The Minister of Communication presided at 2014 events during the weekend in Yaounde.
“The fact that you are a journalist does not mean that you are above the law and this implies that at any given time, if what you do is not in relation with the prevailing rules and regulations, it is but normal that you will be called up for questioning”. This is a statement made by the Minister of Communication, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, last Saturday, May 3, 2014 as he presided at events in Yaounde to commemorate the 21st World Press Freedom Day in Cameroon.
Speaking in the presence of a representative from UNESCO, Issa Tchiroma Bakary explained that the theme of celebration, “Media Freedom for a Better Future: Shaping the Post-2015 Development Agenda” lauds major improvements in Cameroon regarding press freedom and right to information whose most evident character is the media pluralism materialised by the multiplicity of press organs in the country.
He also noted that the theme presents the press like a real development partner capable of alleviating poverty and leading Cameroon to emergence by 2035 while urging it to position the respect of ethical and deontological rules as absolute condition in operating. Although the representative of press organs in Cameroon, Director of the daily private newspaper “Le Jour”, Haman Mana, in his speech lamented that for over 12 years, press liberty in Cameroon has experienced dark moments with the suspension of some media houses, the arrest and constant follow-up of some media practitioners as well as the lack of support from the government, Issa Tchiroma vehemently stressed that there is no game without a referee for the National Communication Council is the arbiter of the journalism profession in Cameroon.
Responding to the criticism, the MINCOM boss questioned if there is a single journalist in jail for exercising his duty? He reiterated that although some journalists have been questioned by police in the course of investigations, what about other Cameroonians that have also been called for investigations by the police as they carry out their own daily duties. While noting that media practitioners have no major reason to complain, the Minister of Communication said the government is after the fact that the profession of a journalist is carried out freely in a better working condition.
In a joint message read from the UN Secretary General and the Director General of UNESCO, both personalities called on all States, societies and individuals to actively defend freedom of expression and press freedom as fundamental rights and as critical contributions to achieving the Millennium Development Goals and advancing the post-2015 development agenda.
