The party’s headquarters in the Tsinga neighbourhood, Yaounde, welcomes all shades of opinion for debate.

The headquarters of the Alliance of Progressive Forces (AFP) party will soon reignite its aura as an arena for political debate by all shades of opinion. One of the ambitions of the party’s current leadership led by the National President, 41-year old Alice Sadio, is to revive the concept of Coffee Clubs and introduce the concept of Open-House Days experimented with success during the party’s last anniversary celebration week from 20 to 27 May, 2016.

At the APF party headquarters on Saturday, June 11, 2016, at 11 am, a handful of members could be seen in the ground-floor apartment the party rents in a brown one-storey building in the Tsinga neighbourhood. A noticeboard in the broad balcony carried press releases, press cuts and party hierarchy decisions. In the main hall, several sitting arrangements indicated that during the week, members were in constant training. On the walls, portraits of emblematic personalities of Cameroon’s history such as Ruben Um Nyobe, Ernest Ouandie, Solomon Tandeng Muna, John Ngu Foncha and Charles Assale, amongst others, stared down the hall bathed by the sound of a TV set, on one side.

Although a Saturday, Alice Sadio was in her large office, sitting behind her desk, eyes focused on her laptop computer. The young political leader now famous for her presence on social media, was responding to her emails and reacting on social media to inquiries especially through her Tweeter and Facebook accounts. She said she gives lots of importance to that cyber activity, given not only her belonging to the “android” generation by virtue of her age but also because she aims to bring to AFP’s fold, the “silent majority” consisting of multitudes of youths and women yet unaffiliated to political parties.

“This category of citizens no longer identifies with current political leaders occupying the scene since 25 years and who, by their education or culture, perceive political activity as war whereas it is a debate,” she told Cameroon Tribune.

Hence, this and citizenship education on Republican values will be revamped through Coffee Clubs and Open-House Days which the spacious office space will host. In a guided tour around the premises which also hosts offices of other top party officials like the Secretary General, Alice Sadio affirmed that the Coffee Clubs and Open-House Days will start holding after the ongoing structuring the party at the grassroots and regional level. During week days, however, Alice Sadio coordinates party activities, receives officials from other friendly parties and inquiries from pressmen at the party headquarters.