Documenting the Political Divide

Abstract

The reception given to the various government measures to combat Covid-19 in the midst of the health crisis between 2021 and 2022 illustrates the political divide between the Cameroonian State and its population. This article analyzes the mechanisms behind this lack of trust, on the basis of a sociology of public action that combats Covid-19 and a sociology of the State. Our analysis highlights several structural elements that undermine the legitimacy of the Cameroonian State in the eyes of its population: centralized decision-making logics that resist any form of openness likely to give more room to the dialogue and consensus required by the health emergency; the instrumentalization of public action for presidential marketing purposes, and a great lack of flexibility and proximity in government communication. All this takes place within a context of technological evolution (the weight of social networks) that calls for a rethinking of the content, form, channels and carriers of information and communication.