Momo was speaking in Yaoundé Tuesday, July 2, 2019 as he addressed Members of the National Assembly during a plenary session for the examination and adoption of a  bill relating to the establishment, organisation and functioning of the Cameroon Human Rights Commission.

The Minister had mounted the rostrum following a preliminary objection raised by the Members of Cameroon’s National Assembly belonging to the opposition Social Democratic Front, SDF, party during the plenary session chaired by the Senior Deputy Speaker, Hon. Hilarion Etong.

The plenary took off on a stormy note as the chair, Hon. Hilarion Etong had hardly opened the floor for debates when Hon. Paul Nji Tumasang, the SDF Parliamentary Group Leader mounted the rostrum with a preliminary objection.

The SDF lawmakers are concerned about the silence of the National Assembly regarding the deepening crisis in Cameroon’s North West and South West Regions.

Hear Hon. Nji Tumasang: “The SDF Parliamentary Group takes cognition of the fact that the parliament of Cameroon by the powers invested on it is enjoined to seek a final and urgent solution to the crisis prevailing in the North West and South West regions rather than renovating an existing human rights commission. We submit therefore, Mr Speaker, that this bill be withdrawn pending the outcome of dialogue.”

The SDF plea was voted down by a majority of the Members of the National Assembly and the preliminary objection was thus rejected to the displeasure of the SDF Members of the National Assembly who stormed out of the hemicycle while the deliberations continued.

Following the preliminary objection that was voted out, Minister Delegate Momo gave assurances to the lawmakers that government is doing its best to resolve the socio-political unrest in the North West and South West Regions.

His words: “The commission to be put in place will have a lot of power to look through the violation of human rights. The problem of North West and South West has been in the middle of our discussion and to look out a frank dialogue. But before the dialogue, we have to put this commission in place so that it can go through and fight for the violation of human rights everywhere.”