HAPPY NATIONAL DAY!

The National Day is a holiday in Cameroon celebrated on 20th May.

Why you may ask? Well, Cameroon has no single date of independence because the United Nations Trust Territory known as French Cameroun achieved its independence from France on 1 January 1960, while the British Southern Cameroons changed status from a Trusteeship under British administration to a federated state within Cameroon on 1 October 1961. The government chose 20 May as Cameroon's National Day to commemorate President Ahmadou Ahidjo's abolishment of the federal system of government and creation of a unitary country in 1972.

Even though it is considered a holiday, children all over the country go to school and celebrate the National Day usually by singing, carrying out parades or marches across the different parts of the various cities and towns and a speech is made by the President and other important personalities.

Today we revisit a post we did back in 2009 here and ask the renowned blogger and activist Dibussi Tande what 20th May means to him. This is what he had to say…

"As far as I am concerned, 20th May, is yet another occasion to shield Cameroon's true history from its children, another attempt by the state to erase our collective memory. In February this year, President Biya led a week-long celebration in Buea celebrating the golden Jubilee of the independence of the French Cameroons on January 1 1960 and the reunification of the British and French Cameroons on October 1 1961. If we really cared about the true history of Cameroon, then these would be the days that the country would be celebrating, not May 20th which practically everyone concedes was the culmination of French Cameroon's assimilationist agenda on the former British Cameroons. So to me, 20th May is just another day on the calendar."

So we are all choosing or not choosing one way or the other to celebrate or not celebrate this day...it is our freedom to and we should fully respect each other for that. To those who are celebrating, happy celebrations! Happy National Day!!

*excerpts from Wikipedia

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Stay sweet
Dulce
xxx