BY COLBERT GWAIN
Cameroon braces up to celebrate this year's national Youth Day, and as the nation seeks ways to contain violent extremism among youths who could not wangle their way through years of uncertain economic conditions, youths like Cham Victor Bama (who refused to take 'No' for an answer and mustard the dogged determination to move on), deserve commendation and recommendation.
Coming from a poor agrarian background and son of a farmer and former village council chairman in distant Weh (a local village kaleidoscope situated off the jaws of Wum, Menchum Division, North West Region that lacks virtually everything that people elsewhere take for granted), Cham Victor Bama, (the brain behind Municipal Updates Daily and others newspapers), dared to dream and worked to succeed.
Guided by the philosophy in Sarah Olubi Johnson's book: "Dare to dream and succeed" that: 'if you are not living your dream then you are not dreaming to live', Cham Victor painstakingly laboured through education and work, to start his dream media house, 'Municipal Updates'.
Unlike the youth of today who give up on the slightest inconvenience and prefer scamming (or enroll in the Rapid Results College, RRC), Cham Victor humbly started from scratch as newspaper vendor through cub reporting to editor and today, publisher.
Realizing in the early stages that his dream wouldn't come through if he didn't establish other sources of funding, Cham Victor used his shoestring earnings from newspaper vending to compile documents and sit for competitive entrance exams into the Higher Teachers Technical College, HTTTC-Bambili where upon graduation he was sure of a steady salary to swing into the publishing business.
Even then, he judged that not having enough journalism skills could be a limiting factor. Reason why he went ahead to study Journalism and Mass Communication in the University of Buea.
The former Nkwen Mile 3-Bamenda Multipurpose Evening School and later professional teacher launched into newspaper publishing in 2015 at the young age of 24.
And for a newspaper that started on an epileptic basis, through a monthly to a weekly and later, bi-weekly, to becoming a full-fleshed daily with its own printing house last February 1, 2022, remains an uncommon feat.
With Municipal Updates newspaper clocking one year since morphing into a daily and under the leadership of young Cham Victor, this could only be a commendable source of inspiration for the numerous Cameroonian and African youths who are currently looking out for role models.
Cham Victor is apparently not at his first in the 'Yes We Can' spirit. For someone at the age of 19 to use his newspaper vending and evening school earnings to register for the competitive entrance exams into ENSET Bambili and for someone who at age 21, and as coordinator of Youth Forum and Youth.
Connection program over CRTV-Bamenda, to be already mentoring many youths who themselves are journalists and communicators in various fields today, youths would only be encouraged to emulate his example.
Far from launching into wandering generalities, Municipal Updates newspaper carves out a niche for itself in the world wide field of communication. It seeks to connect and generate interest in the youthful population in municipalities across Cameroon and Africa to get involved in local development, governance and democracy.
Cham Victor Bama, (the brain behind Municipal Updates Daily and others newspapers)
Municipal Updates' and by extension, Cham Victor's success story through 'little drops of water' is a clarion call for many youths to dare to dream and work to succeed, rather than continue to blame society for 'errors of the past', and self-emolationing themselves in the bushes.
It is a translation into concrete reality of Pope Francis' recent message that rather than continuing to feel like victims, people should continuously seek to be their destiny's authors.
The message of the commemoration of the one year anniversary of Municipal Updates Daily is that: beginning small is never a sign of weakness but rather a sign of strength and dogged determination.
After all, we only have to look back to discover that some of the most influential historical figures started life as newspaper vendors: a job no one from a well-to-do background could contemplate.
And so, the likes of Warren Buffett (the world's third richest man), Joe Biden (President of mighty United States of America), Walt Disney (American animator and producer), Martin Luther king Jr(famous civil rights movement leader), Earl Monroe(former professional basketball player), Kathy Ireland(top model), Allan Bean(former astronaut), Bob Hope(famous gulf player), James Michener(best seller author with over 40 books), Tom Cruise and David Lynch (actor/director); wouldn't have made it to the pinnacle if they didn't launch into the newspaper vending routes.
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