NORTHERN CAMEROONS Plebiscite 1960 - 1961

Photos by Stuart Beare

Introduction by David Zeitlyn

In 2023 Stuart Beare has very kindly given permission for the following photographs (originally colour slides) to be made available online. They show the preparation for the second independence plebiscite held in Northern Cameroons Trust Territory under the auspices of the United Nations (UN) early in 1961 following the independence of both Nigeria and what had been Cameroun under the French trusteeship. The UN appointed Dr Jalal Abdoh of Iran as Plebiscite Commissioner and observers to monitor the plebiscite in each of the areas.

The conduct of the plebiscite and its implications have become a matter of discussion in recent years in Nigeria. Although these photos do not bear directly on any matters of controversy we thought it useful to make them available to a wider readership.

According to the Northern Cameroons Gazette (Vol 1 No 1 dated 1 October 1960) nine Plebiscite Supervisory Officers (PSOs) were appointed for the 1961 Plebiscite. Four were posted to the Southern Area stretching from south of Yola to the border with the Southern Cameroons. These were Stuart Beare, posted to the Chamba District (which was the only District in the North to vote for the Republic), and Thornley Edmunds to Mambila. Bruce Cantlie went to Karamti and Neville Maryan Green to Baissa. Keith Kinross one of three Assistant Plebiscite Administrators (APAs) was our immediate boss and John Bongard, the District Officer (DO). When the preparation of the new register of electors (including women for the first time) was completed copies were posted in the villages and a period was allowed for objections. It was decided that the PSOs should not deal with objections to the registers for which they had been responsible for preparing. Consequently Beare swapped places with Edmunds and went to Gembu on Mambila while Edmunds came down to Ganye in Chamba. The photographs that follow reflect these transfers.

Background Published Sources

Some other observers and administrators have published material on the Plebiscite. These are:

Clark, Trevor (ed.) 2002. Was it only yesterday? : the last generation of Nigeria's "Turawa" Bristol: BECM Press. (This contains contributions by Francis Davies and Richard Popkess)
Cooper, Malcolm. 2010. The Northern Cameroons Plebiscite 1960/1961. A memoir with a photo archive. London: Mandaras Publishing. https://www.mandaras.info/MandarasPublishing/CameroonsPlebisciteMemoir-Cooper2010.pdf.
Hare, John. 2013. Last Man in: The End of Empire in Northern Nigeria. Neville & Harding Publishers.

DZ 22 Sept 2023

Stuart Beare's notes and captions

Our team of Plebiscite Supervisory Officers arrived in Kano (photos 1 - 6) on 26th August 1960 and drove on to Kaduna (photos 7 -10), where we were fully briefed, collected stores, shopped, engaged a cook/steward and had drinks at Government House. The Northern party under Jim Tyler left first. The rest of us then drove east to Jos (photos 12 – 16) and the Mubi party under Francis Davies carried on. The four of us who had been assigned to the Southern area south of Yola (photos 22 – 24) under Keith Kinross remained in Yola for a few days and then left for our respective stations – Thornley Edmunds to Gembu, Neville Maryan-Green to Baissa, Bruce Cantlie to Karamti and I to Ganye.

I arrived in Ganye (photos 25 – 28) on 8th September. Ganye was the principal town in the southern part of the Northern Cameroons and about 75 miles south of Yola on an all season road. It was home to the DO, John Bongard, the police officer, Richard Popkess , and the MO, Fred Hunter, who was in charge of a brand new hospital. Keith Kinross was also based there. The UN observer in the Chamba area, Ismail Khalidi, was based in Jada 30 miles north of Ganye. I kept him informed of what I was doing and we established a very good relationship.

When I first met John Bongard he advised me that I could only do my job if I secured the cooperation of the District and Village Heads. Following this invaluable advice I set off to tour my area. My first task was to tour my area in order to get to know the village heads and generally to explain what the plebiscite was all about (photos 29 – 57). It was the wet season and getting about by vehicle off the one all season road was not easy. We then had to register the voters, including women who would vote for the first time (photos 71 – 76). The next stage was the registration of voters, including women who were eligible to vote for the first time. This entailed organising a training course for the registration clerks, mostly Teacher Training College students, who were to compile the register in the villages, and touring during the three week registration period to visit as many registration clerks as I could and sort out any problems.

Whilst the lists of voters were being printed in Kaduna I was able to tour the most remote part of my area (photos 80 – 85) and visit Neville and Bruce. The lists then had to be published in the villages and objections could be raised. At this point I went up to Gembu and when I arrived Thornley set off for Ganye (photos 109 – 111)." Whilst the lists were being prepared in Kaduna I was able to tour the most remote part of my area (photos 80 – 85) and visit Neville and Bruce. The lists then had to be published and objections could be raised. It was thought that we should not hear any objections to the lists which we had been responsible for preparing, so we changed stations for a month and I went to Gembu to relieve Thornley.

As it was the end of the wet season it was five days march up on to the Mambila Plateau and then on to Gembu, where I arrived on 14th December (photos 91 – 108). The lists were dropped by air and then had to be distributed by messengers and posted in the villages. Apart from organising this there was very little that I had to do and I spent a most agreeable two weeks trekking on the Plateau (and making an unofficial visit to Mayo Darle in the Republic (photos 130 – 132)) until I descended on 8th January 1961 to return to Ganye (photos 117 – 149).

The next and final stage was polling. Polling stations had to be built (photos 158 – 160) and polling staff trained. The votes were counted and it was then all over. The last remaining thing to do was to climb Ganye Hill and, in the light of the result, plant the Nigerian flag. I left Ganye on 6th March and Kano on 12th March.