How citizens understand politics in Cameroon

Greeting Steemit Family

In Cameroon, politics is not just something you read in newspapers or watch on TV. It is part of everyday life, in our conversations, frustrations, jokes, and hopes. You can feel it in the markets, hear it in taxis, and notice it in the way people react when national news breaks.

This becomes even clearer during the post-election period, especially after the just-ended presidential election. The atmosphere tells its own story. It’s a story that belongs to every citizen, though each person tells it differently. Everyone has their own version and their own way politics touches their life.

I remember one particular evening that brought this reality to life for me. I was sitting in a taxi, coming back from work. As we drove along, three men stopped the taxi, hopped in, and immediately began a heated discussion about the election results.

One of them, an elderly man with grey hair and tired eyes, spoke with the calm tone of experience. "Petti", he said to the young man beside him, "politics in this country is like a long journey. Some people walk it with their eyes open, others with their eyes closed".

He laughed softly, but there was truth in his voice. The younger man, probably in his early twenties, replied with the confidence shaped by social media. "But Pa, things are changing. People now see things for themselves. We don’t need to wait for TV. Bloggers show us everything".

The elderly man nodded slowly. "Yes, you young people know many things. But knowledge is not the same as understanding". That sentence stayed with me.

Their conversation reflected the different levels of political awareness in Cameroon. Some citizens grew up at a time when political speeches were sacred and questioning them was unthinkable. To them, politics is a distant building in Yaoundé where decisions are made by men in suits. They follow it, but from afar.

Others, especially the youth, engage with politics in a more direct and outspoken way. They debate, argue, criticize, and demand answers. Social media has given them a voice, sometimes loud, sometimes angry, sometimes hopeful. Even though not all online information is reliable, it has opened their eyes to issues they might never have known before. I can say social media has created another path for politics in Cameroon.

But there is also a third group, those who understand politics through survival. They do not follow debates or analyze policies. For them, politics is the price of fuel, the cost of food, the state of the roads, the electricity cuts, and the job opportunities that never seem to come. They may not speak loudly, but they understand politics deeply through their lived experiences.

As I got out of the taxi that evening, I realized something, Cameroonians understand politics in their own ways, shaped by where they come from, what they have lived through, and what they dream of. Some follow political events closely, others stay quiet but observant, and many simply hope for a future where their voices truly matter.

Politics in Cameroon is not a single story. It is a collection of many stories, different voices trying to express the same reality. Some parts are said openly, others whispered, but all are connected.

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