"Pa" Simon Achidi Achu (born 5 November 1934) is a Cameroon

Cameroon

Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...

ian politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 who served as the Prime Minister of Cameroon

Prime Minister of Cameroon

Under the current constitution of Cameroon, the Prime Minister of Cameroon is a relatively powerless executive. While the Prime Minister is officially appointed to be the head of government, the President retains most of the executive power and can fire the Prime Minister at will.-History:The...

 from 1992 to 1996. A leading member of the Cameroon People's Democratic Movement

Cameroon People's Democratic Movement

The Cameroon People's Democratic Movement is the ruling political party in Cameroon.-History:Previously known as the Cameroon National Union, which had dominated Cameroon politics since independence in 1960, it was renamed in 1985...

 (CPDM), he is currently the Chairman of the National Investment Corporation.

Biography

Achidi Achu was born in Bamenda

Bamenda

Bamenda, also known as Abakwa and Mankon Town, is a city in northwestern Cameroon and capital of the North West Province. The city had a population of 269,530 at the 2005 Census, and is located 366 km north-west of the Cameroonian capital, Yaoundé...

 and grew up in Santa

Santa, Cameroon

-References:* * - Thèse de Donation Avele, Université Montesquieu Bordeaux IV * Charles Nanga, , Mémoire ENA....

, located in the Northwest Province of Cameroon. He completed primary education in Santa and then continued to Cameroon Protestant College, where he remained until completing high school. Pa Achu later continued to the University of Yaoundé

University of Yaoundé

The University of Yaoundé is a leading university in Cameroon, located in Yaoundé.It was built with the help of France and opened in 1962 as the Federal University of Yaoundé, dropping the "Federal" in 1972 when the country was reorganized....

, where he participated in the creation of the Student Association, which still exists. He also served as the association's first president. He continued his studies in Marseille

Marseille

Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

Achidi Achu was a state magistrate from October 1965 to October 1966. Later, he was appointed as Minister Delegate at the State Federal Inspectorate in late October 1971. He was subsequently appointed as Minister of Justice by Cameroonian President Ahmadou Ahidjo

Ahmadou Ahidjo

Ahmadou Babatoura Ahidjo was the first President of Cameroon from 1960 until 1982.-Early life:Ahidjo was born in Garoua, a major river port along the Benue River in northern Cameroun, which was at the time a French mandate territory...

 on 3 July 1972, remaining in that position until 1975. Pa Simon then returned to Santa and started the Rock Farm Ranch as a farmer.

He stayed out of politics for several years, then he was elected as a member of the National Assembly

National Assembly of Cameroon

The National Assembly is the parliament of Cameroon. It has 180 members, elected for five-year terms in 49 single and multi-seat constituencies....

. President Paul Biya

Paul Biya

Paul Biya is a Cameroonian politician who has been the President of Cameroon since 6 November 1982. A native of Cameroon's south, Biya rose rapidly as a bureaucrat under President Ahmadou Ahidjo in the 1960s, serving as Secretary-General of the Presidency from 1968 to 1975 and then as Prime...

 later appointed him as Prime Minister on 9 April 1992, following the March 1992 parliamentary election. He was the first Anglophone

English-speaking world

The English-speaking world consists of those countries or regions that use the English language to one degree or another. For more information, please see:Lists:* List of countries by English-speaking population...

 Prime Minister of Cameroon.

On 10 October 1992, the day before the 1992 presidential election

Cameroonian presidential election, 1992

A presidential election was held in Cameroon on 11 October 1992. It was the first presidential election since multi-party politics had been legalised, and it was also the first to feature more than one candidate. Incumbent Paul Biya won with 39.98% of the vote. Voter turnout was 71.9%.The 1992...

, Achidi Achu appeared on Cameroon Radio and Television and addressed the people in French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

, his second language. In this address, he accused the opposition, led by Social Democratic Front (SDF) candidate John Fru Ndi

John Fru Ndi

Ni John Fru Ndi is the founder and leader of Cameroon's Social Democratic Front .Fru Ndi was born in Baba II, near Bamenda in the Northwest Province of Cameroon. The title of Ni, a marker of respect, was given to him when he was born...

, of having a "diabolical plan" (plan diabolique) to prosecute and execute the leading figures of the state, government, and military if it won the election, and he urged the people to reject the opposition in order to avert potential violence and instability.

Following Biya's victory in the 1992 election, Achidi Achu remained Prime Minister until 19 September 1996, when he was replaced by Peter Mafany Musonge

Peter Mafany Musonge

Peter Mafany Musonge was the Prime Minister of Cameroon from September 1996 until December 8, 2004.-Biography:Musonge was born at Muea in the Fako Department of Cameroon's South-West Province...

. Achidi Achu was later appointed as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Investment Corporation (Société nationale des Investissements) on 3 March 2003.

Achidi Achu is a member of the Central Committee of the ruling CPDM. He was also a member of the National Commission for the coordination of Biya's election campaign in the 2004 presidential election

Cameroonian presidential election, 2004

The 2004 Cameroonian presidential election took place in Cameroon on 11 October 2004. Incumbent President Paul Biya was easily re-elected in an election which the opposition claimed had seen widespread electoral fraud.-Background:...

 and was the president of the campaign's support and follow up committee in the Northwest Province. He has also headed the discipline commission of the CPDM. During the campaign for the July 2007 parliamentary and municipal elections

Cameroonian parliamentary election, 2007

A parliamentary election was held in Cameroon on 22 July 2007, with some polls held again on 30 September 2007. 1,274 candidates stood for the 180 seats in the National Assembly, with 41 parties participating...

, Achidi Achu was a member of the CPDM's Central Campaign Committee; he was also President of the CPDM Provincial Campaign Committee in the Northwest Province.

In 2009, Achidi Achu became one of three members of the CPDM North West Section's newly established Council of the Wise, which was intended to formulate strategy and tactics to enable the CPDM to attain dominance in the North West Province, where the opposition Social Democratic Front (SDF) has been traditionally dominant.