(Presentation by Barrister Mabong Felix Ngong; (Barrister, Solicitor, Notary Public; Cameroon Bar Association: Tel (237) 679 789 717); mabongf@gmail.com

Presentation done on the 14^th day of October, 2020 online by voice note in “Ga-ah Kedjom” (Vernacular)   INTRODUCTION:

Civil status documents here mentioned namely; birth certificate, marriage certificate and death certificate are the most important and basic document that determine our status at each stage of our life and evolution. Organized in the order of arrival, the record of the certificates is important both to the individual in question, the immediate relations and to the community as a whole. Reason why these documents are regulated by law. We shall thus go through the historical evolution of the legal frame work (I), as it is     the law that   defines the authorities who should     exercise the duties of civil status registrars (II), only then can we examine the common elements involved with the drawing of civil status document (III). The heart of presentation will deal with some briefings relative to the various civil status documents identified (IV), notwithstanding the importance of the civil status documents to us and the community. I shall conclude with difficulties and practical advices to parents of kedjom ketinguh and users of Ga-ah Kedjom

HISTORICALEVOLUTION OF THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK REGULATING CIVIL STATUS IN THE CAMEROON

Law N0 11/011 of 6^th day of May 2011 to amend and complete certain provision of Ordinance N0 81/02 of 29 of June 1981 on civil status and state of person (APPLICABLE LAW TODAY)

• Law N0 68/LF-2 of 29^th day of June 1962(AMENDED)
• Law No 66-02-COR of 7^th day of July 1966 (AMENDED)

The bracket and amended laws refer to the period Cameroon was administered as a federal structured with name “Federal Republic of Cameroon”. It should be noted that by 1972, the federal constitution was amended to adopt a new status namely “United Republic Cameroon”; this nomenclature was revised again in 1984 to become what is referred today as “Republic of Cameroon” per the 1996 constitution as amended in 2008. Some Birth certificates established within these periods will carry these names of the country as it was. The names of provinces were also changed to Regions following the 1996 constitution. If you birth certificates carry any of the names, it does not in any way invalidate the birth certificate.

I. AUTHORITIES AUTHORISED BY LAW TO BE CIVIL STATUS REGISTRARS IN CAMEROON

1. CITY MAYOR: Within the Jurisdiction of major cities, the competent civil status registrar is the City Mayor, initially known as “Government Delegates”. These changes come with the decentralization code recently introduced (as an attempted solution to Anglophone crisis on going) in the Cameroonian governance policy. The city mayor is the first mayor and the first civil status registrar following the territorial jurisdiction under his competence as defined by law. In the case of “Bamenda City Council”, it covers three sub-divisions namely Bamenda I(Mendankwe), Bamenda II(Mankon) and Bamenda III(Nkwen) sub-divisions with each having a Sub-Divisional Mayor. Tubah, our sub-division, though near to Bamenda, is not part of the Bamenda city council as of this date.

• SUB-DIVISIONAL MAYORS: As the heads of the executive organ of the local government with competences over territorial jurisdictions of a sub-division (per the Cameroon administrative map), the Sub-Divisional Mayor elected, is a civil status registrar (irrespective of his political lineage or ideology).He is assisted by municipal administrators designated as civil status registrars and secretaries.

Within some sub-divisions, room is given for Special Civil Status Centers created by the minister of decentralization with the opinion of the Seniour Divisional Officer of the division to which that sub-division is located. This depends on the population density of the locality and the distance to the lone civil status center at the council premises. Our local example is the Sabga Special Civil Status Center, situated at “TSINGEH” Quarter Kedjom ketinguh. At war times, the President of the Republic exercises the discretion on necessity to create more special civil status center, just to emphasize the importance of these documents.

3. DEPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR MISSIONS OF CAMEROON ABROAD.

Countries with whom Cameroon share diplomatic relations and missions are avenues created by law to be civil status centers for Cameroonian resident in such countries. Nigeria, USA, France, Britain, Germany etc.

II. SOME COMMON EXIGENCIES IN THE DRAWING OF THE CIVIL STATUS DOCUMENTS

Irrespective of the civil status document in question being drawn, the following must be respected amongst others:

• No witness shall be less than 21 years, except he or she is married. The acceptable age varies to the maximum depending on the age of the person whose birth is being declared.
  • They shall appear voluntarily or personally as the state counsel would require.
  • The parties or parents of the child should verify the document drafted and approve of the information before the Civil Status Registrar seals same alongside his secretary. Else only the court will authorize same changes or corrections thereafter.
  • Unapproved rectification is null and void.
  • Registers of civil status are different, shall never be mixed.
  • Dates must be written in figure and words (there is a reason for that).
  • In the case of birth certificate, where the father is not known or dead, it forbidden to declare same on children birth certificate. Keep the space blank.

III. BRIEFING ON THE NATURE OF EACH CIVIL STATUS DOCUMENTS SELECTED

1. BIRTH CERTIFICATE:
   1. Medics, midwives or nurses should declare the birth of the child in their unit within 30days (reasons some health units have civil status centers attached to their services for example, PMI Nkwen.
   1. Parents Must declared the birth of their child(children)before the civil status registrar of the place of birth within the next 60days (if the medics did not within the first 30 days).
   1. Above 3 months, any registration may be at the instance of the state counsel seized who shall move the court within 6 months of the birth of the child.
   1. After 6 months of the birth of a child without birth certificate, the civil status registrar shall register the birth only by virtue of a declaratory judgment from the High court of the place of birth.
   1. The older the child becomes, the more complicated the case may become because above 15 years a “certificate of inquiry” will be required by the competent legal department and later, a “certificate of apparent age” by a competent medical doctor to have the birth registered.

b)MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE:

Marriage registration is a little complex because amongst the other certificate issued with or without the consent of the concern like birth and death certificate, marriage is registered directly by the concern alongside another independent spouse who must consent and other issues regulated in advance. Reason why we shall examine why marriage registration is peculiar (i), the conditions for a valid marriage (ii) the possibility to raise objection as the bans are published (iii).

i. PECULIARITY OF MARRIAGE REGISTRATION:

• Marriage shall be celebrated by the civil status registrar of the place of birth or place of residence of one of the spouses –to-be.
  • Consent of parents obligatory only for minors.
  • Parties Must choose between the regime of polygamy and monogamy.
  • Parties Must decide on the management of property between joint and separation of property.

ii. CONDITION OF A VALID MARRIAGE:

• Girl must be at least 15 years and boy 18 years, otherwise a waiver is needed from the presidency.
• Marriage ban must be published for the legal period except by a waiver from the competent legal department.
• No marriage between spouses –to-be if they are of same sex
• Spouses-to-be be must freely consent to the marriage.
• Both spouses-to-be must be alive and present before the Civil status registrar except the president of the republic so declare after investigations for a living person to celebrate marriage with a deceased.

iii. OBJECTION TO MARRIAGE:

• In the cases of the minors, parents and guardians have the right to raise objections.
• Customary authority can raise objection in case of customary incest.
• Husband or wife previously married to one of the spouses- to-be can raise an objection.
• No objection based on customary dowry is accepted (for public policy.
• Marriage by a spouse previously married is null and void on public policy.

c) DEATH REGISTRATION (CERTIFICATE)

• Death must be declared in place of occurrence or place of burial or place of residence or place of birth of the deceased within

60 days by the family head, relative or any person. With sufficient evidence.

• Death at the medical institution or penitentiary institution requires that the head of said institution has 90 days following the said death to declare same. Soon after registration, the civil status registrar must copy the national civil status center so that it is noted on the marginal notes of his/her birth certificate.
• Where an unidentified corps is found, the civil status registrar of the area shall draw a death certificate based on the declaration of the judicial police officers. If found without any identification document, the corpse shall only be described and relate items found on him/her, refer the investigation by the Judicial Police.

IV. IMPORTANCE OF CIVIL STATUS DOCUMENT:

The importance need not be over emphasized; some of those importance can be well understood if classified under the documents named:

i) Birth Certificate:

Not only do the birth certificate identity the child properly vis-à-vis his or her filiation but elucidate the child as to his/her background and history, culture, name, exact date of birth (if properly recorded). All these information gives the child a certain degree of psychological and psychosocial balance in growth as he/she basically grows up to concentrate on his/her purpose of creation and not imagining how his/her coming into existence was made more complex. If all our parents’ birth were recorded rightly, we could with ease trace our lineage back to the 40 PRINCES that founded Kedjom Ketinguh.

    For educational purpose, a child cannot and should not be admitted to study from nursery, primary, secondary, high school, university and post graduates without a valid birth certificate. Even at PhD level, birth certificate will always be part of the documents to be certified and compiled amongst others.

    Even as an adult, your identification via National identity card or passport cannot be established or renewed without a birth certificate. The said identification document remains compulsory throughout your life in all your daily transactions.

    Birth registration and its statistics remains an important source of information to the state to carry out some policies in various areas of the national life and for the benefit and security of the population. (could be elaborated extensively).

    Birth certificate gives rise to recognition, legitimacy (where it was not done at birth) and adoption of the child. These are other civil status documents not included in this presentation but which takes its rise from birth certificate in some cases.

ii)Marriage Certificate :

• Civil servants and salary earners know better how useful it helps them in their professional career, transfers etc.
  • It proofs your status as the need always arises.
  • It legitimizes the children born within or brought in to the marriage.
  • It assists the spouse and children a great deal in succession related issues.
  • Gives a certain degree of security in marriage and marital engagements.
  • Guarantees a series of rights to parties therein while alive and even after the demise of one of them.

iii)Death Certificate :

• Death certificate mostly misunderstood to think it’s needed only if the deceased had property over which some documents must be obtained by presenting the death certificate. E.g. access to deceased’s account or pension by beneficiaries. Whereas it goes beyond that.
• Evidences the close of one’s live.
• If properly recorded the state rely on the figures(statistics)deaths registered to bring up policies for the benefits of the population.
• At times its necessary if not compulsory to obtain one if you must transport corps from one place to another, failing which a certificate certifying the cause of death is required   as documents to authorize the transportation of the corps.
• It helps the electoral body to update the voters list, helps institutions to stop transacting with persons already death e.g. official Appointments, bank transactions etc.

DIFFICULTIES/CHALLENGES:

• Administrative/ judicial tolerance and relaxation/Ignorance in applying the law.
• Several offences committed in this domain.
• Security of the state, the economy of the state endangered
• The national civil status center facing a lot of challenges operating as expected.
• If you realize that people living and healthy have come across their own death certificate applied for by people known and unknown, foreigners gaining Cameroonian nationality, obtaining land and certifying same without due process, falsified identity etc. then there is a problem with the system. You can imagine the chaos it can cause a society.

PRACTICAL ADVICE TO MY PARENTS

• As soon as you deliver your child (children) register the birth as soon as possible within the first 90 days of birth. Let our children not grow big without birth certificate.
• For those who are big without birth certificates, endeavor to start doing something about it because soon you will be mature enough to establish Identity cards or go to school or write your public examination.
• For those who had been married traditionally, are living together, with or without children, celebrate your marriages at the civil status centers in your place of residence. It’s very important.

• Same applies to families of deceased family members. Many who die in the village setting, just burry immediately and take no measures to declare same. It’s not good.
• Never attempt to modify any information on your civil status document by yourself. Consult a lawyer, let the rightful procedure be followed.

Other civil status documents not treated but handled technically are

Adoption certificate Legitimacy certificate Recognition certificate

NB Can also go by marginal notes.

NB. Consult a lawyer to assist you where you find any doubt. Never attempt on your own, what you do not master. Avoid complicating thing for yourself before consulting a lawyer. Civil Status authorities also have the obligation to consult lawyers or other experts in the law to educate them on the DO and DON’T in the exercise of this delicate task. It’s not for nothing that before assuming office, the Civil Status Registrar take an oath of office before the Court of First Instance of the place of service. Remember

“Ignorance of the Law is no excuse”