Cameroon:
Party Congress On Colour Television
Robert Abunaw
Colour television takes off this month but the signals will have to go off the air soon after the Bamenda Congress. The reasons for this being that the provisional arrangements to transmit in February have had to be overhauled for a new arrangement that will take up to July this year, Robert Abunaw reports from Yaounde.The long-awaited debut of Cameroon's Colour Television is expected this month when the Cameroon National Union Party holds its 4th ordinary sessions in the North-West Provincial capital of Bamenda.
The seeming mystery behind the start of the much publicised colour television was heightened by the failure of the Unité Television to go on-air, during the just concluded Agro- Pastoral Show in Bamenda.
This short-coming, also gave grounds to fears that the talk of a colour television network in the country, may end up either a white elephant or simply put, a dream.
However, when this reporter visited the offices of the Unité Television, temporarily located on the sixth floor of the Broadcasting House in Yaounde, it was explained that Cameroon viewers could not receive the first signals on their TV sets during the Agro-Pastoral Show because major equipments needed for telecasting and transmitting were at the port of Douala, only three days before the official opening of the festival of the rural-world, on the 13th to the 15th of December, last year.
The officials added that since the equipment including a mobile transmission unit mounted on an extra long bus had to be dismounted before shipment, the re-assembling of components could not be effected in three days and consequently, the Bamenda rendez-vous could not be kept as promised by President Biya earlier in the year.
The reporter also discovered that when the service takes off this month, signals will have to go off-air soon after the Bamenda Congress. The reasons for this being that the Provisional arrangements to transmit in February have to be overhauled for a new arrangement that will take up to July this year.
Presently, television in Cameroon consists of a mobile unit for outside broadcast and a provisional studio, located in the bowel of the six storey Broadcasting House.
According to plans worked out by the Coordinating Committee of the National Television located at the Presidency of the Republic, the complete programme for installing the television has been divided into two phases.
The first phase starts this year with the official opening and usage of the operations mentioned above while the second phase is scheduled for 1987 when the television moves into its twelve storey complex now under construction by the Fougerolle Firm of Civil Engineering Contractors.
By 1985, it is hoped that the television will have six studios and four mobile transmission units.
A big disappointment for some Cameroonians is the fact that not all towns in the country will capture the signals relayed from the earth satellite on the Hill-tio Station of Bamenda.
This situation arises as a result of the technical design aimed at a two phase development plan accepted by the Coordinating Committee of the National Television.
By the plan, thirty-two relay stations will serve the whole country by 1987. These include: Yaounde where the station at mount Mbankolo is ready for service. There is also the Douala station located at Logbessour. Others include the Limbe-Bimbia station, Bangou, Bafoussam, Bamenda Guider, Mayo Oulo, Mokolo, Kousseri, Bafia, Nkongsamba Tchollirie, Tibati, Nanga Ebok, Abong Mbang, Eseka, Lolodorf, Mamfe, Meiganga, Ndom, Nkamite Yokadouma, Mvo Meka and Dschang
From the above list, only the capital Yaounde, commercial city Douala, the capital of the Eastern Province Bertoua, Bafoussam, Bamenda Ngaoundere, Ebolowa, Garous Sangmelima and Maroua will have the honour of receiving the premier of the National Television.
The towns of Mamge, Kribi, Yokadouma, Nkambe, etc may have their turn in 1986.
From the offices of Thompson CSF, the major partners in consortium handling the installation of transmission equipment, this towns in the country will capture the was shown a graphical station signals relayed from the earth satellite approved in December 1983 showing the areas of premier importance. From this chart, towns like Kousser, on the Lake Chad Basin, Limbe and Bum the capital of the South-West Province just have to wait for a few years more before enjoying the novelties from the tube.
