Sasse Old Boys: A call for conscience, integrity and responsible leadership

Chief Besong Etah Oben who recruited me as a Weekly Post reporter in 1992 opined that there are elections that determine who occupies an office and there are elections that determine the character of an institution. The forthcoming election of the President General of the Sasse Old Boys Association (Soba) belongs to the latter category.

Sasse College is more than a school. It is a legacy, a community and an enduring academic establishment whose influence extends into the highest levels of public service, business, the army and national life in Cameroon. Its old boys have distinguished themselves in numerous fields, carrying with them the reputation of an institution whose name commands respect. That is precisely why the choice of the next President General must never be treated as an ordinary popularity contest.

The question before SOBA members is not simply who wants the position, who has the loudest campaign or who can assemble the greatest number of supporters. The real question is this: Who possesses the integrity, competence, credibility and sense of responsibility required to lead an association of Sasse’s standing? Sasse must never lower its standards.

Consider the distinguished company that forms part of the Sasse alumni community, including former Prime Minister and Head of Government Peter Mafany Musonge, former cabinet ministers Ephraim Ngwafor and Michael Tomdio, General Ivo Yenwo, Eric Njong, George Nkeng, and retired senior police officer Eric Anoma.

Their careers span public administration, national security, construction, education and military service. Their presence, alongside the achievements of countless other Sasse old boys, illustrates the depth and breadth of the Sasse legacy.

Sasse’s reputation is not protected by the names of its most distinguished members alone. It is protected by the standards it insists upon when choosing those who speak and act on its behalf. So, Sasse must not merely elect a President General. It must elect a custodian of its reputation.

In all serious academic establishments like Sasse College, claims about professional qualifications and educational background are matters of legitimate public interest when a candidate seeks leadership.

Consequently, if a candidate presents himself as a barrister, Sasse Old Boys are entitled to ask reasonable questions about his qualifications, where and how he obtained them and whether his professional status can be independently verified. In the words of my late editor Dr Boniface Forbi, “such questions are not acts of hostility. They are acts of responsible citizenship within an association*.”* The same principle applies to a candidate’s professional experience, public record and claims of service.

No candidate should be condemned on the strength of rumours. Like we now hear that some of them had been in jail in Italy and translators to fey men in Germany. Equally, no candidate should be shielded from reasonable scrutiny merely because asking questions might offend his supporters.

If concerns have been raised about a candidate’s educational journey, professional credentials or past conduct, the proper response is not intimidation, evasion or the trading of accusations. It is transparency, documentary evidence and a fair opportunity for the candidate to respond. Sasse Old Boys should establish the facts before its members are asked to make a consequential decision. Sasse is an institution built on the value of education, so credentials must be more than titles on a campaign poster. They must be capable of verification.

The office of President General is not a prize for ambition. It is a responsibility entrusted by members to someone expected to serve the collective interest. The person who occupies that office must be capable of bringing old boys together across generations, professional backgrounds, political affiliations and geographical boundaries. He must command confidence, demonstrate sound judgment, respect institutional procedures and put the association above personal interests. He must be prepared to answer difficult questions without hostility and accept scrutiny without portraying it as persecution.

He must also understand that the prestige of Sasse is not his personal possession. It belongs to generations of students and old boys who built the institution’s reputation long before the current candidates appeared on the scene.

The question, therefore, is not whether a candidate is ambitious enough to become President General. It is whether he has demonstrated the character and capacity to serve honourably. Sobans therefore, should not confuse brotherhood with blind loyalty.

One of the greatest dangers facing Cameroon Anglophone alumni associations is the temptation to allow personal friendships, regional affiliations, professional networks or campaign loyalties to overwhelm sound judgment. Brotherhood is a noble principle. But brotherhood does not require silence in the face of legitimate questions. Loyalty to a fellow Sasse Old Boy cannot be greater than loyalty to the institution that unites all old boys.

Genuine brotherhood sometimes requires asking the uncomfortable questions that protect everyone from embarrassment later. Sasse members must resist the temptation to vote simply because a candidate is a friend, a familiar face, a persuasive speaker or a member of a powerful circle. The vote belongs to the institution’s future, not to the candidate’s personal ambitions.

Before casting their ballots, members should demand clarity from every contender. What is the candidate’s verifiable professional and educational record? What has he contributed to SOBA and Sasse College? What is his concrete program for strengthening the association? How will he improve accountability, financial transparency, alumni engagement and support for the college? How will he unite members rather than deepen divisions? And what safeguards will he put in place to ensure that the association remains bigger than any individual? These questions should be asked consistently, fairly and without fear. Where allegations exist, the association should distinguish evidence from speculation, give the person concerned a fair opportunity to respond and avoid turning an election into a trial by rumour.

Sobans should always keep in mind that fairness must never be mistaken for complacency. A candidate who seeks the confidence of a distinguished alumni body should be willing to establish the credibility of his claims.

Will Sasse be an institution where professional credibility, service, integrity and accountability matter? Or will it become an institution where ambition and campaign rhetoric are allowed to eclipse the standards that have sustained its reputation?

Will members ask the difficult questions before voting, or will they wait until after the election, when questions may become scandals and doubts may become institutional embarrassments? The responsibility rests with you and not the Cameroon Concord News Group.

Sobans must remember that President Generals come and will eventually leave office. Candidates will come and go. Campaign slogans will fade, alliances will dissolve and the excitement of Election Day will become a memory. But Sasse College and its alumni association must endure.

Let the forthcoming election be remembered as a moment when Sasse Old Boys chose principle over personality, evidence over rumour, service over ambition and institutional honour over personal loyalties.

Sasse Old Boys, your vote is not merely a choice of leader. It is a statement of the standards you are prepared to defend. Choose wisely and protect the legacy.

The world is watching because the world is aware that Sasse deserves a leader whose credibility can withstand scrutiny, whose service can be demonstrated and whose character can unite the brotherhood. Nothing less should be acceptable.

To this I put my name

Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai