When Tradition Becomes a Weapon: How the CPDM Uses Chiefdoms to Strengthen 43 Years of Authoritarian Rule
Traditional chiefdoms in Cameroon have been transformed from cultural institutions into political tools used to legitimize and reinforce 43 years of CPDM rule. This blog post exposes how chiefdoms suppress dissent, influence elections, and weaken democratic agency and argues that true national liberation requires dismantling these structures of domination. Liberation begins when the people reclaim their sovereignty from all systems designed to control them.
The Nkwen Example: When a Throne Kneels to Power
On September 19, 2014, the people of Nkwen witnessed a moment that perfectly captures how traditional authority has been absorbed into the machinery of a long-lasting authoritarian state.
Fon Azehfor III, installed barely a year earlier, stood before CPDM officials and publicly pledged total loyalty to the ruling party.
Not neutrality.
Not independence.
Not cultural leadership.
But full, unconditional political alignment with the regime.
He declared CPDM to be:
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“the party of development,”
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“the party of peace,”
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“the party of hope,”
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“the only party” capable of guiding Cameroon.
With those words, the traditional authority of an entire people was handed over to the ruling party not through election, not through consensus, but through deference.
And then came the decisive gesture:
The Fon donated communal land to the CPDM to build a party secretariat.
This is the moment where culture stopped being cultural and became political infrastructure.
Chiefdoms as Vote Banks, Not Cultural Institutions
Fon Azehfor did not simply declare support.
He mobilized expectations:
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He asked for the appointment of Nkwen elites to administrative positions DOs, SDOs, governors, directors, ministers.
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He promised CPDM dominance within the fondom.
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He framed loyalty as developmental obligation.
This is not cultural stewardship.
This is a political exchange:
You give us votes.
We give you appointments.
It is an open demonstration of how the ruling party uses chiefdoms to maintain influence:
traditional authority becomes a bargaining chip inside a centralized power system.
How Chiefs Become the CPDM’s Political Middlemen
The celebration that followed the Fon’s declaration was not spontaneous tradition it was political choreography:
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CPDM subsections celebrated the “conversion.”
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Party elites distributed CPDM material.
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Letters of praise came from the Central Committee.
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The ruling party applauded the Fon for “wise decisions.”
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Chiefs were openly integrated into partisan structures.
When a Fon becomes an agent of a political party, he is no longer the neutral father of his people he becomes a political chief, an extension of state power at the village level.
This is how the CPDM governs:
Not only from Yaoundé, but from every palace, every village, every throne made part of its political grid.
Why This Matters: Chiefs Become Instruments of Control
Traditional rulers command respect, moral authority, and communal influence.
When they pledge loyalty to the CPDM:
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dissent becomes harder,
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opposition becomes dangerous,
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elections become biased before they begin,
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communities feel obligated to follow the throne,
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political choice collapses under cultural pressure.
This is exactly why chiefdoms are politically valuable:
A chief can deliver the obedience of thousands without a single police officer.
And this is why Thomas Sankara warned against feudal structures co-opted by political regimes:
because they become the most effective, invisible tools of authoritarianism.
A System Designed to Keep People Quiet
When a chief sides with the state, any citizen who disagrees risks being seen as:
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rebellious against tradition,
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disrespectful of ancestry,
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disloyal to the community.
This is political genius for an authoritarian regime and a political disaster for democratic freedom.
Chiefdoms become:
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buffers between the people and the state,
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pressure valves to silence dissent,
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political mobilization machines,
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cultural shields for anti-democratic practices.
And eventually, entire communities become electoral hostages to the regime.
The Modern Chiefdom: Colonial in Origin, Authoritarian in Function
The current system is not ancestral.
It is colonial.
Germany, France, and Britain designed it to control populations indirectly.
The CPDM simply inherited and perfected the system:
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Chiefs receive state salaries.
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Chiefs receive political protection.
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Chiefs receive land and privileges.
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Chiefs receive appointments for their children.
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Chiefs who defy the CPDM are dismissed or punished.
This is not tradition.
This is administrative feudalism serving a modern authoritarian state.
Why Dismantling This Power Network Is Necessary for Liberation
To free a nation, you must free its people.
To free its people, you must free their voices.
To free their voices, you must free them from:
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political chiefs,
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palace intimidation,
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manipulated authority,
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imposed loyalty,
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CPDM-funded cultural control.
Dismantling does NOT mean destroying culture.
It means:
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returning chiefs to cultural roles,
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removing them from partisan politics,
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ending state financial co-optation,
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restoring community autonomy,
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stopping the use of tradition as a political weapon.
This is how liberation begins.
Because a people cannot reclaim sovereignty while their rulers traditional or modern remain tied to a system of domination.
Conclusion: Cameroon Cannot Be Free While Its Traditional Institutions Serve Political Power
For 43 years, the CPDM has used chiefdoms as the ground-level machinery of authoritarian survival.
The Nkwen declaration was not an exception it was the rule.
And until this network of political chiefdoms is dismantled, Cameroon will continue to live under:
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coerced loyalty,
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captured communities,
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manipulated culture,
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and constrained democracy.
**Liberation begins where fear ends.
Fear ends when the people reclaim their voices.
And the people reclaim their voices when the structures that silence them are dismantled.**
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