countries of the name “Ambazania”. It is necessary that in proposing a document as important as the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT it should be built on a sovereign platform that has already been established in order to avoid creating the impression of [prevarication on the part of the leaders fighting for the decolonization of the BSC;

The SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT is intended to be a document which shall be adopted as a working document for the GBSC; however, it shall also be used as a



vehicle for mobilizing international support from international investors who are interested in participating in the prosperity in the Republic Of Ambazania. It is therefore necessary that a name should be adopted by the GBSC so that all policy documents going out should henceforth carry the appropriate sovereign branding;

Notwithstanding this branding proposal, the name “GBSC” shall be maintained until the name of the government is changed at the proposed meeting of the Senate. However, the name “Republic of Ambazania” shall be used in the rest of the document, wherever appropriate, in place of the name “British Southern Cameroons”. 1.2 Territorial Organization of the Republic of Ambazania During the colonial period, the British Southern Cameroons was divided into six divisions for purposes of territorial administration. The divisions were: Victoria, Kumba, Mamfe, Bamenda, Wum and Nkambe. However, there emerged two major sets of problems which had an effect on economic development.

As the political capital was in Buea, all the political institutions of the state were automatically located there. This included the House of Assembly and the seat of government. Furthermore the development of the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) had been based, from the German period, on lands acquired in the coastal fertile areas on the foot of Mount Cameroon. These two factors led to a major migration of people from the hinterlands from Mamfe to Nkambe into Victoria Divisions. This massive influx has over the years created some friction between the indigenes of Victoria Division and the migrant community. Such friction has over the years been exploited for political purposes by various governments and the economic consequence of this has been quite significant.

Following the fraudulent referendum which was organized by the government of French Cameroun in 1972 and the subsequent declaration of the unitary state, and the proscription of the government of West Cameroon, the territory of the British Southern Cameroons was divided by the colonial government of French Cameroun into the Northwest Province (comprising Bamenda, Wum and Nkambe Divisions) and the Southwest Province (comprising Victoria,



Kumba and Mamfe Divisions). The intention of the colonial government of French Cameroun was to exacerbate and intensify the frictions which had emerged over the years between the migrants who had moved from the interior of the country into the coastal areas of Victoria Division for the reasons explained above. It is for this reason that the so‐called NW/SW divide has been a recurrent theme in the politics of the British Southern Cameroons since 1972.

The GBSC believes that the Socam Prosperity Pact must be built around a completely different set of principles in terms of territorial organization of the Republic Of Ambazania. The GBSC proposes to divide the territory into administrative units which will be constitutionally empowered to function in a manner that will bring real governance and economic empowerment to the grassroots and force the people to focus on the development of their own economic backyard. In proposing this type of territorial organization, the intention of the GBSC is to break away from the political trap introduced by the colonial forces for the purpose of divide and rule, by replacing this policy with an effective constitutional mechanism for implementing subsidiarity in the governance of the Republic Of Ambazania. 1.3 Future Political Capital The seat of government of the British Southern Cameroons was located in the town of Buea at the foot of Mount Cameroon. However, the GBSC is of the view that this town has too many disadvantages which will make it unsuitable as the future political capital of the Republic of Ambazania. It is instead proposed that the future political capital of the Republic of Ambazania should be located in Manyu around the junction village of Bachuo Akagbe. This location is suitable for the following reasons:

It is the most centrally located village in the territory of the Republic of Ambazania; It is practically equidistant from Victoria and Nkambe;

It will be easily accessible when the airport in Besongabang is rehabilitated; There is ample water supply from the Manyu River which is nearby to serve the needs of a capital city;



However, in proposing Bachuo Akagbe as the future capital of the Republic of Ambazania, the GBSC intends to initiate a process by which key institutions of state shall be located in different parts of the country rather than being concentrated in one single location. In this respect, the GBSC further proposes that the following towns should be chosen to host the various institutions: 1 BUEA Legislature (House of Reps & Senate) 2 BAMENDA Reserve Bank of Republic of Ambazania 3 NKAMBE Supreme Court of Republic of Ambazania 4 BACHUO AKAGBE National Capital Bearing in mind that the location of state institutions influences migration and settlement patterns in the country, this distribution of state institutions is intended to make it necessary for all citizens of Republic of Ambazania to get to know every part of the country and to avoid creating a situation where a single town takes the institutions of state captive. This distribution of state institutions will also force the government to allocate enough resources in order to ensure that the transport and communications infrastructure is maintained in a state which facilitates movement of citizens throughout the country. Buea has been selected to host the legislature, bearing in mind that there is an existing airstrip in Tiko which will eventually be rehabilitated to serve the towns of Tiko, Victoria and Buea and Kumba; meanwhile there is already a modern airport in Bamenda which can carry modern jet aircraft. As for Nkambe, there is space available for the eventual construction of a multi purpose airport. 1.4 Administrative Cantons (i) Autonomy of Administrative Cantons: The Republic of Ambazania shall be constitutionally divided into eighteen autonomous cantons which shall be named as follows:

CANTON CAPITAL 1 Ako Aya Widikum 2 Bakassi Akpabio 3 Boyo Fundong



4 Bui Kumbo 5 Kilum Oku 6 Donga Nkambe 7 Fako Victoria 8 Kupe Manenguba Nguti 9 Lebialem Fontem

10 Mantung Ndu 11 Manyu Mamfe 12 Meme Kumba 13 Menchum Wum 14 Mezam Bamenda 15 Momo Mbengwi 16 Ndian Mundemba 17 Ngokitunjia Ndop 18 Nsangri Binka

The GBSC has decided to transform the Bakassi Peninsula into an autonomous canton in order to reassure the indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula who are currently living in refugee camps in Cross River State that they shall be allowed to return to their ancestral homes in the Bakassi Peninsula where they shall be able to run their own affairs as an autonomous canton under the constitution of the Republic of Ambazania.



New cantons shall be created whenever the need exists in order to bring government as close to the people as possible. Each canton shall be given full autonomy, under the constitution, to manage the affairs of the canton in the areas that shall be specifically defined under the constitution of the Republic of Ambazania. 1.5 Dispersion of Centers of Power within Each Canton The administrative capitals of the various cantons are merely proposals for now. However, they could be changed to another more suitable location if the people of the canton believe that there is an adequate justification to do so. There shall also be a constitutional requirement that the institutions of each autonomous canton should not be located in one single town. There shall be a constitutional requirement that the administrative capital, the Cantonal Court of Appeal, the Council of Traditional Rulers and the Cantonal Legislature should all be located in different towns of the canton. For instance:

In the Canton of Mezam, the administrative capital may be in Bamenda; but the Seat of the Council of Traditional Rulers may be in Bafut, while the Cantonal Legislature of Mezam would be in Bali and the Cantonal Court of Appeal shall be based in Santa.

In the Canton of Donga, the administrative capital may be in Nkambe; but the Seat of the Council of Traditional Rulers may be in Misaje, while the Cantonal Legislature of Donga would be in Tabenken and the Cantonal Court of Appeal shall be based in Ako

In the Canton of Bui, the administrative capital may be in Kumbo; but the Seat of the Council of Traditional Rulers may be in Jakiri, while the Cantonal Legislature of Bui would be in Tatum and the Cantonal Court of Appeal shall be based in Ngondzen

In the Canton of Fako, the administrative capital may be in Buea; but the Seat of the Council of Traditional Rulers may be in Tiko, while the Cantonal Legislature of Fako would be in Muyuka and the Cantonal Court of Appeal shall be based in Victoria

In the Canton of Manyu, the administrative capital may be in Mamfe; but the Seat of the Council of Traditional Rulers may be in Eyumokock, while the



Cantonal Legislature of Manyu would be in Ossing and the Cantonal Court of Appeal shall be based in Bakebe

The purpose of this dispersion strategy is to make it necessary for the Cantonal administrative to finance the infrastructure in all the main towns of the canton and to ensure that they are linked by roads that are in good functioning condition at all time. This will enable all the citizens of the canton to feel a sense of belonging in all parts of the canton. Details of the cantonal system of government shall be outlined in the constitutional background document. 1.6 Signature Census The GBSC intends to conduct a signature census once it is in control of the territory in order to obtain a reliable estimate of the population of the Republic Of Ambazania. The signature census which shall similar to the signature referendum of September 1995 shall require that all adults aged 18 years and above, resident in the Republic Of Ambazania should proceed to the nearest signature census center to sign a sheet which shall require the disclosure of all their relevant identification information as well as an indication of their village of origin. The signature census shall also be extended to citizens of Republic of Ambazania resident in French Cameroun and in the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In capturing the information on the signature census sheets, women aged 18 years and above shall be required to disclose the number of their siblings who are less than 18 years old. The information gathered through this process shall be captured into a database to serve as a basis for estimating the population of the Republic of Ambazania. It shall also be used to map and defined the boundaries of the various cantons.



Part II Economic Model for

The Republic of Ambazania 2.1 Economic Goals The British Southern Cameroons will be a country with a population of approximately 6 million inhabitants. Economic conditions in the territory have deteriorated as a result of a combination of the poor state of infrastructure which has been abandoned for the last 47 years. Hundreds of thousands of British Southern Cameroonians have either migrated into neighboring Nigeria, particularly into states such as Taraba, Cross River and Benue or have had to move into the cities of French Cameroun such as Douala, Yaoundé in search of greener pastures which are generally not available. But such migrants have left behind relatives who are living in conditions of poverty which are worse that they were in 1961. It is expected that when the independence of the British Southern Cameroons is fully established, there shall be a backflow of its citizens into their country of origin to restart their lives and to build better conditions for their children. Against this background the GBSC will seek to create the economic conditions which will meet with the expectations of this population. The main objectives of the economic plan shall be as follows:

Get the population to settle as much as possible in their cantons of origin and to engage in economic activities there;

Create a system of fiscal revenue sharing which will make sure that each canton has its own share of resources needed for its own economic development;

Ensure that each canton has a functioning administration which will enable it to perform its constitutional duties;



Transform each canton into a pole of economic activities so that the regular inflow of wages will trickle down and create purchasing power within the canton.

Reduce poverty at the cantonal level and stimulate growth at a national level.

Encourage people to set up businesses for themselves and use the economic space of the national territory to take advantage of any business opportunities.

Transform the human resources of the country into an engine of economic growth;

Stimulate Foreign Direct Investment into the country; Create of jobs; Expand the export base and constitute healthy foreign exchange reserves.

2.2 National Solidarity Account There shall be created by constitutional authority an account which shall be known as the “National Solidarity Account” otherwise known as the NSA account. All the revenues accruing into the coffers of the Republic of Ambazania shall be placed into the NSA. The revenues accruing into the NSA shall be allocated to the National Government and to the Cantonal Governments according to a formula that shall be agreed upon by the National Legislature of the Republic of Ambazania. The funds allocated to each canton shall reflect criteria such as population, derivation, land area and other factors which shall be decided by the legislature of the Republic of Ambazania. The NSA is the constitutional instrument for ensuring that all regions of the country shall move forward at the same pace. Notwithstanding the NSA, the cantons shall be constitutionally empowered to raise taxes in certain specific areas in order to supplement their share of revenues from the NSA. The use of fiscal instruments shall be one of the mechanisms that can be used by cantons in order to attract investments into their cantons. For instance, the incorporation of companies in the British Southern Cameroons shall be done by each canton in accordance with the special rules and regulations that they shall be allowed to apply within the Companies Act. In other words the Companies Act of the British Southern Cameroons shall make room for each canton to vary certain parameters in order to attract companies to incorporate in their canton. As companies shall be required to pay certain taxes to the canton where they are



incorporated, such cantonal taxes shall be supplementary sources of fiscal revenue for the canton. The cantons shall also be at liberty to decide on the cantonal taxes that shall be levied on items such as beer, spirits, tobacco etc. 2.3 Strategic Fiscalization of the Economy In order to encourage foreign direct investment in the Republic of Ambazania and to create jobs the government shall make strategic use of various fiscal tools. The principal tools to be used shall be the following: 1. Zero Import Duties on All Raw Materials: It shall be the policy of the

Republic of Ambazania to import all raw materials into the country absolutely duty free. The schedule of items that are considered as raw materials for industries which are established and operating in the Republic of Ambazania shall be published every year in order to enable economic operators who are producing goods requiring those raw materials to be able to produce goods that are competitive on the world market.

2. Zero Import Duties on all Computer Hardware and Software and Accessories: In order to promote a computer‐based culture and the use of office automation and information and communications technologies, all imports of computer hardware and software and related accessories shall be completely duty free;

3. Zero Import Duties on all Plant & Machinery: All capital goods imported into the Republic of Ambazania including plant and equipment, construction materials, construction and earthmoving equipment agricultural equipment shall be entirely free of import duties.

4. Full Import Duties for Consumer Goods: All consumer goods entering the Republic of Ambazania shall be dutiable and shall attract customs duties charged on an ad valorem basis; Notwithstanding this policy towards consumer goods, special licenses shall be considered for operators to operate duty free shopping centers in special locations in the country. Such operators shall be licensed to import certain consumer goods duty free and to transport them to the specially designated locations where they shall be discharged under special customs arrangements. Such duty‐free shopping facilities shall be used to attract duty‐free tourism.



5. Five Year Duty Franchise on Automobiles and Spare Parts: Normally customs duties shall be payable on automobiles entering the Republic Of Ambazania. However, the GBSC shall introduce a five‐year franchise for automobiles so that all classes of vehicles entering the Republic of Ambazania shall be allowed to enter duty‐free. The purpose of this franchise is to enable the citizens to acquire the mobility necessary to engage in economic activity at all levels. The transportation of farm produce, construction materials, and ordinary citizens needing to move around are some of the basic features of a functioning economy. The franchise period of five years is deemed necessary in order to enable the citizens to tool‐up and start earning a living for themselves. It is expected that the multiplier effect of this franchise in the economy shall be quite significant.

The customs revenue that is foregone by this franchise shall be compensated by revenues that shall be collected for vehicle registration and windscreen licenses, tax on fuel and fees that shall be collected on toll gates on the roads to be constructed. Revenues shall also be collected by the Cantons for the licensing of taxis.

The franchise policy will also help to augment traffic levels on various roads where traffic counts are used as a standard measure for assessing the economic viability of roads to be constructed. Notwithstanding the duty‐free importation of automobile spare parts, the sale of such spares in the Republic Of Ambazania shall be subject to the payment of VAT.

6. Zero Export Duty for export goods: All goods manufactured in the Republic of Ambazania shall be exported free of any type of taxes or imposts. This will enable the Republic of Ambazania to attract

Country Current Corporate Tax

Ghana 26%

South Africa 29%

Nigeria 30%

Kenya 30%

Senegal 33%

Mali 35%

Burkina Faso 35%

Cote d’Ivoire 35%

Togo 37%

Benin 38%

Cameroun 38.50%



companies which want to set up their manufacturing activities in the country.

7. Low Corporate Tax Rate: All companies operating in the Republic of Ambazania shall be required to pay a corporate tax rate which shall be fixed at a level that shall at all times be lower than rates prevailing anywhere else in the whole region; the objective shall be to ensure that all companies are properly registered and operate in a transparent manner and pay their taxes on profit because there is no reason not to do so;

8. ValueAdded Taxes: All goods and services sold in the Republic of Ambazania shall attract a value‐added tax which shall be reviewed from time to time in order to ensure that the economic goals of the government are being achieved. To this effect, the GBSC intends to introduce the most simplified form of companies’ incorporation and registration in order to ensure that the highest number of economic activity is carried out under a formalized structure. The incorporation of a company in the Republic of Ambazania shall come automatically with a certificate of incorporation and a VAT number in order to facilitate the invoicing and payment of VAT.

The objective of this fiscal strategy is to ensure that goods shall enter the Republic of Ambazania freely. Custom duties shall cease to be a major source of fiscal revenue for the state. The state shall depend primarily on valueadded taxes, corporate taxes and payroll taxes to finance its expenditures. All other sources of revenue accruing to the state shall be considered exceptional and shall be treated as such. It shall put in place a mechanism for ensuring that all value‐added taxes are paid into the National Solidarity Account by economic operators for allocation to the Central and Cantonal Governments. The size of the civil service shall also depend on the amount of fiscal revenues generated from value‐added taxes.



2.4 Agriculture The agricultural sector is extremely important and shall be given the attention which it is due. However, it is fully recognized that the Republic of Ambazania does not really have the farmlands that are ideally suited for large commercial agriculture because of its unusual topography which is due to the fact that a substantial part of the country is part of the Adamawa Mountain range which stretches under the sea from the Atlantic Ocean into Taraba State in Nigeria. Consequently, while the mountainsides and the valleys are intensively cultivated by farmers for subsistence, the topography of the land is not suitable for large scale commercial food production. On the other hand, vast plantations have been developed on the foot of Fako Mountain dating back to the short period of German colonial presence in Kamerun which was brought to an end in 1918. Although the Germans continued to operate their plantations after WWI, the nd of WWII led to the German plantations being placed under the Custodian of Enemy Properties by the British Government. Thereafter, legislation was proposed in Lagos Nigeria, creating the CDC as a corporate body under which all the German plantations were placed to be managed for the exclusive benefit of the people of the BSC. 2.41 The CDC The CDC has over the years expanded its operations to cover more land and to include five principal crops:

Oil Palm Rubber Coconut Palm Banana Tea

The CDC became the largest employer in the combined Cameroons with a workforce of 15,000 employees.



The tea estates in Tole and Ndu have been sold by the colonial government of French Cameroun under controversial arrangements that have been opposed by the people of the BSC. However, attempts to sell off the rest of the plantations of the CDC have been opposed by the Bakweri Land Claims Committee (BLCC) which has challenged the land arrangements under which the Bakweri lands were expropriated by the Germans to establish those plantations. The BLCC took the case to the African Human Rights Commission in Banjul and obtained a favorable ruling to the relief that were sought by the BLCC. The implication is that until such a time that the matter of the land arrangements is satisfactorily settled, the CDC as a corporate entity cannot be privatized.

The GBSC plans to hold discussions with all stakeholders in the CDC in order to determine the conditions under which the CDC can be privatized while protecting the interests of the original land owners.

For privatization purposes, the CDC shall be broken into various product lines and sold separately, except for the oil palm industry which shall be further sold off as two separate companies to include the plantations built around the Idenau and the Mondoni oil mills;

The GBSC also intends to review the conditions under which the Tole Tea Estate and the Ndu Tea Estates were sold and shall take any corrective action where it is deemed necessary.

2.42 Pamol Limited Similarly, on the windward side of Mount Cameroon, an oil palm plantation was established by Unilever in and around Ekondo Titi. The estates of Pamol were abandoned by Unilever as a result of the failure and or refusal of the colonial



government of French Cameroun to provide road infrastructure from Kumba to Ekondo Titi. This request was made specifically by the management of Unilever in order to provide a level playing field which will enable Pamol to compete with other producers such as the CDC, Firme Suisse and Socapalm which all benefit from road infrastructure that has been financed by the state. The refusal of the government of colonial government of French Cameroun to either construct a motorable road and or construct a high tension power link from Kumba to the milling plant in Ekondo Titi led Unilever to abandon the palm estate.

The GBSC intends to provide both road infrastructure as well as electricity from Kumba to Ekondo Titi and to Mundemba as part of the overall strategy of bringing development to the West Coast. The construction of the Kumba/Ekondo Titi/Mundemba/Bakassi and the Victoria/Idenau/Ekonto Titi roads which are priority ECOWAS link roads will benefit the oil palm development on the West Coast. This will enable the reactivation of the Pamol Estates that have been moribund as a result of the lack of basic infrastructure;

The GBSC also intends to parcel off more land in the West Coast in 5000 ha lots to investors who are interested in developing the oil palm industry in the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA;

2.43 Ako Aya Oil Palm Initiative A third area where an oil palm programme shall be launched is in Ako Aya. There is vast land which has remained virtually untouched as a result of the absence of access infrastructure. By providing access roads and electricity through Mamfe, Widikum and Wum, the area of Ako Aya shall be transformed into a major palm oil producing area of the Republic of Ambazania. Incentives including concessions for timber



exploitation shall be given to operators willing to invest in the area and to build the roads so that it should become a major timber and palm oil producing area in the Republic of Ambazania. The Project Area The area in question covers approximately 5000 Square Kilometers (500,000 Ha) of land. This area of the Republic of Ambazania has never been served by any type of road infrastructure; not to mention electricity or telephones. The area has been cut off from Mamfe Town by the River Manyu and the only way to get across from Mamfe to Mamfe Overside has been through a wooden bridge, more like a wooden walkway, which the Germans built around the turn of the century. The population density has remained sparse and schools, if any, are poorly equipped. The topography and the rainfall conditions make this area ideally suitable for the cultivation of the oil palm. The other attractive feature of the area is that its tropical hardwood reserves are still intact because, so far, there are no roads enabling anyone to harvest and evacuate the tropical hardwoods.

The most prominent villages of the area are Takamanda and Ekokisam. The region is drained by tributaries of the Cross River including the Manyu River which passes through Mamfe Town itself. The a substantial part of the population of the area has simply moved to Nigeria, as they have over the years seen mo hope of any development on their land under the colonial occupation from French Cameroun.

The GBSC intends to transform the economy of Akwaya by allocating the land in parcels of 5000 hectares to investors who are willing to invest in the oil palm industry in the Canton of Akwaya. Each investor shall be given the privilege to exploit the timber in their allocated concession and shall in return be required to:



Develop Access Roads Clear the Land and Plant oil Palm Provide Housing for their Workers Construct an Oil Mills

The GBSC shall for its part develop the oil palm nurseries and provide the electricity. Akwaya is the last frontier in the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA and the size of the virgin land holds great economic potential. The overall objective of the Palm Oil Plan is to put 1,500,000 hectares of land in the Republic of Ambazania under oil palm cultivation. Such a plan should make it possible for the Republic of Ambazania to produce 500,000 ‐750,000 metric tones of crude palm oil per years. This will make the Republic of Ambazania the largest producer of crude palm oil in Africa. 2.44 Ako Aya Earth Roads & Bridges Programme The implementation of the Ako Aya Oil Palm Initiative shall require that the GBSC should play an important role in opening up the entire region. It is well known that the entire population of Ako Aya has been lost to the Federal Republic of Nigeria because the indigenes of the region have not been connected to the rest of the territory of the British Southern Cameroons by access roads. Consequently, most of the people of the area have moved across and settled in Cross River State in Nigeria. However given the considerable potential of Ako Aya in terms of its forestry reserves and in view of the intention of the GBSC to develop the oil palm industry, there shall be a priority programme by which the region shall be provided with earth roads in conjunction with the construction of solid bridges across the rivers so that vehicular traffic can move into the area.



At the same time the indigenes of Ako Aya shall be encouraged to return to their ancestral homes to become part of the reconstruction of their lives under the Canton of Ako Aya. 2.5 Manufacturing Manufacturing is an activity involving the bringing together of land, labor, capital and modern technology to add value to goods. Within the context of the highly competitive global economy, manufacturing is an activity which can only be done successfully where a genuine comparative advantage really exists. It is unlikely to succeed where it relies mainly on artificial fiscal incentives that are created in order to attract it.

The most important comparative advantage is the local availability of the basic raw material that is required for the industry in question. Any industry which requires the importation of the basic raw material is not sustainable.

The next important factor is the existence of the infrastructure needed for the successful engagement of manufacturing activity. The most important elements of basic infrastructure are electricity, roads, telecommunications, airports, seaports, water and all other services that most be provided through public utilities;

In developing countries the technology that is required for manufacturing is likely to be imported; however, the mastery of the technology depends on the workforce available in the country;

There must be a trained or trainable workforce in the country; the workforce as a factor of production is an important variable that influences the location of industry because ultimately, the productivity of the workforce will be decisive in the survival of the industry as a whole;

Based on these considerations, the GBSC intends to promote manufacturing activities in the Republic of Ambazania in two phases: Phase I: The GBSC intends to promote manufacturing activities that are based on the palm industry, rubber, tea, Coffee, banana, timber and the petroleum industry. In this respect, the GBSC shall provide all fiscal incentives that are needed to make



these resource‐based industries truly competitive. The GBSC shall also undertake to provide the infrastructure that is needed for the successful operation of industries in these sectors. Other agro‐allied industries which will be promoted are in dairy farming and fruit‐juice production based on fruit plantations that can be established in areas such as the Ndop plain, the Mbo Plain and in other farming areas of Wum and Donga & Mantung. Phase II: As a long term goal, the GBSC shall aim at creating conditions which shall attract investment in high value‐added manufacturing in leading edge technologies. In order to achieve this goal, there must be very strong emphasis on the quality of education as a whole, the quality of basic infrastructure and the stability of the entire political and constitutional system on which the country is governed. This is a long term goal that shall have a 15‐20 year horizon.



2.6 Petroleum Development Policy

Under the colonial occupation of French Cameroun, the oil industry, which has been exclusively based in the BSC has been on the decline after production peaked at 9.1 million tons in 1985. World oil price levels in the late 1970s led to aggressive exploration and proven reserves of 40 million Tons were established. It has been estimated that at current production levels (4.7 MT in 1995), the proven reserves were largely exhausted in 2000 and whatever is left has already been mortgaged by the cash‐strapped government of French Cameroun. 2.61 Petroleum Exploration The petroleum industry has for a long time considered hydrocarbons code developed by the colonial government of French Cameroun to be unattractive. Furthermore during the 1990s the

price of oil dropped to a level where aggressive oil exploration could not be done under the existing hydrocarbons code. This has been a major disincentive to major exploration and development work since 1986. As a result there were no major oil discoveries on the continental shelf for nearly a decade. The proven reserves depleted so rapidly that French Cameroun will become a net importer of oil in the early part of the 21st century. Meanwhile new oil discoveries have been made in neighboring countries such as Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome & Principe because oil companies were offered attractive conditions which reflect the current prices in the world oil market. The GBSC shall undertake measures to attract exploration capital back to REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA in order to re‐stimulate the oil industry and replace the

Crude Oil Production (X 1000T) in the BSC

Year Crude oil

Produced 1983 5689 1984 7400 1985 9170 1986 8974 1987 8348 1988 8482 1989 8635 1990 8480 1991 7710 1992 7018 1993 6600 1994 5800 1995 4700



depleted oil reserves. The actions to be taken in the mining sector shall be by way of legislation which shall aim at:

Defining a new the hydrocarbons code so as to encourage intensive seismic work and wild‐cat drilling in marginal areas;

Increasing the profit margins of oil companies on condition that they re‐invest the surplus profits into further research and development;

The promotion of the production of other types of non‐oil minerals; The promotion of small and medium scale enterprises in joint‐venture in the mining field by providing them with facilities for the importation of equipment and supplies needed for mining operations;

Making provisions for the active participation of Ambazanians in all aspects of the petroleum industry;

The creation of the National Oil Company of Ambazania (NOICAM) that shall be charged with the responsibility of regulating the oil industry in the Republic of Ambazania and for enforcing environmental guidelines for the industry.

The creation of an international petroleum refining complex on the Ambazanian coast dedicated to the refining of petroleum products for export.

The creation of the largest international oil depot on the African coast; It is generally believed that the Bakassi Peninsula contains considerable oil reserves. However, these oil reserves shall be developed only after the GBSC has outlined the policy matrix that shall be used for protecting the environment and the ecosystem on which the indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula depend on their livelihood. The mistakes that were committed in the Niger Delta shall be avoided at all cost. It is for this reason that the GBSC intends to ensure that no oil company that has not been licensed by the GBSC shall be allowed to explore, drill, produce or export petroleum from the Bakassi Peninsula. This ban shall be strictly enforced. 2.62 Petroleum Refining Since it was established in the early 1980s, the role of SONARA as a producer of petroleum products for the economy of the BSC and French Cameroun has been strategic. SONARA has however never been able to operate close to its capacity of



1.0 Million tons largely because the combined needs of the BSC and French Cameroun economy are still around 500,000 tons/year. The State owns 66% of the interests in SONARA while private foreign companies own 34%.

SONARA: Production of Petroleum Products (000’ tons) Kerosene Motor

Gasoline1 Aviation Gasoline

Jet Fuel

LPG Fuel Oil HFO Lubes Bitumen

1983 235 230 10 91 17 575 675 90 5 1984 290 370 10 93 19 410 695 110 4 1985 92 415 10 95 18 230 150 35 5 1986 95 45 10 9 19 238 153 37 5 1987 101 48 11 8 17 242 155 41 5 1988 97 55 12 9 18 245 160 41 5 1989 98 57 11 7 19 238 158 45 6 1990 110 55 12 8 18 251 147 37 7 1991 115 51 11 9 19 254 150 37 7 1992 117 54 12 9 19 255 152 35 7 Since the creation of the Bitumen Company which is attached to SONARA, production of bitumen has been very modest because there have been no major road construction projects in the country. The road programme which is going to be implemented in the transport sector will require a domestic source of bitumen. In order to encourage the production of bitumen by SONARA, the GBSC shall remove price controls on bitumen so that the output can be sold to contractors at prices which reflect the cost on the international market. 2.63 Establishment of an International Oil Refining Complex on the West Coast Not withstanding the existing refinery which is located near the town of Victoria in the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA, and whose role is to provide petroleum products to the economy of the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA and French Cameroun, the GBSC intends to invite international oil companies which are interested in participating

1 The production of motor gasoline fell sharply in 1986 because fraudulent imports of fuel from Nigeria in reaction to the overvaluation of the FCFA following the devaluation of the Naira in 1986. The figures indicate that the import of motor gasoline from Nigeria between 1986 and 1994 was approximately 375,000 tons per year.



in the oil development of the Bakassi Peninsula to establish oil refining complexes on the West Coast of REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA. The international oil refining complexes shall be exclusively for export. All the necessary fiscal incentives shall be provided to the oil operators to refine the crude oil in situ before export instead of the direct export of crude to other refineries overseas. Companies interested in establishing refineries shall be offered the most attractive conditions for oil exploration and production. The international oil refining complex shall also create other derivative products in the petroleum industry so as to make the Republic of Ambazania a major producer of all petroleum and petrochemical products. The intention of the GBSC is to ensure that the citizens of the Republic of Ambazania are given an opportunity to acquire oil industry related skills which will make the Republic of Ambazania a refining center for the world oil market long after the crude oil reserves of the Republic of Ambazania are exhausted. 2.64 Participating in the Activities of the Joint Development Zone JDZ

In February 2005, Nigeria announced the award of five oil blocks in the Joint Development Zone (JDZ), shared by Nigeria and neighboring Sao Tome and Principe (STP). Twenty‐six companies submitted bids for the blocks by the conclusion of the 2004 licensing round. In December 2004, Nigeria and Sao Tome opened the second licensing round for blocks in the JDZ.

The JDZ reportedly holds reserves of 11 billion barrels and could potentially yield up to 3 million bbl/d in the next 2‐3 years. Development is also occurring in the waters surrounding the JDZ. In March 2005, Spinnaker Exploration (US) purchased a 12.5 percent interest in OPL Block 256 from Ocean Energy, a subsidiary of Devon Energy. Drilling of the Tari 1 exploratory well at OPL Block 256, located 125 miles



off the Nigerian coast near the JDZ, has commenced. Three wells are planned for the block.

The GBSC wants to participate in the oil production activities of the JDZ by offering the IPRC as a venue for the refining of the petroleum from the JDZ. As the IPRC shall be a petroleum refining complex dedicated for exports, oil companies which are involved in developing oilfields in the JDZ will consider sending some of the crude to the IPRC for refining rather shipping the crude to distant

refineries elsewhere in the world.



2.7 Forestry During the last few years the government of French Cameroun has allowed the most wasteful exploitation of forest reserves by various operators. The rate of forest exploitation has raised an alarm everywhere especially amongst environmental groups. Meanwhile the Cameroonian public has been concerned by the fact that log carriers have played a very large role in destroying the road network and rendering the roads impassable. It has been well established that the few kilometers of roads that were constructed in the British Southern Cameroons during the colonial occupation of the country by French Cameroun have been destroyed by logging vehicles.

The GBSC shall grant logging licenses to logging companies with stringent restrictions attached to them such as the following:

Logging companies may not transport logs for a distance of more than 20 km from the logging point:

All logs shall be processed in local sawmills;

The export of logs shall be prohibited; Logging vehicles shall be prohibited from

being driven on public roads fully loaded. Only vehicles transporting sawn wood, plywood and other products of sawmills shall be allowed to use public roads.

The GBSC shall introduce building regulations requiring the increased use of wood in building and construction so as to increase domestic demand for wood products and reduce expenditure on cement and other construction materials. In the capital city of Bachuo Akagbe, the GBSC shall grant licenses for the construction of low cost housing for civil servants entirely out of wood but built to specifications which will ensure that they are fitted with all the modern amenities.



2.8 Tourism The Republic of Ambazania has a tourism potential which has remained underdeveloped as a result of the absence of road infrastructure and a clearly defined tourism policy under the colonial administration of French Cameroun. A sound tourism policy needs to be defined around the tourist products which are found attractive to the outside world. The Republic of Ambazania does not have the wildlife potential to compete with the large scale tourism of the East African countries such as Kenya or Tanzania; nor does it have the resort beaches of the Mediterranean countries; neither does it have the historic relics of the slave period such as are available in Ghana and Senegal have attracted many tourists. The Republic of Ambazania however has the potential to attract as many as 100,000 tourists a year in the following areas: 2.81 The Mount Cameroon Athletic Event: The ascent of Mount Cameroon has been an athletic event which is unique in the world because it is a mountain race involving the ascent of a mountain which rises very abruptly to a height of 13,350 ft above sea level. The Ambazanian Ministry of Tourism shall discuss with corporate organizations which are willing and able to sponsor the mountain raise by putting up price money which shall be able to attract world‐class athletes from all over the world. The promotion of this event as an annual international sporting event has the potential of attracting many international tourists in a year; it is an event that can be promoted to become an world athletic event as important as the New York Marathon; the promotion of the event has to be devolved to experienced event managers;



2.82 Culture Tourism: The Republic of Ambazania has a very rich and colorful cultural heritage which has attracted tourists from around the world even though there has never been any sustained effort to promote it. The rich art of the Ambazanian grass fields which are built around the chieftaincy system has been well known. The international furore surrounding the circumstances under which the Afo Akom, the fertility statue of the Kom Kingdom was taken to the United States and returned is illustrative of the capacity of this cultural heritage to attract attention. Many kingdoms regularly organize cultural festivals but there is no media coverage given to them. A combination of promotion and media attention will transform these cultural events into tourist attractions in the years to come. 2.83 Landscapes Tourism: The Republic of Ambazania straddles the Adamawa mountain range which stretches from the floor of the Atlantic Ocean into Taraba State in Nigeria. This gives the Republic of Ambazania unique relief features which are not found elsewhere in West or Central Africa. Apart from the volcanic lakes such as Lake Nyos, the landscapes of Ambazania are of a remarkable beauty. The most beautiful landscapes are to be seen along the Ring Road. The construction of mountain resorts along the Ring Road will eventually attract tourists into this part of the country. 2.84 Health Tourism: In order to develop a quality health service in the country, the government shall pioneer a system of health‐hotels throughout the country by which medical experts shall be invited from all over the world to set up hospitals and healthcare facilities which can attract clients from many countries in the region. Such health‐hotels shall be specialized in different branches of medicine for



which patients from countries in the region frequently have to travel to Europe in order to obtain satisfactory medical care. In order to encourage the construction of the health‐hotel infrastructure of international standard, the government of Republic of Ambazania shall identify, in conjunction with the cantonal governments, prime locations suitable for health hotels throughout the territory and perfect the title deeds on the landed properties. These perfected landed properties shall be issued, for a symbolic price, to national and international groups willing to construct health‐hotels of an agreed standard on those properties, within an agreed time frame, and to undertake the promotion of the tourist infrastructure to tour operators around the world. The development of health‐hotel infrastructure will be promoted in order to encourage health tourism into the Republic of Ambazania. These health‐hospitals shall play an important role in the training of doctors in various fields of medicine. Many people in neighboring countries such as the Federal Republic of Nigeria and French Cameroun have to travel to Europe in order to get proper medical attention. However these facilities are available for the wealthy few. Visa requirements for traveling to Europe are becoming more and more restrictive and where they are possible, this requires very long lead times. The healthy climate of the Ambazanian highlands offer a unique environment for treatment and post operative care at an affordable price to many more people who are in need of proper medical care. It is essential that reliable communication links be established with the outside world in order to facilitate linkages with similar quality hospitals around the world which will make it possible for specialists and medical consultants to participate in diagnosis from a distance. The installation of the optic fibre backbone shall make such connectivity possible. 2.85 National Tourism Infrastructure In order to build an economy which is open to the outside world, the government of Republic of Ambazania shall encourage the construction of first class hotels around the country in order to encourage both local as well as international tourism. The construction of such hotels shall encourage the movement of traffic



on the NHB so as to generate revenues necessary to amortize loans contracted to construct the NHB. In order to encourage the construction of the hotel infrastructure, the government of Republic of Ambazania shall identify, in conjunction with the regional governments, prime locations suitable for hotels throughout the territory and perfect the title deeds on the landed properties. These perfected landed properties shall be issued, for a symbolic price, to national and international hotel groups willing to construct hotels and tourist infrastructure of an agreed standard on those properties, within an agreed time frame, and to undertake the promotion of the tourist infrastructure to tour operators around the world.



2.9 Transport Infrastructure French Cameroun was opposed to reunification with the BSC from the beginning. That is the reason why the government of President Ahmadou Ahidjo voted against UN resolution 1608(XV) of 1961 by which the UN wanted French Cameroun and the BSC to negotiate a federal union by October 1, 1961. As the BSC was still a UN Trust Territory, it was not represented at the UN, hence the BSC did not have the opportunity to express its opinion on this UN resolution.

When the UN resolution was adopted in spite of the opposition of French Cameroun, the government of President Ahmadou Ahidjo reluctantly celebrated unification in October 1961. But the consequence of this involuntary unification is that the people of the BSC have been made to pay a very heavy price for having voted in favor of union with French Cameroun during the plebiscite of February 11, 1961. The government of French Cameroun under President Ahidjo decided to treat the BSC as its

colony. In so doing, they exploited the oil and other natural resources of the BSC and for 47 years, starved the region of the basic infrastructure that it needed in order to enable the citizens of BSC to engage in normal economic activity to support their families. This policy has continued under the Mr. Paul Biya who took over from President Ahidjo in 1982 and has now been in power for 25 years. Many areas of the BSC, such as Manyu, Lebialem, and Ndian Divisions have practically been depopulated because the complete inaccessibility of the region. The lack of basic roads throughout the year, has forced the indigenes of the region to migrate to other parts of the country. The sector that illustrates most vividly the starvation that has been inflicted on the BSC by colonial government of French Cameroun has been in road infrastructure. The GBSC is aware of the fact that it is the frustrations that the people and the youth have suffered over a period of 47



years that has convinced them that they have to make all the sacrifices necessary to achieve the statehood of the BSC as the Republic of Ambazania. Against this background, the GBSC is committed to implementing the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT on a platform that must include a clearly defined policy on basic infrastructure. Indeed, without the basic infrastructure in transport, communications, electric power and water supply, the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT will remain a meaningless pipe dream. 2.91 Policy on Road Infrastructure National Highways Backbone (NHB): In order that the economy of the Republic of Ambazania should function as one single unit and enable all regions of the country to make their unique contributions to economic development, the GBSC shall undertake the construction of a National Highways Backbone (NHB) which shall be designed to connect all the key regions of the country with a highway system constructed to the same standard. The road sections which shall be included in this National Highways Backbone shall be the following: 1 From To Distance (Km) 2 Victoria Kumba 70 3 Kumba Mundemba 100 4 Mundemba Calabar 44 5 Kumba Bachuo Akagbe 98 6 Bachuo Akagbe Bamenda 123 7 Bachuo Akabge Ekok 82 8 Bamenda Kumbo 109 9 Kumbo Nkambe 70 11 Nkambe Wum 108 12 Wum Bamenda 80 Total 884 In order to finance the NHB, the government of the Republic of Ambazania shall conduct an international auction of these road segments to international groups which are willing to provide financing to construct them according to an agreed



standard and to manage them on a Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis for an agreed period of time. National Highway Spurs (NHS): The National Highway Spurs shall consist of roads which feed into the National Highway Backbone. In order to support traffic development on the NHB, the government shall for its part seek financing to construct road programmes which feed into the NHB. Such roads shall be known as National Highway Spurs (NHS). The roads sections to be included on the NHS are the following: 1 From To Distance (Km) 2 Mutengene Mungo Border 30

3 Kumba Tombel 35

5 Tombel Bangem 65

6 Manyemen Bangem 50

7 Victoria Idenao 48

9 Bachuo Akagbe Fontem 50

10 Bamenda Fundong 50

11 Fundong Wum 53

12 Wum Akwaya 60

13 Mamfe Akwaya 80

14 Bamenda Santa 40

15 Ndu Sabongari 70

16 Nkambe Abonshie 70

701

2.92 Ecowas Link Roads As the Republic of Ambazania has already applied for membership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the GBSC shall make arrangements for constructing some road sections which are important for providing linkages to the ECOWAS region. These road segments are:

Abong/Nkambe/Kumbo Wum/Nkambe Ekok/Mamfe /Bachuo Akagbe



Kumba/Ekondo Titi/Mundemba/Bakassi/Cross River Border Victoria/Idenao/Ekondo Titi/Mundemba

In view of the priority nature of the ECOWAS Link Roads in the implementation of the roads programme of the Socam Prosperity Pact, the GBSC shall seek to raise financing from the Lagos based African Finance Corporation to fund the construction of these key road links. In constructing these road links the GBSC is aware of the fact that there is a large population of Nigerian citizens based in

French Cameroun. The independence of the Republic of Ambazania is going to have a significant impact on these Nigerians. Some of them might want to become citizens of Ambazanian Cantons. Others may only wish to obtain resident permits in order to settle in their businesses. Whatever the case, the GBSC expects that there shall be significant traffic flows on the ECOWAS Road Links to and from the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The GBSC has designated these roads as ECOWAS link roads because of the role that they will play in

providing linkages between the Republic of Ambazania and the Federal Republic of Nigeria and to the larger ECOWAS economic area. Financing shall be sought from various agencies around the world to ensure that the construction of these road links shall be done on a priority basis. Because of their commercial importance the ECOWAS link roads shall all be financed on a BOT basis by operators who shall be authorized to charge at various tolling points along the road links in order to amortize the financing for the road projects. 2.93 Use of Community Labor Road construction and maintenance in developing countries has become highly dependent on contractual arrangements with construction companies which can acquire sophisticated earth moving equipment. While these arrangements are necessary for road networks intended meet loading conditions for heavy vehicles, the construction of many dirt roads that can transform the economies of many



rural areas can be done with community labor that does not require the use of sophisticated earthmoving equipment. Most of the roads in the Republic of Ambazania were constructed during the colonial period using such community labor requiring that the entire community should turn out to use various hand held tools and equipment to construct a motorable path. The GBSC shall ensure that the cantons should make use of community labour to construct some of the vital roads in their cantons before assistance can be provided from the central government for surfacing them with bitumen. The cantons shall also be encouraged to establish and maintain and equip a Public Works Department in each canton so that the roads can be maintained regularly. 2.94 Airports The Republic of Ambazania is a small country in terms of land area. However, it shall have definite needs in terms of airport infrastructure. Indeed the airports shall provide access to the various parts of the country until the resources are available for constructing the NHB and the NHS. The rehabilitation of existing airports and airstrips shall be given priority while the resurfacing of new airstrips shall also take priority over the construction of roads. In this respect the following airports shall be given priority:

Bamenda: The Bamenda airport has never really been put to use since its construction during the 1980s. The rehabilitation of this airport and the installation of air traffic equipment and other airport accessories shall be given priority because Bamenda shall be used as the seat of the GBSC until the Bachuo Akagbe is constructed.

Besongabang: The airport in Besongabang near Mamfe was constructed by the British government but was abandoned by the colonial government of French Cameroun. As the airport which is intended to serve the National Capital Territory of the Republic of Ambazania, its resurfacing and equipment with radar facilities and other airport accessories shall also be given top priority by the GBSC.

Tiko: the airport in Tiko was constructed during the period of German colonial occupation. It remained in operaton during the period of the existence of the Government of West Cameroon. However, the colonial government of French



Cameroun also closed its operation. As this airport is intended to serve the main seaport in Victoria as well as the legislative capital of Buea, its rehabilitation shall also be given high priority by the GBSC. Its resurfacing and equipment with radar facilities and other airport accessories shall also be given top priority by the GBSC.

Nkambe: There is no airport in Nkambe at the moment. However, in view of the plan to locate the Supreme Court of the Republic of Ambazania in Donga & Mantung Division, it is essential that an airport should be constructed in Nkambe to provide airline linkages with the rest of the country.

Mundemba: There is no airport in Mundemba at the moment. However, in view of the plan to locate an international oil refining complex on the West Coast (on the windward side of Mount Cameroon), it is essential that an airport should be constructed in Mundemba to provide airline linkages with the outside world and rest of the country.

2.94 Seaports Victoria: The town of Victoria has a deep seaport which was a functioning and had potential to handle large vessels. However, it was abandoned by the colonial government of French Cameroun which preferred to invest in the port of Douala which required constant and expensive dredging as a result of siltation from the Wourri River. Recent developments at the Victoria port include the plan to construct a dry dock for the repair of ships and other naval vehicles in Victoria. Tiko: Elders & Fyffes, a UK based shipping company owned since 1913 by the United Fruit Company of the United States, operated shipping services for passenger and banana cargo between the United Kingdom to many destinations in the world. One of the service lines was from Avonmouth England to Tiko in the British Southern Cameroons.

• 1939‐1940 Avonmouth ‐ Cameroons. • 1946‐1964 Europe / London / Avonmouth ‐ Cameroons.

The ships were specially fitted for the transport of banana produced in the British Southern Cameroons. It also offered a passenger service between Europe and the



British Southern Cameroons. For this purpose, wharf facilities were constructed at the Tiko port. After unification with French Cameroun in 1961, the British Southern Cameroons lost its privileged access to the UK banana market because it was no longer a Commonwealth territory. Consequently bananas produced in the British Southern Cameroons (then known as West Cameroon) could no longer be imported into the United Kingdom. This led to the cessation of the shipping line from Avonmouth to Tiko and to a steep decline in the banana industry in the British Southern Cameroons. The United Fruit Company turned its attention to Latin America and the Caribbean for the sourcing of banana into the United States and into Europe. The decline of the port of Tiko can be traced directly to the loss of the UK market for the banana industry of the British Southern Cameroons as a consequence of reunification with French Cameroun. Nevertheless, Tiko continues to have the potential to be restored to its earlier status as a major sea port, subject to appropriate investment being made in the port facilities. IPRC Oil Terminal: The development of an international petroleum refining complex near Rio del Rey in the British Southern Cameroons shall require the construction of an oil terminal dedicated to the export of petroleum products from the refining complex. The combination of the international petroleum refining complex and the oil terminal shall bring infrastructure, development and jobs to the indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula. 2.95 Policy Regarding the Bakassi Peninsula The GBSC is aware of the considerable interest that has been generated in the international media regarding the Bakassi Peninsula. This is a piece of territory over which the Federal Republic of Nigeria and French Cameroun have fought a



border war and have invested considerable resources in legal fees at the International Court of Justice in order to support their various claims of sovereignty over the peninsula. The GBSC would like to state its policy over this territory very clearly so that no one should be left in doubt. This policy however is not based on considerations of the existence or otherwise of oil resources in the peninsula. The policy is based strictly on matters of sovereignty. First of all the ICJ ruled in October of 2002 that sovereignty over the Bakassi Peninsula belongs to “Cameroon”. However, in making this ruling the ICJ, through no fault of its own, was unaware of the fact that there are two “Cameroons”:

The British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun

These two “Cameroons” were required by UN General Assembly Resolution 1608 (XV) of April 21, 1961 to formalize the creation of a federal union by October 1, 1961. Unfortunately, French Cameroun, as well as France and other French‐speaking countries in West and Central Africa all voted against this UN resolution. However, the resolution was passed by the required majority at the General Assembly. Finding itself under obligation to implement the UN resolution which it had opposed, French Cameroun half‐heartedly agreed to negotiate a federal union in 1961, but no formal union agreement was ever reached or signed between the Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun. The two parties celebrated an informal union on October 1, 1961 and for 47 years have given the outside world the impression of unity. But the legal reality is that no union agreement was signed and or ratified by the respective legislatures of the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun. Consequently, the two territories have continued to be legally distinct under international law. Hence the boundary between the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun is still an international boundary.



It is on this basis that the GBSC takes the position that sovereignty over the Bakassi belongs, indisputably, to the British Southern Cameroons and not to French Cameroun. Consequently, the GBSC shall undertake all possible measures, within the context international law, to ensure that we shall have the means to defend our sovereignty over the Bakassi Peninsula. The GBSC shall do whatever is necessary in order to ensure that the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as well as those of French Cameroun vacate the Bakassi Peninsula within the shortest possible time. It has been speculated that the Bakassi Peninsula contains considerable oil reserves. However, the GBSC cannot base its policy on this sensitive piece of real estate on information which, for the time being, is purely speculative. Nevertheless to the extent that the international community may be interested in the assumed oil potential of the Peninsula, the GBSC would like to state its policy position as follows:

Resettlement of the Indigenes: The indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula have been forced to leave their ancestral homes and be placed in refugee camps in Cross River State as required by the Green Tree Agreement of June 2006. First of all the GBSC has stated its opposition to the Greentree Agreements on grounds that it has no basis in international law, as it was signed by two parties who have never shared a maritime border between themselves. The first requirement is that the indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula must be resettled on their ancestral lands as Ambazanians. The GBSC believes that unless that is done, no one shall ever be able to exploit the oil resources of the Bakassi Peninsula because it shall prove to be even more unstable as the Niger Delta.

Environmental Protection: If there is to be any oil exploration and development on the Bakassi Peninsula, appropriate steps must be taken to ensure that the environment in which the indigenes live is not destroyed as it was done in the Niger Delta over several decades. The GBSC intends to request the assistance of the World Bank to conduct an environmental study in order to develop a matrix of guidelines that must be adhered to by all oil companies which want to explore and produce oil in the Bakassi Peninsula. Until this is done, no company shall be granted an exploration lease in the Bakassi Peninsula.



Sovereignty: Only oil companies from countries which have explicitly accepted that the sovereignty over the Bakassi Peninsula belongs to the British Southern Cameroons shall be allowed to participate in the development of the oil industry on the Bakassi Peninsula. Oil companies interested in the Bakassi Peninsula should make sure that their home government is taking a responsible position which is based on this principle. Oil companies shall eventually be considered on the basis of first come first served.

Formal Recognition: Only oil companies from countries which have granted diplomatic recognition to the Republic of Ambazania shall be allowed to participate in the development of the oil industry on the Bakassi Peninsula. Oil companies interested in the Bakassi Peninsula should make sure that their home government is taking steps towards granting diplomatic recognition to the Republic of Ambazania. Oil companies shall eventually be considered on the basis of first come first served.

Support for the Policy of Peaceful Negotiation of Separation: The GBSC is pursuing a policy of achieving the independence of the Republic of Ambazania through a peaceful process of negotiating the separation of the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun based on the Czechoslovakian model of 1993. This policy of peaceful separation involves the sharing of the assets and liabilities which form part of the common patrimony that the two peoples have constituted over a period of 46 years. The partial list of assets and liabilities to be shared has been stated in section 2.19 hereunder. Only oil companies from countries which have given public support to this policy of a peaceful and negotiated separation shall be allowed to participate in the development of the oil industry in Bakassi. Oil companies interested in the Bakassi Peninsula should make sure that their home government is taking steps towards supporting the policy of peaceful separation. Oil companies shall eventually be considered on the basis of first come first served.

Participation on the IPRC Consortia: The GBSC intends to grant (five) 5 refining licenses to oil consortia which are willing to establish refining facilities for export at the International Petroleum Refining Complex (IPRC) in Rio del Rey. Only oil companies which are in one of these five consortia shall be allowed to participate in the development of the oil industry in Bakassi;



Support for the GBSC: Only companies which have given support to the GBSC can expect be allowed to participate in the development of the oil industry in Bakassi;

Only oil companies that have satisfied all of the above conditions shall be granted an exploration lease by the GBSC. It stands to reason that no oil company that has not been granted an exploration lease by the GBSC shall be allowed to explore, drill, produce, refine or export petroleum from the Bakassi Peninsula. This ban shall be rigorously enforced!. 2.10 Energy Independence for the Republic of Ambazania One of the areas of great concern to Ambazanians has been how the country will go about achieving a reassuring level of energy independence, given the fact that there are, as of now, no generating facilities on the territory of the British Southern Cameroons, making the Republic of Ambazania entirely dependent on electricity from French Cameroun. There is concern that the government of French Cameroun shall try to frustrate the development efforts of the Republic of Ambazania by disrupting electricity supplies to the territory. The question is what are the options available to the Republic of Ambazania given its ambitions development plan under the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT. 2.101 Negotiations with French Cameroun At the moment the electricity requirements of the BSC are provided entirely through the grid that transports electricity from Edea in French Cameroun. However, some of the energy which is generated at the power station in Edea is provided by water from the Bamendjin Dam which extends into the British Southern Cameroons in Ngokitunjia Division. The GBSC intends to include the supply of electricity as one of the key elements in the negotiations which will be conducted for the peaceful separation between the British Southern Cameroons and French. The GBSC expects that once the agreements are reached, the terms shall be respected by all sides. However, the GBSC shall arrange to allow for the duty free importation of generators by business organizations and other entities which may want to guard against any power



shortages until the GBSC is able to implement its programme of energy independence. 2.102 Menchum Falls There has been much speculation over the years about the potential of the hydroelectric energy that could be generated from Menchum Falls. While this is a theoretical possibility, this will require very detailed studies by hydroelectric engineers into the possible location of a hydroelectric dam downstream along the Menchum Valley so as to create a catchments area big enough to store water in an artificial lake. A commonly held misconception is that it is the water from the fall itself that will be used to generate electricity from turbines located at the foot of the waterfall. Nothing can be further from the truth than this. The technology of hydroelectricity does not work on water from a waterfall itself; it works rather on water that is stored in an artificial lake which is created for that purpose. The amount of energy that can be generated from a hydroelectric facility depends on how much water can be stored in an artificial lake. Such an artificial lake will cover the whole of the Menchum valley, requiring the resettlement of thousands of villagers who currently farm along the Menchum valley. However, such projects are becoming very controversial with environmental groups which can generate enough opposition to prevent international funding agencies from supporting such a project. 2.103 Interconnection with the Federal Republic of Nigeria A more recent development which is worthy of note is that the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has awarded a contract to a Chinese firm to develop a 2600 MW hydroelectric project in Taraba State involving the construction of three



dams and a 2600 MW power station in Abong. The construction of such a powerful hydroelectric power station on the border of the BSC will almost certainly eliminate any possibility of a similar project being undertaken in the Menchum valley in the future. The GBSC shall enter into negotiations with the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in order to sign an agreement by which there shall be an interconnection from the proposed hydroelectric power station in Abong to the electricity grid in the BSC. This shall involve constructing a high tension power line from Abong to Nkambe. 2.104 Wind Energy An alternative proposal for energy independence, based on renewable energy sources is Wind Energy. This is an energy source which has not been sufficiently explored or exploited by developing countries. There are currently about 10 gigawatts (GW, or billion watts) of installed wind power extracting devices in the world, with Germany and Denmark leading the way in Europe, and the United States accounting for 1.7 GW. By far the most common wind turbines are horizontal axis machines that look much like a traditional windmill, but there have been many novel designs of both horizontal and vertical axis machines. Wind turbine blades operate in a similar way to an aero plane wing and use a lift rather than a drag mechanism, which means they are

much more efficient than their windmill predecessors. Efficiencies of up to 40 per cent are quoted, but there is a theoretical maximum efficiency of 67 per cent. In addition, a turbine may, on average, only generate 30 per cent of the time in a given location, due to seasonal and daily wind variations.



Wind turbine generators are increasingly used as alternative sources of electricity generation. They are much less harmful to the environment than other sources of energy, but are not always practical because they require average wind speeds of at least 21 km/h (13 mph).

Wind turbines today are typically rated at between 750 kilowatts (kW) to 1 megawatt (MW), with 2 MW machines now in production. The main components of a wind turbine are a rotor that drives a gearbox. The gearbox increases the rotational speed by approximately 50 times before driving an electrical generator. The highly variable nature of the wind means that, depending on the application, the power generated may be rectified and smoothed before being sold to the grid, or used in a nearby facility. The wind turbine also has sophisticated hydraulic and blade‐feathering systems to ensure optimum and safe operation.

Modern machines usually start operating when wind speeds reach about 19 km/h (12 mph), achieve their rated power at about 40 to 48 km/h (25 to 30 mph), and shut down in wind speeds of about 100 km/h (60 mph). The best sites for turbine generators have annual average wind speeds of at least 21 km/h (13 mph). Wind energy, which contributes very little pollution and few greenhouse gases to the environment, is a valuable alternative to nonrenewable fuel, such as oil. The most successful wind turbine generators for large‐scale power generation have

been of medium size (from 50 to 100 ft in diameter, with power ratings of 100 to 400 kw). These are sometimes installed in groups or arrays, known as wind farms. Some of the world's largest wind farms are in California, where wind turbines can generate power up to about 1,120 MW (a typical nuclear plant has a rating of about

1,100 MW). The cost to produce wind power in such applications is competitive with many other forms of power generation.



The Republic of Ambazania is endowed with topographical conditions (compared to other West African countries) which could enable the country to reap a windfall in terms of energy from wind generating systems. Apart from the aspect of their environmental friendliness, such wind systems are perpetually renewable. Furthermore, the flexibility of their location anywhere in the country will make it much easier to site such systems closer to rural areas which have not previously been served with electricity, thereby making it possible to make the goal of universal rural electrification much more easily realizable. The GBSC shall commission a major study with the assistance of engineering firms from countries which have experience in wind energy systems to identify potential and favorable locations in every administrative region of the Republic of Ambazania where wind farms can be established. A corporate body shall be setup to oversee the construction of wind energy systems in the various wind farms to generate electricity which shall be fed into the national grid. The multiplicity of such wind farms throughout the country will ensure that the Republic of Ambazania will be placed beyond the pale of vulnerability as far as its future electrical energy needs are concerned. Wind energy systems hold one of the keys, in a multiple key strategy, for transforming the economy of the Republic of Ambazania, by making electricity more affordably available in rural areas. Wherever electricity is available, it shall be much easier to introduce the gamut of services and complementary infrastructure which will enable schools and the public at large to plug into the global economic systems which are increasingly driven by ICT. 2.105 Potential Sites for Wind Farms

Njinikom in Boyo Tatum, Kikaikilaki, Jakiri, Mbiami in Bui Nkambe,Binshua, Binka Mbot, Mbiyeh, Ndu in Donga & Mantung Sabga, Santa, Bali in Mezam Mbengwi, Batibo, Ngie, Ngwo, Oshie in Momo Wum, We in Menchum



The wind farms shall be located as close as possible to the existing high tension power lines so that the generated power shall be fed into the electricity grid. The goal of this programme shall be to ensure that there is an installed capacity of around 1000 MW from wind generating systems around the country. International investors shall be invited to invest in wind energy systems as independent power producers. Their role shall be to generate electricity from wind systems and sell to the national grid at agreed prices. They shall be required to install and maintain the systems by themselves and train Ambazanians in the maintenance of wind systems. The GBSC shall also attach high priority to the construction of a high tension transmission line between Bamenda and Mamfe so that electricity generated from the wind farms that shall be based at the above locations shall provide the needs of Manyu. This power line shall also link up with the high tension line that has already been construction from Kumba to Manyu. This interconnection with all the cantons of the British Southern Cameroons shall be an essential first step towards the energy independence of the British Southern Cameroons.



2.11 National Telecommunications Backbone (NTB) The GBSC is proposing under the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT a political and economic blue print which will essentially make the Republic of Ambazania an open economy which will trade heavily with the outside world. A key element of the economic plan is to make sure that most goods entering the Republic of Ambazania shall be free of import duty. However, fiscal revenue shall be raised through Value Added Tax, Sales Tax, Excise tax, corporate tax, Payroll tax, Stamp duty and other forms of imposts that can be legitimately charged on business transactions without discouraging the inflow of investments and the creation of jobs. The objective is to ensure that the prosperity of the Republic of Ambazania shall be built on a skills driven economy. As skills in the 21st century shall be built on information and communications technologies (ICT), such skills acquisition must be built into the curriculum at all levels of education. In order to achieve this goal it has been envisaged that an optical fiber backbone should be laid across the Republic of Ambazania which will link all the main urban areas and the key border entry points. This optical fiber backbone shall make it possible to introduce and IT intensive educational system throughout the country. In order to place the Republic of Ambazania on the world’s information highway and enable the country to become an effective player in the global economy, a telecommunications backbone running on optic fiber shall be constructed parallel to the National Highways Backbone (NHB) and the National Highways Spurs (NHS). This ambitious telecommunications infrastructure project is aimed at ensuring that information and communications technology (ICT) is taken to every major urban centre in the Republic of Ambazania. At the moment there are two main GSM operators who have deployed networks in the BSC as part of their operations which are based in French Cameroun. Notwithstanding the licenses which were granted to them by the government of French Cameroun which gives them operating access to the economic space of the BSC, it is the intention of the GBSC to consider that it has the right to issue new licenses to any operator who wants to operate in the Republic of Ambazania.



The GBSC shall issue the number of licenses which are compatible with a realistic market prospect for the Republic of Ambazania. The license to be granted shall include the right and the obligation to lay the optical fibre backbone throughout the Republic of Ambazania in accordance with the long term plans of the GBSC. The optic fibre backbone shall be connected to SAT‐3, the undersea cable that runs from South Africa to Europe along the West African coast. This connection shall provide the Republic of Ambazania access to large bandwidth on the international information highway. The total length of the optic fiber backbone which needs to be laid across the Republic of Ambazania is only between 1500‐2000 kilometers. This length of optic fiber will place 90% of the secondary institutions in the Republic of Ambazania within reach of cheap broadband access. Such access will bring about a fundamental revolution in the type of knowledge based economy which will bring out the full potential of a small country of 6‐10 million inhabitants. The optic fiber backbone is far more important and far more urgent than asphalted roads because while asphalted roads facilitate physical communication between Ambazanian towns only, the optic fibre will facilitate communication between every Ambazanian with the whole world at large. The optic fiber backbone needs to be constructed through the “bushes” and the “forest” at the beginning, if necessary, and the asphalted roads will follow later. The optic fiber backbone shall serve several purposes such as the following:

As a country which intends to operate an open economy, the Republic of Ambazania intends to facilitate entry and exit to all international visitors coming on legitimate business. However, there is a need to have effective control of entry and exit of all visitors at land sea and air entry points into the



country. The laying of the optic fibre backbone will make it possible to link all entry points to a central immigration control system so that effective security is maintained at all times;

The health tourism industry will be greatly supported by a communication system which enables connectivity with health care centers and experts around the world making it possible for diagnosis and even surgery to be done with the active participation of medical experts located in other parts of the world;

The banking system will also benefit from the optic fiber backbone by the fact that they will be able to link all their branches and provide online banking services tot heir customers throughout the country;

The optic fiber backbone will also serve the oil industry because it will enable oil companies operating in the Republic of Ambazania to establish Virtual Private Networks (VPN) with their home offices;

The academic institutions in the Republic of Ambazania shall be able to run academic programmes with other universities around the world through the availability of broadband connectivity between their faculties.

Broadband internet shall be available throughout the country enabling Ambazanians to communicate with the rest of the world from any part of their country.

2.12 Monetary System 2.121 Introducing a New Currency: One of the key instruments of the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT which the GBSC shall introduce in the Republic of Ambazania shall be a new currency to be known as the “Ambazani”. The Ambazani shall be represented by the symbol “Æ”. Under a proposed decimalization scheme, an Ambazani “Æ” shall consist of 100 units of “Amba”, to be represented by the symbol “æ”. By introducing a new currency, the Republic of Ambazania shall regain full control of its monetary sovereignty which it lost in 1962 when the territory was absorbed into the Franc Zone. 2.122 Demonetization of the FCFA: Concomitantly with the introduction of the Ambazani, the FCFA shall be withdrawn from circulation in the Republic of Ambazania. In order to effect this change, the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA government shall print enough Ambazani notes and mint enough Amba coins and



issue them throughout the territory of Republic of Ambazania to all economic operators who shall in return be required to surrender their holdings of FCFA notes and coins. The surrendered FCFA shall be tendered to the Banque des Etats de l’Afrique Centrale (BEAC), issuing authority of the present FCFA currency. BEAC shall in turn be required to liaise with the French Treasury in order to ensure that the Republic of Ambazania shall be given an amount of Euros equivalent to the FCFA at the prevailing FCFA/Euro parity under the Operations Account Convention. As the convertibility of the FCFA is guaranteed by the French Treasury under the Operations Account Convention, the French Treasury is ultimately bound by virtue of the Operations Account Convention, to ensure that the Republic of Ambazania shall be credit with the Euros as part of its international obligations. The Euros so credit to the Republic of Ambazania shall constitute part of its foreign exchange reserves. The main reason why the Republic of Ambazania has chosen to pull out of the Franc Zone is because of uncertainty over the future of this type of monetary arrangement by which the FCFA continues to be tied to the Euro at a fixed exchange rate guaranteed by the French Treasury, even though France itself decided to abandon the French Franc in order to become a member of the Euro Zone. The inflexibility of this monetary arrangement is illustrated by the fact that at the moment, the Euro has appreciated in value against the US$ to the unprecedented level of $1.47/Euro, the fixed relationship between the FCFA and the Euro implies that the FCFA is grossly overvalued against both the Euro and the US$. The persistence of this state of exchange rate overvaluation has a negative impact on the economies of Franc Zone countries. The Republic of Ambazania has decided to issue its own currency because full flexibility over the control of monetary policy shall be needed to achieve the economic goals of the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT. However, the Republic of Ambazania shall be prepared to consider participation in the introduction of a common currency for the West Africa region when the time is right. 2.123 Creation of the Reserve Bank of Republic of Ambazania (RBA): The Republic of Ambazanian legislature shall pass a special statute creating the Reserve Bank of Republic of Ambazania which shall be charged with the functions of:



• Acting as the issuing house for the currency of the Republic of Ambazania; • Managing the monetary policy of the Republic of Ambazania; • Setting out the terms and conditions under which banks and financial

institutions can be established in the Republic of Ambazania; • Managing the Foreign Exchange Reserves of Republic of Ambazania; 2.124 Monetary Cooperation between the RBA and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN): In view of the presence of an economy of the size of Nigeria next door to a much smaller economy in the Republic of Ambazania, it is imperative that the RBA and the CBN should initiate discussions at an early stage in order to determine the most ideal conditions under which a new currency can be issued in the Republic of Ambazania without generating adverse effects on either side of the border. As it is expected that there shall be very strong cross border trade between the two countries, discussions between the RBA and the CBN shall include:

Definition of the monetary value of the Ambazani vis‐à‐vis the Naira; Close cooperation in setting interest rates; Managing the exchange rates between the Ambazani and the Naira so that the two currencies are mutually acceptable across each other’s border.

Managing the exchange rate between each of these currencies and a common international currency such as the US$ of the Euro.

Pursuing a common strategy for the eventual creation of a single currency in the ECOWAS region.

2.13 Banking & Finance The RBA shall have the authority to license banks which want to operate in the Republic of Ambazania. The basic requirement for issuing banking licenses shall be that the banks shall be required to have a branch network which ensures an effective presence in all the Cantons of the Republic of Ambazania in order to encourage a saving culture with the rural population. It shall be further required that the technology should be provided by the banks in order to provide online connectivity with all their branches around the country.



These principal requirements shall determine the minimum capital that investors must put up in order to be granted a banking license. In the first instance such inter branch connectivity shall be provided by the installation of V‐sats throughout the branches, but when the optic fibre backbone is finally established the banks can link up their branches on the optic fibre platform. The GBSC shall also introduce legislation which shall enable the banking system in the Republic of Ambazania to attract and manage off‐shore deposits. In order to achieve this goal the economic strategy of the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT shall include the constitution of healthy foreign exchange reserves which will enable all off‐shore depositors to enter and exit the banking system of the Republic of Ambazania. 2.14 Education Training of a Skilled National Workforce The economic model which REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA is proposing for the Republic of Ambazania requires that the country should develop a highly trained workforce. The educational system of the Republic of Ambazania shall be conceived on the basic goals of training an educated and skilled workforce which is able to handle the challenges of the emerging world economy. This shall be achieved by adopting the following strategy for the three levels of the educational system: 2.141 Universal Basic Educations (Free): In keeping with the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations, the objective of the government shall be to provide universal and compulsory primary education to all children of school going age (612). This is an obligation of the state and the state shall make the necessary investments in infrastructure and train the teachers in order to ensure that all regions of the country have the facilities needed to attain the MDGs. Foreign assistance shall be strongly solicited in order to meet the commitment to providing UBS. 2.142 Compulsory Secondary Education (Not Free): The government shall also impose secondary education as a basic requirement for children throughout the



REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA between the ages of 1218. However for this level of education, the government shall pursue a policy of partnership with the private sector by licensing secondary education to private sector operators including NGOs and religious organizations. All licensed operators shall however be required to operate educational institutions with boarding facilities. Existing confessional schools shall be given strong incentives to expand their intake capacity to higher levels. The percentage of partnership and load sharing between the public and private sector shall be driven by the resources that are available to the state to pay for its own share in terms of cost of infrastructure and teaching costs. 2.143 Standard Testing for Secondary Graduates In order to be sure about the quality of secondary education which is being offered in public and private institutions, it shall be a standard requirement that all graduates of secondary institutions should take a standard test to assess their quantitative as well as reading and comprehension skills. This test shall be administered by a well‐established foreign testing service in order to be absolutely sure about its objectivity and neutrality. The results shall be used to assess the teaching quality of the various secondary institutions and serve the dual purpose of an entry requirement into tertiary institutions in the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA as well as in foreign institutions. It shall also serve the purpose of bench‐marking the quality of secondary education in the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA against the rest of the world. The testing cost shall be financed by the REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA.

2.144 Quality and Competitive Tertiary Education (Fee Paying): All post secondary education in the Republic of Ambazania shall be placed in the hands of the private sector. However, the University of Buea shall remain in the hands of the government. The primary role of the government shall be to ensure that entry into tertiary institutions should be driven by competition for the limited number of places that shall be dependent on the intake capacity of each institution. However, in order to ensure that the intake capacity for tertiary institutions is adequate, the government shall identify suitable locations for the construction of new tertiary institutions throughout the country. The title deeds for land in such



locations shall be perfected by the government and given for a symbolic price to groups which shall be licensed by the government to construct the infrastructure required to operate a tertiary institution. Foreign organizations and corporate bodies from various corners of the world shall be invited to invest in the education sector in order to develop a skills capability in areas where they have already demonstrated their experience in other parts of the world. In order to ensure quality, all tertiary institutions shall be fee‐paying institutions which shall be free to attract foreign students on a fee‐paying basis as well. In order to enable the government to play its own role in the achievement of the national goals in skills development, a future REPUBLIC OF AMBAZANIA government shall devote between 3‐5% of the GDP or 20% of the national annual budget to education, whichever is the higher. Experience has shown that developing countries which have invested heavily in education (Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Mauritius etc) by devoting a large percentage of their GDP to education have achieved very rapid rates of economic development. 2.145 Policy on Languages Language is an important tool of communication. The economic model which is being planned for the Republic of Ambazania requires that the entire country should be highly extroverted. In order to achieve this goal, the strategic use of language shall be one of the key instruments of this extroverted posture. In order to achieve this goal, English shall serve as the languages of instruction at all levels of education from primary to tertiary education. However, French shall be a compulsory subject to be taught from Primary School to Secondary School. This strategy is consistent with the geographical reality of having both French‐speaking and English‐speaking neighbors. Notwithstanding this language policy in education, English shall be the official and national language of business, government, the judiciary. However for secondary education other international languages shall be introduced in which students must acquire basic proficiency as a graduation requirement. There shall be a requirement to attain basic proficiency in one other



major modern language as a graduation requirement or secondary education. The modern languages that shall be introduced for this language programme shall include: German, Chinese, Japanese and Russian. These languages have been selected because of the role that the respective countries are expected to play in world economy in the years to come. The modalities of introducing these modern languages into the educational curriculum of the Republic of Ambazania shall be defined by the Ministry of Education. The diplomatic missions of the respective countries shall be invited to provide teaching materials that can be used to teach their languages in the various secondary institutions. Language teachers shall be invited from the respective countries under cultural cooperation programmes to provide teaching. Similarly, there shall be a requirement to attain basic proficiency in one major African language as a graduation requirement or secondary education. The African languages that shall be introduced for this language programme shall include: Arabic, Hausa, and Swahili. Language teachers shall be invited from all qualified countries to provide teaching. The modalities of introducing these African languages into the educational curriculum of the Republic of Ambazania shall be defined by the Ministry of Education. 2.15 Anti Corruption Strategy In order to ensure that the Republic of Ambazania shall be a corruption‐free society, the government shall adopt a strategy of ensuring the civil service is well trained and well paid. This policy shall be applied to the civil service at all levels including the police, the armed forces, the judges, the customs etc. It is also the intention of the GBSC that members of government should be well paid and placed under the protective umbrella that will enable them to avoid temptations. It is known that wage disparities between the private sector and the public service have been responsible for attracting poor quality employees into the public service and breeding corruption in the economy. In order to forestall this phenomenon, the Republic of Ambazania shall ensure that the wage gap between public service employees and the private sector should be eliminated. With the passage of time, the public service should become an elite service which should attract premium



wages over the private sector. This will ensure that the public service remains dedicated to providing a service which is aimed at ensuring that the private sector will continue to expand in the future. Secondly, a reliable pension system must be introduced which shall be managed by independent pension fund managers who are licensed and regulated by the state. This will ensure that when public and private sector workers reach retirement age, they should be able to envisage their retirement with adequate social security. This anti‐corruption strategy is intended to be preventive rather than curative. Experience has shown that in countries where adequate preventive measures were not put in place to forestall corruption, the diseases will slowly take control of the entire system like a malignant cancer making it necessary to introduce curative schemes to fight corruption as a criminal offense. When this happens it is usually too late. 2.16 Establishment of Commissions The areas that have been covered in the SOCAM PROSPERITY PACT are not exhaustive. There are many other issues that require further refinement. It has been deemed necessary to constitute commissions which will prepare and refine government policy in many other areas. GBSC has decided to create a number of commissions which shall be charged with the formulation of policy directions on various sectors of the economy. The recommendations of the various commissions shall be reviewed by GBSC and rendered public at the right time and place. The commission recommendations shall eventually form the basis of legislation to be submitted by GBSC to the National Legislature for approval into law. The following commissions have been created:

Separation Commission Constitutional Affairs Commission Taxation Commission Agriculture Commission



Public Health Commission Mining Commission Banking & Monetary Commission Securities & Exchanges Commission Companies & Allied Matters Commission National Security Commission Advanced Technology Commission National Brain Trust

2.17 Membership of ECOWAS One of the key foreign policy measures that shall be introduced by the GBSC shall be to apply for membership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The choice of ECOWAS is based on the fact that the countries of this zone have taken much bolder steps to promote regional cooperation and integration amongst themselves. The second reason why the Republic of Ambazania believes that its future lies in ECOWAS is that the indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula, who currently identify themselves as Nigerians, will find it much easier to adjust to the passage of sovereignty over the Bakassi Peninsula to the Republic of Ambazania, if the new country is a member of ECOWAS. The GBSC shall hold discussions with the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in order to establish modalities by which the indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula who are currently living in Cross River State as refugees shall be allowed to return to their ancestral homes in the Bakassi Peninsula as Ambazanians. 2.18 Relations with la République du Cameroun The Republic of Ambazania places a high value on its future relations with la République du Cameroun. The people of Republic of Ambazania consider the people of la République du Cameroun as brothers in the literal sense of the word. The two people shared the same political and economic space for 45 years and the relationship between individual families have become intertwined. Unfortunately, the people of Republic of Ambazania have lived through situations which convinced them that, even two twins have to live separate lives. The people of Republic of Ambazania are convinced that the union with la République du



Cameroun failed a long time ago. We do not see our future as part of the political system which has governed la République du Cameroun during the last 50 years. However, the people of Republic of Ambazania have avoided the temptation to trigger an armed revolt which could result in needless bloodshed between innocent people. That is the reason why we conducted a signature referendum in September 1995 in order to test the mood of our people. The response was that they overwhelmingly want a peaceful separation. In spite of this result we waited for another 12 years to form the Restoration Government of the British Southern Cameroons which shall be responsible for handling the negotiations for peaceful separation on behalf of the Republic of Ambazania. Our intention is to ensure that there is a peaceful separation in which no one emerges as the loser. In making this proposal we are using the people of the Czech and Slovak Republic as our models. When the people of Czechoslovakia realized that their union was not working, they voluntarily decided to separate the two peoples into two separate Republics rather than to trigger another war in the middle of Europe. The Slovak people demanded their independence from the Czechoslovakian union which came into existence on 14 November 1918. After 75 years, the leaders of the country agreed to peacefully dissolve their union into a Czech and Slovak Republics on January 1, 1993. The two countries are now doing very well as separate states. Based on our experience of the last 46 years of informal cohabitation between the British Southern Cameroons and la République du Cameroun, we are sure that we no longer want to live under indirect colonial rule of la République du Cameroun. However, we do not want to trigger a costly and catastrophic war in this sensitive region of Africa. However, if French Cameroun chooses to use the force of arms to block the peaceful separation of the two countries let no one be in doubt that there will eventually be an armed conflict between the Republic of Ambazania and French Cameroun. We intend to prepare ourselves to act in self‐defense. But such an armed conflict will still result, without any doubt, in the eventual independence of



the Republic of Ambazania. But the terms of settlement will be much different from those that will be achievable if both sides opt for peaceful separation. Hence GBSC invites the government of la République du Cameroun to study this programme very carefully in order to decide how and when it intends to respond to our invitation to engage either directly or through third parties in negotiations aimed at a peaceful disengagement between la République du Cameroun and the Republic of Ambazania. 2.19 Negotiation of Separation. It is of paramount importance for the welfare of the people of the BSC and French Cameroun that the separation between the two people should be peaceful and negotiated. In this respect, the GBSC is fully cognizant of the fact that in spite of the fact that there has never been a legal union treaty between the two territories, there has nevertheless been a common patrimony established between the BSC and French Cameroun during 46 years of cohabitation. It is the desire of the people of the Republic of Ambazania that a formula should be found under a mutually acceptable intermediary to divide this common patrimony between the Republic of Ambazania and French Cameroun. To this end the GBSC has established the following as the key elements of this common patrimony that should be negotiated:

The Civil Service The Army The Air force The Navy The Police The Gendarmerie Diplomatic Missions Share participation in BEAC Share participation in BDEAC Share participation in the World Bank Share participation in the IMF Share participation in the African Development Bank Share participation in the Islamic Development Bank



Foreign Exchange Reserves of la République du Cameroun held with the French Treasury;

SONARA SCDP CNPS Oilfields that have been developed Oilfields that have not been developed Revenue from the Chad Petroleum Pipeline All existing parastatals companies established since 1961 All shares owned by the state in commercial organizations Return of Financial assets illegally transferred from the BSC to French Cameroun in 1972;

Return of all documents and public records illegally removed from the archives of the British Southern Cameroons in 1972;

Public Sector Debt outstanding;

The GBSC is prepared to hold negotiations with representatives of French Cameroun on all these items of common patrimony based on the principle that either:

All assets and liabilities shall be shared or No assets or liabilities shall be shared.

Negotiations shall be done under the auspices of the African Union. The agreement reached thereafter shall be submitted to the Peace & Security Council of the African Union for adoption. Notwithstanding our peaceful intentions, it is nevertheless necessary to state for the record that if for any reason the Government of French Cameroun creates conditions which lead to armed conflict between the British Southern Cameroons and French Cameroun over the issue of separation, the GBSC wants to go on record as taking the view that the separation under the scenario of conflict shall lead to bloodshed on both sides and will result in the destruction of property. Under those circumstances, the option of sharing assets and liabilities must be discarded as being unrealizable. The GBSC shall in those circumstances accept the consequences of the fact that the two countries shall separate without sharing either assets or liabilities.



2.20 Relations with the Federal Republic of Nigeria The Republic of Ambazania places a high value on its future relations with the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The people of Republic of Ambazania consider the people of Nigeria as brothers in the literal sense of the word. The two people shared the same political and economic space for 45 years between 1920 and 1961. At the moment when the Republic of Ambazania is seeking a peaceful separation from la République du Cameroun, we see the Federal of Nigeria as being able to play a very crucial role in making this possible. As one of the parties which are involved in the Bakassi crisis, Nigeria has a vested interested in ensuring that the independence of the British Southern Cameroons is achieved through peaceful means because if the situation ever degenerates into an armed conflict, the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall not fail to be affected by it. It is for this reason that the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria should use its position and influence in the region to ensure that the African Union and the United Nations should take up the question of the self‐determination of the British Southern Cameroons. It should also accept the British Southern Cameroons as a legitimate interlocutor in the settlement of the Bakassi dispute because we have shown that the British Southern Cameroons and la République du Cameroun have never been bound by any legal agreement whatsoever. Consequently, the British Southern Cameroons is supported by international law when it claims that it is the legitimate owner of the Bakassi Peninsula. 2.21 Relations with France The Republic of Ambazania places a high value on its future relations with France. France is a very important country which continues to exercise great influence throughout Africa and in the world at large. French companies have made important investments in the territory of the British Southern Cameroons, particularly in the oil & gas sector. Their knowledge of this sector demands that the Republic of Ambazania should continue to cultivate good economic links with France.



It is important that France should understand the desire of the people of the Republic of Ambazania to forge a separate existence from la République du Cameroun. The differences in political culture between the people of la République du Cameroun and the people of the Republic of Ambazania are as profound as those between the French and the British people. This is not surprising because the people of la République du Cameroun and the Republic of Ambazania inherited their political culture from France and Britain respectively. Therefore, France and the United Kingdome which are both members of the UN Security Council should jointly spearhead and encourage the first peaceful separation in Africa in the interest of peace. It shall be the first of its kind in African history. 2.22 Relations with the United Kingdom The Republic of Ambazania places a high value on its future relations with the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is a very important country which continues to exercise great influence throughout Africa and in the world at large. It is important that the United Kingdom, which was the administering authority over the United Nations Territory of British Southern Cameroons, should understand the desire of the people of the Republic of Ambazania to forge a separate existence from la République du Cameroun. The differences in political culture between the people of la République du Cameroun and the people of the Republic of Ambazania are as profound as those between the French and the British people. This is not surprising because the people of la République du Cameroun and the Republic of Ambazania inherited their political culture from France and Britain respectively. Therefore, France and the United Kingdom which are both members of the UN Security Council should jointly spearhead and encourage the first peaceful separation in Africa in the interest of peace. It shall be the first of its kind in African history. 2.23 Conclusions We have set out in this document to present our vision for the new country which we propose to call the Republic of Ambazania. This blueprint of the principal policies which we shall pursue is intended to mobilize the public opinion of the people of the Republic of Ambazania into believing that such a country is not only possible, but that its existence is in the horizon.



The document is intended for the international community which we want to engage in constructive discussions over our future because we want the coming into being of the Republic of Ambazania to be peaceful. However, in the event that the situation eventually degenerates into an armed conflict, we are confident that the international community will already know exactly what we are fighting for.



Part III A Constitutional Framework for the

Republic of Ambazania 3.1 Introduction

As we move closer and closer to the day when the statehood of the Republic of Ambazania will become a reality, one of the issues which we need to think about very carefully is how we shall devise a credible and sustainable democratic system which will stand the test of time. Many African countries are discovering that their democracy is not working. It has become impossible to hold free and fair elections. A group or cabal has cornered political power and it is difficult to wrestle the power away from them. People are beginning to feel disenfranchised because their vote does not count.

The Republic of Ambazania has great ambitions to become a beacon of prosperity in Africa. In order for this goal to be achieved, it is necessary to introduce a political system which will make it possible to plan the development of the country and be sure to have the support of the people behind it. Ambazania must aim at developing as rapidly as Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and other tiny countries which have discovered how to move it human resources at a faster pace than other countries. This requires developing a democratic system which is unique to us; but which works so well that other countries will be interested in discovering what we have done that works so well.

The Chinese have come up with their system which suits them. It involves selecting a person from a very large Politburo chosen by the Chinese Communist Party which meets from time to time to choose from its midst, the President who will lead their nation. It has its flaws because for one thing there is no one‐man‐one vote in China. But it has not stopped propelling the Chinese economy into the stratosphere.

The Americans have their system which involves elections for state houses of assembly, state governors, Congressional elections for the House and the Senate and of course the Presidency. The system has its merits and its flaws, the most notable of which is the fact that the American system easily allows and untested person to emerge as President of the United States. But the American system has this admirable system of checks and balances which enables the Executive, the Legislative and Judiciary to operate quite independently. It has enabled the United States to create the most powerful economy in the world.

The British have their famous parliamentary system which also has its unique flaw as well. The people never really elect the person who ultimately wields an incredible about of



power as Prime Minister. Its unique strength lies in the fact that no one who is completely unknown can emerge as the British Prime Minister.

Countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, and South Korea have built unique democratic systems which have enabled them to emerge in two generations to become economic powerhouses, while their contemporaries in Africa have collapsed politically and economically.

Since 1961 we have lived through the bitter experience of fake and fraudulent elections in French Cameroun which have been bedeviled by the preoccupation and obsession with the idea of not allowing certain groups to emerge as leaders and come to power.

The question is: what kind of democratic system do we intend to introduce in the Republic of Ambazania which shall be so unique to our circumstances that it shall be sustainable? The reason why this issue ought to be of concern to all of us is that those who will come after us and who would have not understood what we went through in over 46 years in order to achieve the statehood of Ambazania will take many things for granted.

A British politician, the late Tony Benn, proposed a test of democratic legitimacy through the following questions:

What Power have you got? In whose interest do you exercise it? To whom are you accountable? How do we get rid of you?

The democratic system which the people of the Republic of Ambazania shall eventually introduce, as their system of government, must answer these questions in a satisfactory and consistent manner.

3.2 Fear of Domination

The experience which the people of the BSC lived through when they were governed as part of Eastern Nigeria was seminal because we were concerned about the issue of Ibo domination. This is what led the government of the United Kingdom, as the Administering Authority, to authorize the creation of the Southern Cameroons House of Assembly in 1954. When Southern Cameroonians finally had to vote in the UN‐sponsored plebiscite of February 11, 1961 they chose to join French Cameroun even though our preference would have been for full independence in 1961. Unfortunately we were not given that option. That fateful choice was made primarily because we did not want to go back to Ibo domination in Nigeria. That choice led us to face annexation and colonization from French Cameroun which has turned out to be the cruelest form of domination.

When the Republic of Ambazania is finally established it will only endure if it is founded on some principles which are aimed at ensuring that no segment of our population ever again feels that they are dominated by another group. Competition between groups is inevitable



and acceptable; but domination is not acceptable because domination always leads to political marginalization. Unless our constitution is conceived in a way that deals effectively with the issue of domination, our enemies shall exploit our differences to destabilize the Republic of Ambazania and all the hopes and aspirations which we have for making our country a prosperous place for our children shall come to naught.

3.3 Democratic Principles

It is absolutely necessary that we should lay out some enduring principles which will guide us and future generations in making certain choices and decisions which will avert the potholes and the traps into which many countries have floundered as a result of failure to think through certain things in advance.

First of all we all take it as axiomatic that we intend to be governed by democratic principles. That means that the idea of a military dictator, a King or some other type of unelected potentate ruling over the Republic of Ambazania is completely foreclosed.

The second democratic principle is that there shall be a system by which the people shall go about choosing through an electoral process, the people who shall be vested with the power to govern them.

If these democratic principles are retained as axiomatic, the questions become:

How the system shall be devised so that we are absolutely sure that the choices which the people shall make in casting ballots in an election shall effectively is reflected in the announced results.

How can we make sure that candidates for elections are sure that they won or lost?

How can we ensure that a loser will accept defeat at the polls and shake the hands of the winner?

In other words, what should be done in order to be 99% sure that the peoples votes count and that it is not the counter who counts?

Herein lies the crux of the matter because many African countries have embraced democracy without committing themselves to the idea that peoples votes must count.

3.4 The Democratic Caricature

The result of this democratic caricature is that many people are getting to power through fraudulent elections and, as a result, do not really feel that they owe the electorate any debt or obligation because they were never really put in power by the peoples vote. Political leaders who lack legitimacy as a result of the fact that they got to power though fraud have time and time again taken their countries to the doghouse. The crux of a democratic system therefore lies in devising a method of ensuring that people in power have been truly elected and as such will owe a debt of legitimacy to the people who put them there.



Developing countries which have belatedly and reluctantly adopted the democratic system have made the mistake in thinking that the problem is solved by introducing an independent election monitoring system which goes by different names in different countries. Unfortunately, that is not true. In many cases, it turns out that the independent election monitoring system was merely superimposed on a structure with which it is incompatible. It requires that many other pieces in a sociopolitical and a socioeconomic jigsaw puzzle should fit together before a democratic system becomes sustainable.

3.5 Performance vs. Identity Politics

A genuine democratic system is a political system where the people punish governments which perform poorly and sustain those which perform well. Such a system is characterized by free and fair elections because those who win know what they have to do to be retained in power. Those who lose also know what they have to propose in order to be the preferred party the next time around. Losing elections is not the end of the world because the system will guarantee a level playing field the next time around. This is what has been identified as performance politics. This is the hallmark of truly democratic systems.

Many developing countries are still operating a system where loyalty to the government in power is maintained regardless of whether it performs or not. The government thus sees its obligation as to reward its party stalwarts with patronage in order to ensure their continued loyalty. Those who are in opposition are forever consigned to the status of opposition and even enemies of the government and stand no chance of ever getting to power. This is what has been identified as the politics of identity. In the politics of identity, it is not possible to hold free and fair elections. Indeed the politics of identity is antithetic to democracy.

It is clear that when a government in power is retained regardless of its performance the country cannot advance economically. Ultimately, everyone including the most loyal person to the ruling party must become poor. The politics of identity will always ruin a country in the long run. So the question is how can a country manage the transition from the politics of identity to the politics of performance?

The people of the Republic of Ambazania have experienced nearly 47 years the cruelest form of the politics of identity in French Cameroun. Two individuals, namely Ahmadou Ahidjo and Paul Biya managed to maintain themselves in power for a combined period of over 50 years, in spite of the fact that their performance did not justify it. The result is that the people of the Republic of Ambazania and of French Cameroun are poorer today than they were 25 years ago. All over the Republic of Ambazania and la République du Cameroun, the level of poverty has reached a level never seen before.

The Ambazanian people see themselves as having been some of the primary victims of this type of politics. Indeed it is because of its impact on their lives that the drive for separation became stronger and stronger with every passing year that the two peoples were together.



The challenge facing the Republic of Ambazania shall be how to design a constitutional system which will ensure that the politics of performance is solidly anchored from the very beginning into the foreseeable future.

Key Elements of the Constitution

Here are some of the ideas which SCAPO believes must be considered in order to ensure that the Republic of Ambazania shall become democratic and remain democratic for generations and generations to come:

3.6 System of Autonomous Cantons

The Southern Cameroons had 13 administrative divisions under the 1996 constitution of French Cameroun. It is proposed for effective administration that the country should be broken into the following cantons:

Canton Capital 1 Ako Aya Widikum 2 Bakassi Akpabio 3 Boyo Fundong 4 Bui Kumbo 5 Kilum Oku 6 Donga Nkambe 7 Fako Victoria 8 Kupe Manenguba Nguti 9 Lebialem Fontem 10 Mantung Ndu 11 Manyu Mamfe 12 Meme Kumba 13 Menchum Wum 14 Mezam Bamenda 15 Momo Mbengwi 16 Ndian Mundemba 17 Ngokitunjia Ndop 18 Nsangri Binka

The idea of autonomous cantons is not intended to create a federation because a federal structure is the result of the coming together of entities which were not previously associated. However, the idea of fiscally autonomous cantons is intended to ensure that the power to legislate, tax and spend in certain key areas which affect the daily lives of the people is devolved to the people to the lowest level that is fiscally prudent. This will enable development to take place at the grassroots level throughout the country. The principle behind this idea is known as subsidiarity. This is a key element in the political jigsaw puzzle which is intended to ensure that no segment and not part of the country should feel marginalized or left out.



3.7 The Bakassi Peninsula

The indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula are currently living in refugee camps in Cross River State in Nigeria. This is the fate to which they were consigned by the Greentree Accord which requires that those indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula who do not wish to be Camerounians should leave and be resettled elsewhere. The people of the Republic of Ambazania have rejected the Greentree Accord because it has no basis under international law. They also reject the accord on moral grounds because it is not morally acceptable that a people should be forced, without any process of consultation, to abandon their ancestral homes in order to facilitate the implementation of an agreement which has no basis under international law.

When the statehood of Ambazania is restored, they shall be entitled to return to their ancestral homes in the Bakassi Peninsula to continue their lives as Ambazanians. This is the message which SCAPO has already communicated to the leaders of the Bakassi Peninsula. The certification of the indigenes for citizenship shall be done by the traditional rulers of the Bakassi Peninsula. The constitutional framework of the Republic of Ambazania shall make the Bakassi Peninsula an autonomous canton.

3.8 Cantonal Control of Elections

The element of novelty in the cantonal system that is being proposed for the Republic of Ambazania is that the cantons shall have full autonomy to organize and conduct all elections at the cantonal level for people to serve at the cantonal level as well as at the national level. This makes it completely unnecessary to have any centralized election body at the national level. Whenever the electoral process is controlled at the center, sooner or later someone will come to power and try to use it to perpetuate himself in power. That is the reason why it is absolutely necessary that each Canton should have the full powers to conduct all elections within the Canton, whether it is for Cantonal Councilors, National Assembly, National Senatorium or Presidential Elections. Each political party’s role is to file the names of its candidates and place them on the ballot in each Canton and let the Cantonal government do the rest.

The Cantonal Electoral Commission shall be responsible for maintaining a voter’s register. This will enable each canton to call an election on any subject at any moment that the canton finds it necessary. Some cantons may even find it necessary to conduct a referendum on a subject that is peculiar to them. These are some of the important features of the concept of autonomy for future cantons in the Republic of Ambazania.

3.9 The Signature Balloting System (SBS)

Elections as a mechanism for selecting leaders and conferring on them the power to govern has become such a critical exercise in the governance in countries that a way must be found to ensure that all elections pass the following test:



Every citizen who has the right to vote cannot and should not be denied the opportunity to vote for any spurious reasons;

The fact that a citizen has exercised his right to vote, and how he or she voted, must be verifiable;

What the voters have decided through the voting process must correspond to the result that is announced;

It should be made impossible for anyone to contrive successfully to commit electoral fraud;

The Republic of Ambazania should introduce the most credible electoral system in the world;

The question which we want to address is what kind of electoral system can the Republic of Ambazania introduces which will satisfy all of the above conditions?

A new electoral system shall be introduced which will ensure that elections are truly free and fair. The new system shall be known as the Signature Balloting System (SBS). By the Signature Balloting System, the electorate shall be required to proceed to voting booths where, instead of casting a ballot into a box, they shall instead be required to sign their names or thumbprints against the candidate of their choice.

The Signature Balloting System shall be organized in such a way that each voter shall be required to provide some relevant identify information about themselves into pre‐determined data fields before signing or affixing their right and left thumb prints. Those who can sign their names shall append their signatures into a signature box and then affix their left thumb print into the relevant box. Meanwhile those who cannot write shall affix their right thumb print in the signature box and their left thumb print in the relevant box.

The Signature Balloting System has the advantage that it is 99% fraud proof because there will be a permanent verifiable record of how each person voted. The Cantons shall not be required to spend any money printing ballot papers in order to conduct elections because a Signature Balloting Sheet shall serve that purpose.

The results of any voting station shall be known instantly at the end of the day and the collation of results from all cantons can be done within a few hours. The results of any election shall be archived for posterity. It can also be transformed into database format enabling researchers and politicians to study and understand voting trends and patterns. Indeed the introduction of the Signature Balloting System in the Republic of Ambazania shall be the greatest political innovation since the introduction of democracy as a form of government by the Greeks.

3.10 Role of the Clergy in the Electoral System

As all elections shall be conducted independently by each canton, it is proposed that the Cantonal Electoral Commissions should be chaired by the Clergy. The Republic of Ambazania is a deeply religious country where over 95% of the population is of the



Christian faith. Most Ambazanians either profess to be Catholics, Protestants, Baptists, Methodists, Jehovah Witnesses, 7th Day Adventists, etc. The religious leaders from all these denominations can be relied upon to be fairly neutral personalities who can serve as the chairmen of the Cantonal Electoral Commissions. They shall be the ones solely responsible for announcing the results of elections conducted in a canton.

3.11 Cantonal Administration.

Each canton shall elect a Cantonal Council which shall govern the affairs of the Canton. The election of the Cantonal Council shall be on the basis of a list system which shall be formed by each political party. The number of seats of each canton shall be determined by the constitution which shall the minimum number and the maximum. A system of proportional representation shall be introduced for the cantonal council so that in case no party is able to garner an absolute majority of votes for the Cantonal Council, the seats shall be distributed amongst the various political parties in direct proportion to the votes which the parties have garnered. This will ensure that there are checks and balances in the management of the resources which are allocated to the canton from the NSA.

The Cantonal Council shall superintend the expenditure of resources allocated to the state from the NSA and for the collection of additional revenue which accrue to the canton in authorized areas. The Cantonal Council so elected shall elect a Chairman of the Cantonal Council. The Chairman so elected shall be Governor of the Canton. Generally speaking, the more autonomous the canton is allowed to be administered, the more united the country itself will be because no Ambazanian will feel that anyone is coming to impose their way of life on their backyard or their front yard.

3.12 The National Solidarity Account (NSA)

The Republic of Ambazania shall have a National Solidarity Account (NSA) into which all fiscal revenue of the country shall be paid. From the NSA the revenue shall be allocated to the National Government and to the Cantonal Governments in accordance with certain principles that shall be adopted by law. The amount of money to be allocated to cantonal government shall be based on a formula that shall include population.

The NSA is a necessary ingredient of a sustainable democracy because this is the only way to ensure that every part of the country gets an annual revenue allocation from the central pool of resources so that the basic developmental needs of the population are taken care of.

The sad experience which we have had from the association with French Cameroun is that for 45 years, we have seen how year after year, the resources of the country were high jacked by the government in Yaoundé and used almost exclusively in favor of certain provinces to the total neglect of the rest of the country. It is largely for this reason that most towns in the Republic of Ambazania are not connected by all‐season motorable roads to the present day. This mistake cannot be allowed to repeat itself in the Republic of Ambazania.



3.13 Balanced Development

The idea of the creation of autonomous cantons in the Republic of Ambazania will lead to the desired results provided that all the cantons are linked together by adequate transport and telecommunications infrastructure. SCAPO has proposed a National Highways Backbone (NHB) and a National Highways Spurs (NHS) consisting of a network of roads which shall be built to the same standard to link all the cantons of the Republic of Ambazania. The construction of roads should never be presented as a favor which the government is doing to a region or a canton. The construction of a road network is intended to ensure that the country as a whole functions as one single economic entity and enables all the regions of the country to contribute to economic growth.

SCAPO has also proposed the construction of an Optic Fiber Backbone (OFB) to link all the cantons of the Republic of Ambazania. The OFB shall be laid along the tracks of the NHB and the NHS. The role of the OFB is to ensure that all the cantons are connected to the information superhighway which will make it possible to develop an economic system which is driven by information and telecommunications technology (ICT). The NHB, NHS and the OFB are the platforms on which the government of the Republic of Ambazania can ensure that there is balanced development throughout the territory.

3.14 Contribution to the National Cake

Many ethnic and regional tensions have arisen out of the sentiment that the resources and the wealth of the country are coming from one section of the country. Over the decades, large numbers of people from the northern cantons of Ambazania have settled in southern cantons as a result the development of plantations in coastal regions following the expropriation of lands from indigenous populations and the deliberate strategy of the plantation owners of importing non‐indigenous labor for these plantations. The development of an economy which is too dependent on oil & gas or forest exploitation has also given rise to tensions because such natural resources are native to geological provinces which are governed by the laws of nature and not man.

The Republic of Ambazania must develop and economic strategy which ensures that the economy is driven by the use of factors of production and resources which are found everywhere. A people‐oriented economic strategy which emphasizes the development of human skills is one of the key approaches for ensuring that contributions to economic growth can be generated by the population wherever they are based. SCAPO is proposing among its economic strategies the following:

The expansion of the oil palm industry in the cantons of Donga, Fako, Ndian and Manyu (Ako Aya) so that the Republic of Ambazania can produce up to 1 million tons of raw palm oil per year;

Development of Wind Farms in the Cantons of Donga, Mantung, Bui, Mezam, Boyo, Momo, Menchum, Kilum to generate electricity from wind turbines. The Republic of Ambazania has the unique topography to become a major producer of electricity from



wind energy, part of which can be exported; this will be the main strategy for reducing dependence of electricity from la République du Cameroun. It is planned that wind turbines can be made to produce as much as 1000 ‐2000 Megawatts of electricity in 10 years, enabling the Republic of Ambazania to become a net exporter of electricity;

Exploitation of timber in Manyu The development of oil & gas off‐shore and onshore; The development of an IT based service industry in all cantons.

3.15 Democracy and Demography

If the principle of one‐man one‐vote is to be accepted as axiomatic, then this requires that the population of the country should be known as precisely as possible. Many developing countries have gone through great lengths to doctor census results simply because the true results would have shown population trends which are unfavorable to those who are in power. The doctoring of census figures is actually the first step towards electoral fraud. If the Republic of Ambazania is to have an enduring democratic system, it must first and foremost have accurate population statistics about itself. The number of people who are living as residents in a canton must be known precisely and such information as their canton of origin must also be known.

3.16 Nationality

An Ambazanian shall be any person who was born of Ambazanian birth or who has naturalized in the Republic of Ambazania in accordance with the naturalization procedures. In order to be considered as an Ambazanian by birth, the person must be certified as such in his village of origin by the traditional ruler(s) of that village. The village of origin principle shall be defined according to the origin of either parent. In other words one can be considered to be an Ambazanian by birth through their mother or through their father, but not necessarily both. This means that anyone whose father is originally from Douala and whose mother is originally from Mbengwi can claim Ambazanian nationality by birth through the Canton of Momo. However such a person must renounce their nationality of the République du Cameroun. In the case of indigenes of the Bakassi Peninsula, it shall be required that upon accepting Ambazanian nationality, they should renounce their Nigerian nationality.

That certificate shall be absolutely essential in proving the ancestry of that person. Persons, who cannot prove their ancestry by obtaining that certificate, must apply for citizenship by naturalization. In that process they must first choose a village or town of adoption. That town or village shall be where such naturalized persons shall be registered to vote. This naturalization procedure is intended to ensure that a person seeking to be naturalized must choose a canton which shall accept them before the process can go forward. The naturalization procedure shall be defined in such a way that it is transparent but it shall take at least five years from the date of application to become a full citizen of a canton.



Ambazania is a small country in terms of its geography. It shall be required that all Ambazanians should register to vote only in their canton of origin or citizenship. This will force all Ambazanians to pay more attention to the rate of development of their cantons of origin.

Persons who migrated a long time ago from one canton to another canton in Ambazania may apply for citizenship in the canton or village where they have settled for long. Cantons which accept such applicants shall be increasing the population base on which their share of revenue from the NSA shall be calculated. However, such persons, once accepted as citizens of the canton shall also have the right to vote and be voted for in that canton.

3.17 Citizenship and Nationality

There shall be a distinction between the notion of Citizenship and Nationality. Citizenship shall be defined in relation to the canton. But nationality shall be defined in relation to the country. For example a man shall be an Ambazanian national but a citizen of Bakassi or Menchum Canton.

All Ambazanians shall have the right of residency anywhere in the Republic of Ambazania. This means quite simply that they have the right to live and be protected by the law enforcement agencies wherever they may wish to be for reasons of business, schooling or employment. However, they shall only exercise their rights of citizenship in their cantons of citizenship.

3.18 Bicameral Chamber

The Republic of Ambazania shall have a National Assembly and a National Senatorium. For the National Assembly, the number of seats to be allocated to each canton shall be based strictly on its population. However, each canton shall have the same number of seats in the National Senatorium. The functions of these two chambers shall be defined by the constitution.

3.19 Dispersion of the three Branches of Government

SCAPO has proposed in its political and economic blueprint that the capital of the Republic of Ambazania shall be in the Bachuo Akagbe in the Canton of Manyu. But he National Assembly and the National Senatorium shall remain in the historic town of Buea. Meanwhile the Supreme Court and other institutions which are linked to the judiciary shall be moved to the Canton of Donga & Mantung. Meanwhile the Reserve Bank of Ambazania shall be located in Bamenda.

This physical dispersion of the three branches of government is intended to ensure that the three will be truly independent. Secondly, it will ensure that Ambazanians will get used to traveling the length and breadth of the country in order to acquire a holistic view of the country’s development. Thirdly, it will avoid the syndrome which has been created when



all the institutions of the state a re located on one town, leading to the feeling that some citizens are “indigenes” while others are “strangers or settlers”. An Ambazanian must feel that he is at home wherever he is in the Republic.

3.20 Parliamentary vs. Presidential System of Government

Experience has shown that the root cause of electoral fraud which has become the most dangerous and recurrent form of corruption on developing countries is the introduction of the Presidential system of government. This system of government calls for the choosing of a President through a nation‐wide poll which calls for one‐man one‐vote throughout a nation. Experience has shown that the Presidential system shifts far too much power into the center of government and the temptation for the acquisition of these powers has become the root cause of the decline of political accountability.

The other weakness of a Presidential system is that it has been shown to be incapable of protecting minorities against domination. Once an individual acquires Presidential powers at the center, the tendency is to do everything to maintain himself in power for life and to rig elections and otherwise commit any level of fraud necessary to remain in power.

The introduction of the presidential system also requires the imposition of term limits. This inherently introduces instability because there must be a change in leadership and direction when a new president is elected. These changes in leadership will eventually always result in change of policies. This can lead to the creation of a climate of uncertainty for investors who need to make long term commitments.

The advantage of a Presidential system is that an emerging country may need a fairly strong leader to hold the country together at a time when many things can go wrong.

The parliamentary system has the merit that the voters are only required to elect their representative to the National Assembly or the National Senatorium as the case may be. And it is the party that finally selects who the Prime Minister should be.

This system has the advantage that all elections will remain a local affair and this makes it much easier to ensure that it remains corruption and fraud free. The effort to maintain a corruption free parliamentary system will be even more successful if single‐candidate constituencies are carved out in various cantons so that the risk of contagion is eliminated as any fraud will be limited to one constituency. It also has the merit that the voters only vote for people whom they truly know and not for someone from a distant canton who may come from time to time to make electoral promises which will never be kept.

The other major advantage of the parliamentary system is that it avoids the instability that is imposed by term limits in the presidential system because the same person can remain Prime Minister or Chancellor as long as his party continues to have a majority in parliament. Even if the party with a parliamentary majority decides to change the Prime Minister, there will still be continuity in policy because the same party will continue to govern with the same policy platform.



Countries which have benefited from the policy stability of the parliamentary system are Singapore and Malaysia where the same party has been in power for many years having been reelected by the voters as a result of the prosperity which the party and the leadership has brought for the people.

Based on all these consideration, it is the belief of the GBSC that a parliamentary system provides the best guarantees of political and constitutional stability needed for the success of the Socam Prosperity Pact.

3.21 Council of Traditional Rulers (CTR)

Each canton in Ambazania shall have a Council of Traditional Rulers (CTR). Membership of the CTR shall be by birth right and by succession in accordance with the rites and traditions of the culture of the people. The traditional rulers shall be strictly prohibited from getting involved in partisan politics. The other principle governing the CTR is that there shall be equality amongst the traditional rulers based on the concept of one stool and one cup. The total number of stools in the CTR shall be limited by law so that the traditional rulers of that canton shall decide amongst themselves which among them shall be entitled to occupy one of those stools. The traditional rulers so constituted shall have a constitutional role in the country because they shall elect a Chairman of the CTR for a period which shall be determined by law.

One of the important aspects of the CTR is that it will always be made of individuals (traditional rulers) who are indigenes of the area and sons of the soil. While the Cantonal Council will eventually reflect the diverse composition of people who have settled and live in the Canton, ultimately the CTR determines this mix because it is the CTR which will decide who can become an Ambazanian by being given citizenship in the canton. The CTR is therefore a key instrument for ensuring that no canton will eventually be controlled politically by unwanted outsiders.

Some of the functions of the CTR shall be to define the rules governing the certification of Ambazanians for citizenship and for applications for naturalization by foreigners that have chosen their canton for residence and citizenship. Development everywhere in the world is frequently driven by foreigners. It shall be up to each canton to decide how friendly they want their canton to be towards foreigners who want to naturalize and settle down as Ambazanians. If they want to become just residents, the CTR will decide what their rights in the canton are. If the foreigners find that one canton is not too friendly towards foreigners, they are free to seek residence and citizenship in another canton which is friendlier.

But the catch is that the more people a canton has, the greater their share of the resources from the NSA. However, anyone who is eventually given citizenship in a canton must also be given the right to vote and be voted for.



3.22 National Council of Culture and Tradition (NCCT)

All the CTRs of the various Cantons shall meet from time to time in one single forum to be known as National Council of Culture and Tradition (NCCT) to discuss various constitutional issues that shall fall within their competence. One of the functions of the NCCT shall be to elect two of their peers to the positions of President and Vice President and Head of State of the Republic of Ambazania.

3.23 How to Choose a Head of State.

The Republic of Ambazania should consider two options for choosing a President:

(1) Full Presidential System: Ambazanians can consider the introduction of a Presidential system, subject to certain checks and balances such as the idea that the power to elect a President resides with each autonomous canton independently. Any presidential system which will depend on elections being controlled by a central electoral body will eventually be corrupted by power hungry people who will come to power and not want to leave. On the other hand a cantonally‐based electoral system will require that each canton shall cast its ballot separately for candidates that are registered by political parties for the post of President.

The election of a President is an extremely important act of national investiture which must be conducted in such a way that is verifiable and leaves no room for doubt as to the conferment of democratic legitimacy on the winner. It is proposed that if the Ambazanian people should opt for a Presidential system of government, the election of the future President of the Republic of Ambazania should be done by Signature Balloting System (SBS).

(2) Ceremonial Head of State: In a parliamentary system, the Executive powers rest with the governing party under the leadership of a Prime Minister or Chancellor. However, the country still needs a ceremonial Head of State who is the symbol of the state. It is proposed that as an alternative to the full Presidential system, Ambazania should also consider the introduction of ceremonial Presidency.

The NCCT shall be required to meet in secret to select two of their fellow traditional rulers to become the ceremonial President and Vice‐President of the Republic of Ambazania. The process by which they go about choosing one of their peers to be President and Vice President shall be completely secret and shall remain strictly a royal matter. Their only obligation is to make sure that they emerge from their conclave with a President and a Vice President who have been chosen by their peers. The traditional ruler so elected shall become the Chairman of the NCCT as well as the Head of State of the Republic of Ambazania.

This is the method which shall ensure that traditional rulers are involved in the affairs of the state without becoming involved in partisan politics. Traditional rulers must always maintain their dignity. This will also ensure that the quality of people who are chosen as



traditional rulers throughout the country will improve because each traditional ruler will become a potential Head of State.

The selection of a ceremonial Head of State from the NCCT should be for fairly short term of office (e.g. 1‐2 years) so that the position shall rotate between many traditional rulers in the country. Their role shall be very clearly stated under the constitution. If the presidential term of the selected traditional ruler is made to last too long, it could create the impression that some traditional rulers are more important than their peers. Meanwhile the executive powers shall remain with the Prime Minister or Chancellor whose party has a parliamentary majority.

3.24 Constitutional Nomenclature

In order to underscore the idea that the Republic of Ambazania is embarking on the founding of a new nation based on a unique set of principles and ideas, the GBSC shall propose as part of the new constitution the adoption of a unique nomenclature to designate certain key positions in the political system of the country. The following guidelines shall be used to the position designations:

Common Designations Ambazanian Nomenclature President (Head of State) President (Head of State) Vice President Vice President Prime Minister (Head of Government) Executive Chancellor (Head of Government) of

the Republic) (EC) Deputy Prime Minister (Deputy Head of the Government)

Executive Vice Chancellor of the Republic (EVC)

Ministers Executive Secretaries Minister of Finance Executive Secretary of the Exchequer Secretary General in the Presidency Executive Secretary Policy Coordination Ministers of State (Vice Ministers) Executive Vice Secretaries Permanent Secretary Permanent Secretary Member of Parliament (MP) Delegate of the People (DP) Senators Senators House of Assembly House of Assembly Senate Senatorium

In view of the role that shall be played by traditional rulers in the constitutional system of the Republic of Ambazania, there is a need to develop a common nomenclature for all the traditional rulers in the country. Although they are known in some places as chiefs and in other places as Fons, they are all considered everywhere by their subjects as “Father of the People”. For this reason the constitution shall require that all traditional rulers should be known by their formal titles as follows:



His Royal Highness Chief/Fon First Name, Second Name, Father of the People (FOP) of Village.

For instance:

HRH Chief Victor Nfon Mukete, FOP, Kumba HRH Fon Mbinglo, FOP, Nso HRH Fon Fogum Gorji Dinka, FOP, Widikum HRH Chief Arrey, FOP, Ossing HRH Chief Endeley, FOP, Buea HRH Fon Angwafor III, FOP, Mankon HRH Fon Abumbi III, FOP Bafut HRH Fon Polycarp Ndiboti Ngwayi, FOP, Tabenken HRH Chief Fowanko, FOP, Ntem

3.25 Political Parties and Freedom of Association and Assembly

The freedom of association and assembly shall be enshrined as basic rights under the constitution. This is the basic right which will enable Ambazanians to associate with themselves to form political parties. Once formed, it is up to the political parties to organize themselves in order to establish a national footprint in every canton and to have a following throughout the Republic of Ambazania. While the freedom of association will be unrestricted, it will be quickly discovered that it is useless to try to create too many political parties because all elections are contested at the local level only in this system. By restricting elections to a contest between candidates at a local level, this will result in the emergence of no more than two or three strong political parties in the whole country. The country will be guaranteed to have a strong opposition system which will keep the democracy alive.

When elections are due for the National Assembly or the National Senatorium, the political parties will organize themselves in order to choose their candidates for the various seats in each canton. Beyond that the actual election shall be conducted by each canton and the results announced separately by each canton.

3.26 The Role of Law Enforcement Agencies

Experience has shown that the arming of the police force is always the beginning of the police state. Furthermore, where cops are armed, robbers will eventually become equally armed. In many countries where electoral fraud has become the order of the day, it is an armed police force that is usually deployed to implement the fraud. Similarly, where the citizens are unreasonably denied the right to assemble or to demonstrate, which are considered as fundamental rights in any democratic system, it is usually an armed police force that is used to enforce the denial of the democratic right to assemble.

So challenge is this: what are some of the ground rules that can be adopted in a developing country so that there is a balance between having a law enforcement agency which has the



means to provide security to the population without arming it to the extent that it becomes or can be used by unscrupulous politicians to obstruct or impede the functioning of a democratic system? SCAPO is proposing that the future constitution of the Republic of Ambazania should be drafted to reflect the following features:

The Armed Forces shall be appropriately armed, but they shall be confined to their barracks unless when they are mobilized to perform their constitutional duties of protecting the territorial integrity of the Republic of Ambazania;

The Police Force shall be primarily responsible for providing security to the population in the towns and on the highways; while they must be highly mobile and equipped with anti‐riot gear, they shall not be armed.

On the other hand there shall be an armed Mobile Wing Police force, primarily restricted to barracks, which shall be specially trained to intervene only in crisis situations where the use of force becomes necessary; the modalities for calling out the Mobile Wing Police force and its rules of engagement shall be defined by law;

There shall be a Frontier Police Force (separate from the immigration or customs service) which shall be stationed along the land, air and sea frontiers of the Republic of Ambazania and it shall be fully armed;

There shall be no law enforcement organization similar to the Gendarmerie which has been used and misused in most French speaking countries in Africa and which has had a very negative role in the lives of the Ambazanian people since October 1, 1961.

The possession of Den guns for ceremonial purposes shall be unrestricted and not be subject to any licensing. However, the possession of any firearms which fire projectiles shall be subjected to strict licensing conditions.

This policy of guns and law enforcement is intended to ensure that throughout the Republic of Ambazania, the citizens are adequately protected. However, they shall feel free from the overwhelming presence of gun carrying law enforcement agents in their day to day lives.

3.27 The supremacy of the Courts and the Judiciary

In order to underpin all the structures that will be built from the cantons to the national level, there will have to be a credible judiciary whose objectivity in interpreting the law is beyond question. As such when the courts issue a ruling, its immediate and full application or appeal to a higher court are the only two possible options. When this process reaches the Supreme Court, its ruling is final and binding. The bedrock of any democratic system is the courts.

3.28 Adoption of the Constitution by Signature Balloting System (SBS)

The importance of the constitution requires that there should be a special procedure for adopting it by the people. It is proposed that the constitution should be adopted by the



Signature Balloting System so that there is physical evidence of the number and identity of all eligible voters who sign from every canton of the country. The record shall be preserved for posterity. Similarly, amendments to the constitution should also be voted by the Signature Balloting System in every canton of the Republic. This will also serve as a reliable check of the voting population in every canton of the country.

It will be recalled that the Signature Balloting System was first used in the signature referendum of September 1995 which has become one of the vital pillars on which the Republic of Ambazania has built its case for independence. That is because this mode of consultation has made it possible for the people’s verdict of 1995 to be preserved, consulted and used later. This referendum result shall be available to any international bodies which want to consult it in order to verify the basis of the legitimacy on which the independence of the Republic of Ambazania was proclaimed on August 14, 2006.

3.29 Conclusion

We have seen many cases in history where countries have fought to become free from domination by external forces just to find themselves trapped by some other forces which were not expected simply because there was no effort to think through certain problems in advance. As the Republic of Ambazania moves closer and closer towards the restoration of its statehood, the greatest danger facing the country after independence shall be how to go about introducing a system of government which satisfies the aspirations of all Ambazanians. How should we protect those who fear being dominated by others? How can we make sure that an Ambazanian feels at home wherever he is in the territory? How can we ensure that many people who have lived in Ambazania for generations do not continue to be called foreigners?

SCAPO has endeavored to produce this constitutional preview document in order to educate the population and the rest of the world on the fact that one of the reasons why the union between the Republic of Ambazania and French Cameroun failed was because the two people have totally different visions as to how they want to govern themselves. The people of the Republic of Ambazania and French Cameroun have been trapped in a system of identity politics which has made it possible for two individuals to remain in power for over 50 years. As a result the two countries are literally dying of poverty after 47 years of political association. The people of the Republic of Ambazania have finally decided that “It is better for two brothers to live apart than for them to die together”.

SCAPO has decided to go public with these ideas so as to sensitize Ambazanians on the need to start reflecting on theses very important issues. These are the ideas which those who shall be charged with drafting the constitution of the Republic of Ambazania must take into account so that the constitution shall be the fundamental law on which we can transform the Republic of Ambazania into a beacon of prosperity.

socam prosperity pact

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