6 officials dispatched to France to recruit coach for Lions

A team of six senior officials is in France to look for a new coach for the national football team. The team, led by David Mayebi, a member of the executive committee of the Cameroon Football federation, got the backing of the prime minister last week.

 In a letter to the minister of sports and physical education dated December 17, a copy of which The Cameroon Journal stumbled upon, the Secretary General at the prime minister’s office stated that he has “the honour to notify you of the accord of the prime minister, head of government” for the delegation to travel to France for a mission from the 19-23 December.

The prime minister’s secretary general also noted that the trip would be financed by a special coordination fund.

Some analysts have questioned why government should unnecessarily spend several millions of francs to recruit an employee. The norm is usually for coaches vying for head trainers for national teams or clubs; to travel to the location of the job offer. In Cameroon’s case, the job seems to be travelling abroad to meet applicants.

One of the analysts, Alex Gustave Azebaze is of the opinion that for the sake of good governance, the five coaches, (four foreigners and one Cameroonian), who were shortlisted on December 16 for the position of head coach for the Indomitable Lions, following a December 13 call for applications, were supposed to be summoned to the head quarters of Cameroon’s FA in Yaounde.

It was stated among other requirements for the post advertised that the coach must be willing to reside in Cameroon permanently, in which case the candidates’ voyage to Cameroon for interviews and subsequent employment would have served as a demonstration of willingness to live and work in country.

In the past, coaches have been allowed to come to Cameroon only to sign their contracts and return home where they live and earn monthly salaries – they only step foot in Cameroon again when there is a need to assemble players for international competitions or friendly matches.

The prime ministerial backing of the sports and physical education minister’s decision to send a team abroad for the recruitment of a head coach for the national team has cast doubts on recent moves which gave Cameroonians the impression that government was trying to cut down on excessive spending.

One of these moves, some pundits say, is the grilling of football officials at the Special Criminal Court, SCC, on the lavish spending during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and the 2015 AFCON. 

No Anglophone featured

Though details of the selection process for members of the delegation assigned to Paris are still sketchy, what is certain is that no Anglophone at the FA executive committee and the sports and physical education ministry was dimmed fit enough to be part of the selection process.

The list okayed by Prime Minister, Philemon Yang includes Mayebi David, Tado Oumarou, Manga Zambo, Onguene Manga Jean, Nguidjol Nlend Andre and an official of the sports and physical education, apparently handpicked by Minister Ishmael Bidoung Mpwkatt.

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