عنوان

The Travails of Democratization in Cameroon in the Context of Political Liberalisation since the 1990s

شماره

LA107237

زبان متن نوشتاري يا گفتاري و مانند آن

انگلیسی

عنوان اصلي

The Travails of Democratization in Cameroon in the Context of Political Liberalisation since the 1990s

نام عام مواد

[Article]

نام نخستين پديدآور

Charles C. Fonchingong

محل نشرو پخش و غیره

Leiden

نام ناشر، پخش کننده و غيره

Brill

متن يادداشت

Nurturing Cameroon's fledgling democracy is proving a herculean task against the backdrop of disintegrative forces: flawed electoral process, ethnicity, identity consciousness, clientelism, endemic corruption, regionalism and neopatrimonialism inherent in the state apparatus. The undercurrents on the interface of statehood in Cameroon's democratization process from the '90s are explored. There is an enormous gulf between the state and the masses with the elite playing a prominent role in political sloganeering and regionalism, leading to a heightened sense of exclusion. The bureaucratic ethos still remains largely centralised despite the discourses on decentralisation. The simmering Anglophone problem is still brushed aside. The paper illuminates on the disruption and fragmentation of national politics which has led to the emergence of identity and ethnic constructions in the search for belonging to the polity. The question of legitimacy and civic participation is largely distorted due to the disinterestedness of the populace in the state machinery. This is rendered more fluid by the manipulative tendencies of the regime, ruling elite and a fractured opposition. The fundamental question is whether Cameroon was adequately prepared for multiparty politics. Rekindling Cameroon's botched democratic process hinges on the institutionalisation of consensus building, democratic accountability and participative governance. Nurturing Cameroon's fledgling democracy is proving a herculean task against the backdrop of disintegrative forces: flawed electoral process, ethnicity, identity consciousness, clientelism, endemic corruption, regionalism and neopatrimonialism inherent in the state apparatus. The undercurrents on the interface of statehood in Cameroon's democratization process from the '90s are explored. There is an enormous gulf between the state and the masses with the elite playing a prominent role in political sloganeering and regionalism, leading to a heightened sense of exclusion. The bureaucratic ethos still remains largely centralised despite the discourses on decentralisation. The simmering Anglophone problem is still brushed aside. The paper illuminates on the disruption and fragmentation of national politics which has led to the emergence of identity and ethnic constructions in the search for belonging to the polity. The question of legitimacy and civic participation is largely distorted due to the disinterestedness of the populace in the state machinery. This is rendered more fluid by the manipulative tendencies of the regime, ruling elite and a fractured opposition. The fundamental question is whether Cameroon was adequately prepared for multiparty politics. Rekindling Cameroon's botched democratic process hinges on the institutionalisation of consensus building, democratic accountability and participative governance.

تاريخ نشر

2004

توصيف ظاهري

33-59

عنوان

African and Asian Studies

شماره جلد

3/1

شماره استاندارد بين المللي پياييندها

1569-2108

مستند نام اشخاص تاييد نشده

Charles C. Fonchingong

شماره بازیابی

10.1163/15692108-00301003

نام الکترونيکي

فرمت انتشار

p

نوع ماده

[Article]

کد کاربرگه

275578

سطح دسترسي

a

تكميل شده

Y