PM Yang Orders Probe into Management of CMC, SOCAM Financial Resources

 By FC Ndi

Prime Minister Philemon Yang has issued a Prime Ministerial Text creating a commission to look into the problem of authors’ rights in Cameroon. The text signed on July 8, 2015 by the Prime Ministry excludes Arts and Culture Minister, Ama Muna from playing frontline role. The text also gives commission members three months to submit their reports and proposals on how SOCAM and CMC would be merged.

PM Yang

The most interesting thing is that the Committee has been placed under the boots of the Secretary General in the Prime Minister’s office. More so, the Prime Minister also ordered probe into the management of CMC and SOCAM financial resources. Panic is said to have gripped some high profile personalities in the Ministry of Arts and Culture as some of them may end up in prison. 

What is however intriguing is that the newly created SOCACIM was completely ignored?

At last, the altercation and identity crisis between Prime Minister, Head of Government Yang Philemon and Minister of Arts and Culture, Ama Tutu Muna over the creation of a new author’s rights structure has reached it logical end as suspected by impressionists. The long accumulated conflict exploded on May 22, 2015 when Prime Ministry signed a communiqué giving Ama Muna 48 hrs to dissolve the newly created structure, SOCACIM. Ama Muna was accused of violating the dispositions of Article 75 of Law No 2000/11 of December 2000 on authors and neigbours’ rights as well as Article 20 of Decree No 2001/956/PM of November 1, 2001. More so, Minister Ama Muna is also said to have disrespected the dispositions on general instructions  as well as Code No 002 of 1^st October 2002, on the organization of government work. It should be recalled that on April 28, 2015 Ama Tutu Muna took some artists to her Mbengwi constituency where she imposed the creation of SOCACIM. It is even alleged that she used all the means available to hoodwink musicians to adopt her idea. 

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)