Minister's grammatical slip during university games draws criticism

Cameroon's Minister of State for Higher Education, Professor Jacques Fame Ndongo, known for his eloquent speeches, recently stumbled over a grammatical point during the University Games in Ebolowa. The incident, captured on video and circulating on social media, involved a misclassification of verb tenses.

Professor Darren Lambo Ebelle, a literature expert, pointed out that Ndongo incorrectly identified "n’eussent été" as belonging to the imperfect subjunctive. Ebelle clarified that this verb form is, in fact, part of the pluperfect subjunctive, derived from the auxiliary verb "avoir" conjugated in the imperfect subjunctive ("eussent") combined with the past participle of "être" ("été"). He explained that the imperfect subjunctive of "être" would yield forms like "que je fusse," and that "fussent été" is not a valid French construction.

Beyond the specific grammatical error, Ebelle criticized what he termed the minister's "ostentation of knowledge" at the expense of accuracy. He invoked an axiom from information and communication sciences, stating that editorial and political responsibility for a text lies with its author, not just the scribe. This implies that the minister, as the intellectual author of his speech, cannot delegate accountability for its content.

Ebelle concluded by advocating for a principle of discretion and intellectual humility, suggesting that "silent correction", revising and amending one's work before delivery, is the most refined form of accuracy for someone in the minister's position. He quoted Abraham Lincoln, advising that it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt, and emphasized that true greatness lies in the delicate and benevolent transmission of knowledge, not in its ostentatious display.