– Excellencies,
– Honorable Members and dear colleagues,
– Dear guests,
– Ladies and gentlemen.
Started on June 11, 2024, the deliberations of the National Assembly for the second ordinary annual session of the current financial year end today. A full session, if ever there was one, marked by the examination and vote of twelve bills, including the one extending the mandate of the Parliamentarians of the National Assembly. Indeed, Article 15 of the Constitution, in paragraph 4, provides that, I quote: “in the event of a serious crisis or when circumstances require it, the President of the Republic may, after consultation with the President of the Constitutional Council and the offices of the National Assembly and the Senate, ask the National Assembly to decide by law to extend or shorten its mandate, end of quote. In this case, the expected electoral deadlines were all scheduled for 2025. These are the presidential, legislative, regional and municipal elections. Four major consultations, which would have placed Cameroon in a permanent electoral cycle, throughout the same year. The implications and other disruptions to the usual functioning of the country would have been enormous, not to mention the weight of the costs including the financing of the operations that this would have required in a single year.
By presenting this bill, the President of the Republic, His Excellency Mr. PAUL BIYA, intends to spread out the consultations over time in order to allow the various electoral stakeholders to have the necessary time for a calm organization, without rushing each of the deadlines. The objective being to avoid any malfunction likely to taint the verdict of the ballot boxes.
The extension of the mandate of the Deputies therefore proved necessary in view of these particular circumstances.
Another bill that I would like to point out is that relating to the Forestry and Wildlife Regime. The examination and adoption of this project were preceded by two meetings bringing together your elected officials and organized by the Network of Parliamentarians for the Sustainable Management of Forest Ecosystems in Central Africa (REPAR) led by our colleague the honorable ZAM JEAN JACQUES . The aim was to educate the representatives of the people, before examination, on the innovations contained in the text submitted to the National Representation, in order to generate relevant contributions during the debates.
Still taking stock of the session which is ending, it is worth noting the holding of three sessions of oral questions, the examination of the Budget Orientation Document for the period 2025-2027 and the 29th forum of exchanges between the Finance Commission and the Budget of the National Assembly and the Audit Chamber of the Supreme Court. We do not forget the holding of the Fourth Congress of Parliament, the Senate and the National Assembly, gathered to receive the oath of Madame Florence ARREY Rita, member of the Constitutional Council appointed by the President of the Republic, His Excellency Mr. Paul Biya.
News from the construction site of the new National Assembly headquarters building, I can affirm that the work is progressing with complete peace of mind. For the different parties, it is a question of meeting the prescribed deadlines. To date, this work is at the finishing stage. Equipment for offices, cabinets and other structures has been ordered. Their delivery should not be delayed.
I would like to take this opportunity once again to express the gratitude of the National Assembly to the Head of State, His Excellency Mr. Paul Biya, for his personal involvement in the conduct of this project. Just as we will also continue to express our sincere thanks to the People's Republic of China, for this immense work offered to Cameroon. It is the materialization, like others in the past, of the excellent relations that exist between Beijing and Yaoundé.
I thus instructed the Monitoring Committee to organize a visit to the construction site by the entire Chamber. I announce that said visit will be carried out this afternoon from 2 p.m. I count on the effective presence of each and every one.
- Excellencies
- Ladies and gentlemen
As the curtains fall on our work, let me note with you a certain lull in what everyone has called the Government/Cameroonian Football Federation, FECAFOOT, standoff. A conflict born, we believe, from the designation of the staff, who presided over the technical destiny of our national eleven, the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.
I would like to believe that this calm is not deceptive, like this fire that smolders under the ashes. So I have great hope that reason is prevailing and that serenity will soon be complete both in the ranks of the players themselves and in those of the leaders, whether technical, administrative or governmental.
I don't think I'm wrong in saying that, like other disciplines, football is a leaven, a leaven of unity, fraternity and living together. Its vocation, we again affirm, is to bring together and not to divide.
All our congratulations and encouragement to the Indomitable Lions of football. Go lions! May victory always be with you!
That said, I wish you a safe return to your respective constituencies, for some, and to your usual activities for others.
I declare closed the work of the second ordinary session of our House for the legislative year 2024.
- Long live the National Assembly;
- Long live His Excellency, Mr. PAUL BIYA, President of the Republic, Head of State;
- So that Cameroon, our dear and beautiful country, lives
Thank you
