CATTU warns of civil strife if...

The Cameroon Teachers Trade Union, CATTU, has warned President Paul Biya to avert what it calls the heavy storm that is gathering

against his survival by immediately re-instating civil servants’ salaries to the pre-1993 status.

The trade union has also asked Biya to introduce a corresponding increase to match with the present dispensation.

“This is a Government that is using Shylock means, willingly, willfully, rendering its people to remain in abject poverty and misery. In

1993, the budget of Cameroon stood at FCFA 700 billion. In 1993, 100kg of “mukuta” (jute) bag of rice was sold in the market for FCFA

10,000 and 50kg of that same rice sold at FCFA 6,000. Secondary and high school teachers were paid FCFA 450,000 a month. All of our

primary schools had teachers who were well paid. But today, in 2014, it pains me in particular that the 100kg of rice is non-existent and

we have 50kg of rice selling for FCFA 20,000,” said Wilfred Tassang, CATTU Executive Secretary General who is also the 1st National

President of the Confederation of Public Service Trade Unions.

Tassang was speaking to the press at the CATTU head office in Bamenda, Tuesday, March 25, as he carried out a comparative analysis of

the budget and salary situation of civil servants between 1993 and 2014 with facts and figures to press home the point that Cameroonians

have been submerged in abject poverty and deprivation by the present Government “using witchcraft, corruption and voodoo.”

He further said, “Don’t forget that in 2014, our budget has risen from FCFA 700 billion to over FCFA 3,000 billion and somebody of my

index 740 barely earns a little above FCFA 200,000. Despite teachers earning miserable salaries, most schools are without teachers.”

He complained that Government keeps “money for top civil servants, Ministers, and Directors to embezzle”.

“This same Government is full of bad faith because it has refused to inspire growth of the private sector and since the majority of workers

are civil servants who earn very mean wages, the living conditions of the people have remained awful,” said Tassang.

He added, “Let President Biya and his entire Government get this message straight from us that we do not want to arrive at a general

strike by paralyzing the public service in Cameroon, because we are capable of doing this. We do not have arms, so let’s avoid reaching a

general strike. He should not only re-instate the pre-1993 salaries of public servants but make sure there is an increase.”