Was it an icebreaker or simply a logical transition into new dispensation?

This is certainly the question on many lips following the appointment of the new General Manager of the Cameroon Postal Services. Pierre Kaldadak, a household name in the Cameroonian postal services sector was appointed and installed putting an end to the contracting French firm, SOFREPOST which has been running the State enterprise since 2010 and for which the contract ended in May, 2016.

The French firm was brought in following a series of improprieties CAMPOST was facing including mismanagement and general drop in the spirit of entrepreneurship. SOFREPOST was invited to play technical role reminiscence of the postal services the country had lived before. Whether or not the French firm succeeded in its mission is another issue.

However, it is important to note that the Cameroonian postal sector has gone through a medley of obstacles since 2004 and that government in order to redress the situation and restore the image of a one-time vibrant corporation was compelled to solicit the expertise of Tecsult International Limited, a Canadian firm in 2007. But within barely two years, the results were rather devastating, with CAMPOST registering a deficit of CFA two billion.

This was blamed on misappropriation of funds with the complicity of Tecsult’s senior management team. Like the saying goes, things went from “fry pan to fire.” In effect, since the crisis set in 2004, Cameroon’s postal services sector has not been at ease. Change of name of corporation and management has yielded no palpable fruits.

What then is the cause of all these and how can the situation be redressed is the one million-dollar question. Many think and rightly too that CAMPOST is suffering from the scars of competition. The upsurge of small and medium sized enterprises, microfinance structures as well as travel agencies seems to have seriously affected the services offered by CAMPOST. The new structures offer the same services, some more efficiently than the erstwhile government-run post.

As if that were not all, new technologies have come in with their new challenges. The introduction of the information and communication technology into the mainstream of postal services which are seriously in use by competing enterprises has dealt a big blow on CAMPOST. Needless to cry over spilled milk. The solution for CAMPOST is to readjust and fit into the new exigencies.

The Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, Minette Libom Li Likeng in her installation speech stated clearly that the company must win back confidence and trust. To that the effect, the company must put to better use the digital economy it has embraced in order to generate income. To begin with, the company must first be restructured.