CPDM USA LEADERSHIP JOINT CONFERENCE 2008

2008 ended with a bang for WCPDM USA Section which was heavily involved in the 1st and historical Leadership Joint Conference in Atlanta Georgia, Nov. 2008. The purpose of the conference was really to get the leaders to communicate matters of importance accross the Party and its wings ie the WCPDM and the YCPDM. Conference delegates gathered at the Holiday Inn, Austell Ga for deliberations starting from Friday to Sunday.

The Conference addressed top issues on the agenda such as Communication between the organs, Financial Accountability, transparency and Governance. A resolution Committee was set up to follow throw with and come up with resolutions and better ways of working to help move the party forward.

WCPDM had a very strong presence and the leadership voiced out their concerns including the need to be autonomous and creative without any form of supression by the main party.

PLEASE FIND BELOW AN EXTRACT FROM WCPDM USA SECTION PRESIDENT'S SPEECH DELIVERED AT THE CONFERENCE. THIS SPEECH HIGLIGHTS THE MISSION AND VISION OF WCPDM USA AND CARRIES THE ACTION PLAN.


The Section President,
The Honorable Ambassador of Cameroon in Washington,
Members of the delegation from the central committee,
Militants of CPDM-USA,
Our distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,

It is with great pleasure and honor that I stand before you all today in this historic great CPDM-USA joint Section conference, holding in this great city of Atlanta Georgia . On behalf of WCPDM USA, I welcome you all here today. Your presence here is true indication of you commitment and love for our Country Cameroon. I want to assure you that you’re being here will help you gain more knowledge on how this great party and its leadership functions.
CPDM is a party that brings people of different ethnic groups, class, gender and regions together under the able leadership of our national chairman, his Excellency President Paul Biya.CPDM is a party with vision for the nation, with set objectives and defined accomplishments as directed by its true leadership. It is open to all Cameroonians of good faith and love for the people of Cameroon.

The WCPDM salute the national chairman for giving the Cameroonian women the opportunity to be part of this great party. The world of men today in Cameroon no longer exist because the women have politically challenged it and are still working to lead the country in years to come,
We want to thank the WCPDM national president, Madame YAOU AISSATOU, for the great job she has done to foster WCPDM activities in Cameroon and foreign countries where our party exists, she is a classical example of a woman’s role in politics. I therefore, encourage all women to work harder so that we can change the politics of our nation to our favor.

Comrades, I strongly believe that the future of CPDM-USA lies in our hands and whatever we do, let it be a reflection of the basic rules established by the founder of this party. We may have disagreed on many political issues. We may not have lived up to expectations. We may have failed in many areas, just because we did not listen. I strongly believe that failure is only an opportunity to begin again and this time more wisely. I also believe that you never really learn much from hearing yourself talk. We have to listen to others talk to learn what we do not know. I believe that CPDM USA’S best days are ahead of us because the future belongs to freedom and not to fear. We have to work together to uphold the dignity and image of our party. Let us defend our nation before the stranger, and let us understand that divided, we fall but united, we stand. We must practice the politics of inclusiveness in order to achieve positive results and build good relationships among militants. We must govern by examples.

There are many out there who do not belong to any political party. We invite you to join us the silent majority because CPDM is the best and will remain the best political party in Cameroon. We owe the nation an explanation for dubious activities practiced by those who join the party not because they want to serve but because they want to exploit and live at the expense of the tax payer. Ladies and gentlemen, the WCPDM-USA strongly denounces such attitudes and recommends that those elements be punished drastically and whatever resources are misused should be recovered. We want to assure the national chairman that we will support any line of action taken against those who mismanage our nation’s resources and country’s finances in general,
Comrades, it is time to evaluate our activities since creation in 2007.
The WCPDM in the united state was installed together with the CPDM and YCPDM on April 14th 2007 in Washington D.C, by Hon Elvis Ngolle Ngolle, minister of forestry and wildlife who lead the central committee delegation from Cameroon.

The mission of the WCPDM is to assist the ruling CPDM party, in its continuous efforts to position a democratic Cameroon on a sustainable social and economic development growth path within the framework of global competitions.
In recognizing its role as the primary agent in the CPDM party’s image restoration program in the united states and as reflected in the WCPDM work plan, we therefore provide the following short and long term goals;

GOALS:
v To collaborate with the CPDM to expand the party base in the US by opening more branches and recruiting new militants;
v To organize fundraising events and encourage militants to honor their monthly contribution;
v To engage in an effective public relation campaign to positively project Cameroon’s image in the USA;
v To help prepare the Cameroonian women to set skills necessary for global competitiveness through education and social endeavors;
v Address gender inequality concerns by:
a) Setting common cross functional goals as one party.
b) Offering assistance and resources to address concerns of our Nation
c) Actively participating in open debate on national issues affecting the lives of the Cameroonian woman both at home and abroad
d) Empowering the Cameroonian women to become more self reliant.
v By Identify non-profit organizations in Cameroon for potential partnership opportunities with them, aimed at improving the welfare of Cameroonians at home. Our first initiative will involve intervention in the healthcare sector by collecting medical supplies from the Diaspora and channeling them through an NGO in Cameroon who will distribute them appropriately, to identified hospitals and clinics.
v By collecting and channeling information on HIV/AIDS, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer and sexually transmitted diseases, to hospitals and health education centers through indentified NGOs.
v By encouraging militants to invest in Cameroon aimed at creating jobs, bringing development and shoring up the economy of Cameroon.
v Resolved to sponsor ten (10) best female students. (5 English-speaking and 5 French- speaking) attending ENAM or any other professional institution with a minimum of $500.00 annually to cover for school fees, lodging, books and stipends.



HOW DO WE REACH THE GOALS?

1) By organizing fundraising events to cover all expenses related to activities for the WCPDM USA section and from individual contributions.
2) During the WCPDM Sub-Section conference held in the mid Atlantic sub-section, it was resolved to raise a minimum of $12.000.00 annually or $1.000.00 monthly.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
1) WCPDM has been holding its quarterly meetings and has consistently submitted her quarterly reports to the central committee as required by the basic text of the party.

2) WCPDM has increased its branch participation from 7 to 10 and our goal is to grow to 16 branches by the end of 2009.Four branches in the Mi Atlantic Sub-Section, two branches in the Eastern Sub-Section, two branches in the South Eastern Sub-Section, and two branches in the South Central Sub-Section in creation.

3) The WCPDM organized a meet the people tour to sensitize and recruit more militants for the party. This tour led to the creation of more branches in Dallas TX. These trips included New York, Atlanta Georgia and Dallas TX.

4)WCPDM Organized a very successful first ever sub-section conference of the Mid Atlantic sub-section which carried the theme “vision and hope” under the regulations of the central committee. This conference was attended by a representative of WCPDM national president from Cameroon Hon. Rose Abunaw Makia WCPDM Section President for Manyu 1, and Vice President of the National Assembly of Cameroon. Who energized, encouraged, educated and sensitized the women as well as other militants and well wishers when she took to the floor to grace the occasion.

5) The WCPDM president in a delegation led by the section president comrade Joe Mbu, traveled to Cameroon after its installation, to meet with the officials of the party and government of Cameroon to present its’ plan of action and budget.

6) WCPDM has already contacted NWHRC, National Women’s Health Resource Center a leading nonprofit health information source for women. NWHRC develops and distributes women’s health information based on medical research and practice. This organization feels that information lets women make the best decision to maintain and improve their health.

7) WCPDM is currently in contact with CATALYST. CATALYST is an independent, nonprofit organization that works with businesses to expand opportunities for women at work. It conducts research on all aspects of women’s career advancement and offers consulting services globally. It has been consistently ranked first, among America’s nonprofit organizations, for its focus on women’s issues by the American institute of philanthropy.
Dear comrades, as we leave her today I want to challenge every one to become fishers of militants in other for party to grow.

Fellow Comrades I wish to thank all of you who have made the sacrificed to come here today. Many thanks go to the South Eastern Sub- Section for hosting this Conference. Congratulations for a job well done. I also want to thank the organizing committee for their commitment and brilliant efforts in putting this Conference together.
I encourage every one who is here today and those who could not make it to this conference to be more unified, more focused and more than ever be determined to work as a team for the good of our great party the CPDM. Let us live up to the theme of this conference” UNITY FOR GREATER ARCHIEVEMEN.”
Thank you all and may god bless you.

Long live CPDM USA
Long live WCPDM USA
Long live CAMEROON

By PATIENCE TAMFU N
DONE THIS 22st, day of November 2008



The Conference was a possitive experience providing a platform for the party to bounce up and move forward with an aggressive plan of action for the Section and its base.



Pictured above are WCPDM leaders and CPDM Leaders at the Leadership Joint Conference held in Georgia. From Left to right: Mme Adele Effa WCPDM Section Secretary, Mr. Kamgang New York Branch President, Ms Vivian Oumbe New York Branch President, Mr. Djibril Aoudou Eastern Sub-Section, Mme Desire Mawelet, WCPDM Eastern Sub-Section President and Mr. Rex Eseme who is the CPDM USA Secretary.


Pictured above are WCPDM Militants of the South Eastern Sub-Section, who hosted the Leadership Joint Conference. From Left to Right: Mrs Elizabeth Ashukem: Organizing Secretary for South Eastern Sub-Section, Mrs Esther Ayuk: WCPDM South Eastern Sub-Section President, Mrs Maria Nanje: North Eastern Branch President, Ms Pauline Ekane: Militant.