"Happy are those who hunger and thirst for justice," (Mt 6:6).
Meeting in Rome, outside our Ad Limina Apostolorum visit to the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, from March 12, through 21, 2006, we, the Bishops of Cameroon, after reviewing the national life and praying for our country at the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul, have decided to publish this declaration addressed to our people and to the friends of Cameroon.
In 2000, we wrote a pastoral letter on corruption aimed at sensitizing and moralizing all the people of God and men and women of good will to the fight against corruption and the embezzlement of public funds in country. Linking action to word, we formulated an action program against this scourge, a program that was animated by all our services and dedicated to children, youth and adults alike. Prayers were said in our schools and ecclesial communities calling on the Almighty to help ensure the success of this campaign.
Recent signs in the life of our country show that the fight against corruption and the embezzlement of public funds, the existence of which had sometimes been called to question, is beginning to bear fruits. That is why we encourage everyone to commit themselves with conviction to this fight against corruption and the embezzlement of public funds at their own level to ensure the birth of a just and fair society.
The fight against corruption and the embezzlement of public funds in Cameroon is, undoubtedly, a difficult but noble and exalting task. For a long time now, practices of corruption and the embezzlement of public funds have developed, becoming an almost accepted or tolerated part of life. Today, with God's help and with the help of national and international organizations, an increasing number of Cameroonians are condemning corruption and the embezzlement of public funds, considering them mere theft, a grievous evil that is depriving them of their rights, harming their well-being and negatively affecting social cohesion and compromising the present and the future of their country.
In truth, the honest management of the assets of the State and of private or semi-private companies would suffice to make our country, which has been impoverished by predators, regain its growth. In the same way, the sense of the common good would suffice for the sacrifices Cameroonians are making to pay taxes of various sorts to improve the welfare of all. Last but not least, the protection of public property through the implementation of the law and the sanctioning of embezzlement of public funds and other forms of delinquency would go a long way to guarantee the future of our country.
In this vein, we exhort all men and women of goodwill to defend to the end justice, truth and peace because these moral values always triumph even if, at times, not even a lifespan is enough to see them victorious. We invite them, therefore:
lTo support all efforts and decisions taken to respect the law;
"Respect the common good and refund State funds embezzled and property illegally acquired;
"Respect persons and the presumption of innocence without ever violating the freedom of expression, nor easily give in to rumours, and refrain from making false accusations;
Furthermore, we invite national and international authorities to:
lCooperate with and support the civil society and religious organizations in their efforts to fight corruption and promote a culture of justice and honesty;
lTo only entrust the governance of public property to honest individuals who accept to declare their assets and respect the rules of transparency and good accountability.
lEnsure the security of public property and recover embezzled funds for reinvestment in development projects, and support the fight against poverty presently underway in our country. Along the same lines, Pope John Paul II, of blessed memory, has clearly shown us the way to follow when he says: lAfrica's economic problems are compounded by the dishonesty of corrupt government leaders who, in connivance with domestic or foreign private interests, divert national resources for their own profit and transfer public funds to private accounts in foreign lands. This is plain theft, whatever the legal camouflage may be. I earnestly hope that international bodies and people of integrity in Africa and elsewhere will be able to investigate suitable legal ways of having these embezzled funds returned. In the granting of loans, it is important to make sure of the responsibility and forthrightness of the beneficiaries" (Ecclesia in Africa, 1995, No 113).
Last but not least, we invite all Christ's faithful to:
lCome together and pray with renewed vigour because the Lord recommends that we "watch and pray," (Mk 14: 38) to eliminate the evil of corruption and the embezzlement of public funds from human hearts and human behaviour, for "nothing is impossible in God," (Lk 1: 37).
lReceive with faith the call to conversion which alone can bring about a radical change in our lives and turn them towards what is good, just and charitable: lRepent, and believe in the gospel," (Mk 1:11).
"Show by their words and deeds that corruption is neither a fatality nor a necessity in Cameroon, but that it is an evil which should be fought in order to have life and have it in abundance (Jn 10:10).
lTo allow themselves to be formed by Christ, who points the way to true and everlasting happiness: "I am the way, the truth and the life," (Jn 14:6).
With our prayers for the success of the actions undertaken, we transmit to you the apostolic blessings of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.
May Mary, Queen of the Apostles, Patroness of Cameroon, watch over our country, protect it and sustain it in its fight against corruption and the embezzlement of public funds.
Issued in Rome
on March 20, 2006.
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