Alenne Menget just knows how to draw attention to a pertinent and sensitive issue! Doesn’t he?
The veteran actor delivered a powerful speech at the 2018 Golden Movie Awards in Ghana, June 2 which could go down in history as one of the most inspiring speeches by any Cameroonian movie maker on a foreign soil.
Among foreigners and movie lovers, Alenne Menget‘s explicit and stirring speech at the award show was unanimously well-received and may have led many Cameroonians (politicians or not) to ponder on the possibility of insisting on a dialogue between the government and the leaders of the on going Anglophone Crisis – a crisis which has led to the death of hundreds of citizens and destruction of lands and properties in Cameroon for almost two years.
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The actor, who was delivering his acceptance speech for winning ‘Best Actor’ for his role in Nkanya Nkwai‘s “A Good Time To Divorce” movie, started by thanking Africa for his win then moved on to thank his dad for raising a man who hasn’t stopped following his dreams. He then took time to address the current instability in his country – Cameroon – a nation he emphasized was once basking in the euphoria of peace.
“I come from a country called Cameroon… that country has been one of the most peaceful countries in the world but like the Upper Volta during the days of our colonial masters, it was divided and brought back together just like Togo and Ghana. But in our case, they brought the English part of Cameroon and the French part of Cameroun. For the past two years, the peace has not been there,” he told the crowd.
His voice thundering with emotion, he continued: “If today you call me the best actor in Africa, I want to ask for only one thing … for all of you to call our leaders to get to a dialogue because we are tired of the blood.
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He also made reference to the fact that Africans have continuously brought down and killed their own brothers and sisters with tools and weapons made and only introduced to them by non-Africans.
“This is for peace. This is for an idea that I call tonight EVERY BLOOD MATTERS!!! The soldiers’ blood matters. The civilians’ blood matter! Africa, throw down the guns, because we don’t like GUNS. We don’t create GUNS! So let’s not use GUNS. This is for peace in my country,” Menget ended.
By the time he stepped down from the stage, Ghanaians, Nigerians and every single human being who was in that hall or watching from home was able to know more about Cameroon, what she used to enjoy as peace and what she’s currently going through as regards to life and properties lost as a result of a crisis which could have been long solved should the GUNS be kept foreign!
It was perhaps the very first most Ghanaians were hearing or getting first hand information on the Anglophone Crisis and how it has affected the peace of another nation.
Who says actors are not state ambassadors for peace and development!?
Watch Alenne Menget‘s 2018 GMAA acceptance speech for Best Actor below and see some of the reactions.
