The Minister of Arts and Culture, Ama Tutu Muna has called on musicians in Cameroon to bury the hatchet and unite to build up the music industry.
The Minister made this appeal over the weekend in Douala, during an event to donate guitars to 170 musicians.
The donation was an initiative of the Musicians Trade Union of Cameroon (SYCAMU) and the International Music Federation (FIM).
Minister Ama Tutu Muna had the singular opportunity to meet with a good number of artists and listen to their complaints.
The meeting comes at a time when divisions amongst musicians got worse after the elections of the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Cameroon Musical Art Company (SOCAM).
During the occasion in Douala, SYCAMU President, Romeo Dika dissected the issues that have caused the disintegration of this elite group in Cameroon.
He identified drunkenness, jealousy, laziness, irresponsibility, tribalism and disrespect of authorities, as some of the wrongs that have to be corrected if the group must come together like one man.
Big names in the Makossa world like Salle John, Joe Mboule and Esso Essomba mounted the rostrum to encourage the younger generation of artists, calling on them to receive the hand stretched by the Minister of Culture, Ama Tutu Muna.
The Minister on the occasion, assigned artists present to bring around their counterparts who for one reason or another had cut off with the Ministry of Culture; the most renowned of these artists, Sam Mbende who was Board Chairman of the defunct Cameroon Music Corporation (CMC) and Ndedi Eyango, Board Chairman-elect of SOCAM.
Minister Ama Tutu Muna advised the artists to come together and create an association that will assemble all ideological differences and factions that presently exist. Such an association will efficiently represent the interest of the artists.
She reiterated that accreditation will be granted only to a united association.
