This article was first published in the ‘Cameroon Outlook’ newspaper of Wednesday, January 2, 1983 by Nico Ngwa, precisely 31 years ago. Mr. Paul Biya had been President of Cameroon for just two months. About a month afterwards, the Head of State turned up in this Provincial capital on his first ever visit out of Yaounde.

Without batting an eyelid, the President sang like a lark. He made promises to the effect that he was going to put an end to problems that bothered the civil servants. He promised to [personally] supervise the tarring of the Ring Road, with “winged haste”. In short, the President virtually promised to transform Cameroon into an El-Dorado. A few years later, both he and his cohorts were promising, or better still, singing the popular refrain of “Health For All By The Year 2000.”

All of these turned out in the long run to be a mere empty dream. By that magical year, Cameroonians were dying in droves on account of poor health and the President was still making more promises.

The Ring Road, 31 years on, remains untarred. It is only grudgingly attemted to be done in calculated “electoral seasons”.

Give it to His Excellency! After procrastinating for decades on a second bridge over the Wouri, his portraits finally appeared on every pacing distance of the old bridge that was constructed about 60 years ago. Whereas landlocked and economically disadvantaged nations like Mali and Niger got third and second bridges respectively over the Niger River without any "idiotic fanfare" and avoidable propaganda. Here, it was just recently that work on the second Wouri Bridge took off.

In the Northwest like other parts of Cameroon, a cholera endemic is high. Because of the epileptic supply of brownish, smelly and highly commercialised water that could even put off excuse me to say pigs. Talk of deliberately courting epilepsy!

Read on: The National Water Corporation, SNEC, has been seriously lambasted by the inhabitants of Bamenda in the Northwest Province for long standing water problems that have been plaguing the town recently. SNEC on the hand has remained indifferent to the yearnings and aspirations of dwellers of Bamenda town. This sad situation has even worsened by the closure of many taps.

SNEC authorities seem to hang on the excuse that the public in general is too careless with the handling of taps and damaged ones have utterly been abandoned. So it seems as though the damages were beyond repairs. We need not stress on the indispensability of water to any community.

The worst hit area is Azire. Those near the old fish pond must travel round town to Longla Street. The more unfortunate ones towards the General Hospital have to take taxis to fetch water from long distances using reserviors. Long queues are seen at the lone operational tap at Longla Street.

A tap at the Mobile Police Station was the nearest functioning one. But on New Year's Day some recalcitrant or perhaps merciless khaki boys seized the buckets of some girls and other users were immediately scared off. Not too long ago, four students of Promise Typing Institute visited this reporter requesting for drinking water.

We had nothing to offer and as the Xmas and New Year had dazed us all, we just ran around and borrowed two bottles of ‘Top Orange’ and offered them.

Even Longla Street is not safe. One tap serves over two thousand people. School children have walk long distances despite the reckless driving on their way to this crowded tap. One needs to see the speed at which drivers ply this road.

Surely parents hold their breath in their mouths when their children leave for the taps. This tap situation below RCM Small Mankon has four openings but only one works. There is never an hour without long queues around the tap stretching to the road. Fighting here has become the order of the day. A little girl broke her knee cap during one of these brawls, yet the situation has not changed.

Perhaps the loss of a human life may ring a bell. Commercial Avenue is not out of the trouble. Those who go to their business spots not taking water have to survive on soft drinks. Not a suitable substitute anyway. Others must buy water from the petrol stations. Students of PCC Mankon and those around are being compelled to drink from a small dirty stream that runs below their school.

It could recalled that during the recent meeting of Heads of Service in the Northwest Province SNEC came under serious criticism. Representatives of Bamenda Urban Council were even asking for a possible substitute company to replace this SNEC.

As a matter of fact, public opinion has swung against this corporation. It is the topic of discussion in most of the bars around town. The situation is just too sad. After all these, one cannot help questioning the reliability of some Government institutions. Water rates are high, yet the corporation does not cater for the interests of customers.

These are the people who finance the corporation’s big bosses with comfortable cars when in reality they have nothing in return. Which is more reliable SATA (which provides for the suburbs) or SNEC the comfortable town dweller? Just the simple fact that SNEC holds on the towns betrays a business motive. Any Cameroonian true to his conscience will definitely accept that SNEC and SONEL are failing us all. The Post Newspaper