Will The President of the Republic of Cameroon, Paul Biya, recover the stolen money and release Abah Abah, Atangana Mebara, Lydian Eyoum and others?

Paul Biya normally resumed service on Monday, June 27, after a month of vacation. During his absence, one of his former close associates, Jean-Marie Atangana Mebara was convicted by the Special Criminal Court to 25 years’ imprisonment as a result of a charge involving misuse of public funds. An amount estimated at more than FCFA two billion.

Before the verdict of Wednesday, June 22, 2016, the former Minister Secretary General of the Presidency of the Republic, had already been convicted twice respectively to 20 and 15 years of prison for charges related to the misuse of public funds.

As the former right hand of Paul Biya, several other former barons of Biya are imprisoned. All are accused of embezzlement. It is estimated that over FCFA 200 billion are to be recovered. And since the operation Sparrow Hawk was launched, less than ten billion FCFA were recovered.

Thus, a body of opinion believes that it’s useless to detain for a long time or even for life, the “big thieves of the Republic” while the stolen money is not returned in the coffers of the Plublic treasure.

While some Cameroonians ask the Government to put more pressure in the recovery operations of the misappropriated funds, others invite Paul Biya to learn from the case of Karim Wade in Senegal.

On the night of Friday, June 24, 2016, Karim Wade walked free from jail in Senegal. He spent about three years. The former minister and son of Abdoulaye Wade, former Senegalese President, who was condemned for illicit enrichment, still had three years to serve. But he received a presidential pardon.

However, in a communique issued by the Senegalese presidency, it is specified that the magnanimity of Macky Sall, the current Head of State of Senegal, does not exempt Karim Wade’s repayment of the embezzled public funds.

“The President of the Republic, by decree number 2016-880 of June 24, 2016, pardoned gentlemen Meissa Karim Wade, said Ibrahima Aboukhalil Bibo Bourgi and Alioune Samba Diasse. It should be clarified that this exemption only sentenced to undergo imprisonment remaining.

Thus, the financial sanctions contained in the judgment of March 23, 2015, and the recovery process already underway remain “indicates the Senegalese Presidency Communication Service. Is this possible in Cameroon?