Southwest Governor, Bernard Okalia Bilai, has warned civil status registrars not to sell Cameroonian nationality to foreigners.

“Avoid selling and auctioning our nationality to foreigners,” said the Governor to the civil status registrars assembled.

The Governor sounded this warning during the launching of the civil status rehabilitation programme in Buea to train civil status registrars and others in the region specialised in civil status procedures from January 27 to February 9, 2016.

Okalia instructed Divisional representatives, especially civil status registrars to fully play by the rules assigned to them to make the best of what they are being taught.

He enjoined the stakeholders responsible for the rehabilitation programme to put an end to irregularities and give way to honest, secure and reliable modern civil status registration to guarantee a better and secured Cameroon society.

The Project Manager of the French consultancy firm CIVI.POL/CONSEIL undertaking the training, Karine Sahli-Majira, said that the civil status registrars would be trained alongside lawyers, court registrars and others specialised in civil status procedures.

“The civil status registrars must move along with modernisation,” said Karine Sahli-Majira. She further stated that the next step would be to digitise certificates. The CIVI.POL/CONSEIL Project Manager disclosed that the French administration has supported Cameroon with funds to complete the civil status rehabilitation plan.

The civil status rehabilitation programme, among other aspirations, would help fight against the production and acquisition of fake certificates and documents. Most importantly, it is aimed at curbing the auctioning of Cameroonian nationality to foreigners who may constitute a threat in internal and external security.

The civil status rehabilitation programme, started in 2010, is aimed at modernising the civil status registers through computerising and archiving data to suit the needs of time.

It will also serve other needs like that of the security forces, electoral planning, programming investment projects, implementing infrastructural development and other vital information needed by the State.

While appreciating the representative of the French Ambassador, Governor Okalia thanked the French Government for the financial assistance to accomplish the rehabilitation of the civil status programme.