Alphonse Siyam Siwe (born August 4, 1953Profile on Siwe at government website
."Fiche sur les nouveaux minitres (2)"
''Cameroon Tribune'', December 10, 2004 .) is a

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

ian politician who served as Minister of Energy and Water from 2004 to 2006 and was previously the Director-General of the Autonomous Port of

Douala Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and its economic capital. It is also the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Region (Cameroon), Littoral Region. Home to Central Africa's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Ai ...

. In 2007, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison for corruption.

Life and career

Born in Douala, Siwe was Deputy Director of Labogenie from 1981 to 1984 and Director of Labogenie from 1984 to 1990."Gouvernement: Qui sont-ils ?"
, ''Mutations'', December 10, 2004 . He was appointed as Deputy Secretary-General of the Presidency on September 7, 1990, serving in that position until 1992. He subsequently became Secretary-General of the Ministry of Public Works in 1995 before being elected to the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

from Haut-Nkam constituency in the 1997 parliamentary election. He became Director-General of the Autonomous Port of Douala in April 1998 and remained in that post until February 2005. In the 2002 parliamentary election, Siwe was re-elected to the National Assembly from Haut-Nkam constituency,2002 election results
, spm.gov.cm . where his list, that of the ruling

Cameroon People's Democratic Movement The Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM; french: Rassemblement démocratique du Peuple Camerounais, RDPC) is the ruling political party in Cameroon. Previously known as the Cameroonian National Union, which had dominated Cameroon politic ...

, received 49.58 percent of the vote and won two of the three available seats. Siwe also served as Mayor of

Bafang Bafang is a town and commune in Cameroon situated in the Haut-Nkam division of the West Province. It lies at the heart of the territory of the Bamiléké people, and has a population of roughly 33,324. (2012) Religion Its cathedral, Cathéd ...

. Siwe was appointed as Minister of Energy and Water in the government named on December 8, 2004. He served in that post for a little over a year; on February 24, 2006, he was dismissed from the government and arrested"Rétrospective de l'année 2006"
Cameroon-info.net, December 31, 2006 . for allegedly participating in the theft of about 38 billion

CFA francs The CFA franc (french: franc CFA, , Franc of the Financial Community of Africa, originally Franc of the French Colonies in Africa, or colloquially ; abbreviation: F.CFA) is the name of two currencies, the West African CFA franc, used in eight Wes ...

in public funds during his stint as Director-General of the Autonomous Port of Douala. This was widely believed to be a witch hunt and an attempt by those in power at preventing his rise in popularity; which they saw as a threat."Corruption jails ex-Cameroon minister"
AFP, December 13, 2007. He was tried along with 12 other defendants"Détournements au Pad: 30 ans pour Siyam, 15 ans pour Etondè Ekotto"
, ''Le Messager'', December 13, 2007 . in December 2007. On December 13, 2007, verdicts in the trial were announced; Siwe received the most severe sentence, 30 years in prison. He was convicted on six charges and acquitted on ten. Three of the other 12 defendants were also found guilty, including Edouard Nathanaël Etondè Ekotto and François Marie Siéwé Nitcheu, who respectively received 15- and 25-year sentences.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siwe, Alphonse Siyam Members of the National Assembly (Cameroon) Government ministers of Cameroon Cameroon People's Democratic Movement politicians Prisoners and detainees of Cameroon Cameroonian prisoners and detainees Living people Cameroonian politicians convicted of corruption 1953 births Politicians convicted of embezzlement