Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Mimi Mefo Info
Published on 2024-02-23 19:22:35
The head of the department at the new university erected in the Sun Rising region was forced to give a technical opinion on the subject proposed to the students, in order to avoid the wrath on his young colleague.
At the University of Bertoua, in the East region, an axe hangs over the head of a teacher. During a make-up test, a teacher questioned his Master’s I students in political science on a rather sensational subject. “The Cameroonian presidential election of 2018 was won by Paul Biya, candidate of the Cameroon People’s Democratic Rally (RDPC) with 7128 of the votes cast. Do you think this success is due to the strength of this political party or rather to electoral fraud by the ruling system?” asked Dr. Michel Oyane to his students.
In the eyes of the dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Science at the University of Bertoua, this test seems audacious and sensitive. He called on the head of the department to request a technical opinion from him.
Responding to the call from his superiors, the head of the department clearly comes to the aid of his young colleague who could suffer the consequences from the dean. “It should be clarified from the outset that at the Master’s level of study, where students are supposed to be equipped with research methodology and political analysis, the student is expected to respond to the question in reverse. In the first part, he will show that the argument of electoral fraud is a rhetorical grammar always used by non-winning actors in a general African context, where the victories of ruling parties are always suspected, even when they are genuine. In the second part, the student is expected to present the criteria and strengths that a political party must have to win an election. He will then assess these criteria and strengths in the context of the RDPC,” added the head of the department. His conclusion is clear. “A student who did not attend the class cannot understand this subject other than superficially.”
It should be noted that this is not the first time an exam has sparked controversy within a university in Cameroon. This should not even exist, for the simple reason that the university is a non-political place where there are no taboo subjects.
Joseph Essama
Read the original article(French) on Mimi Mefo Info
