Ousmane Mey

Ousmane Mey is a Cameroonian political figure who was Governor of the North Province of Cameroon from 1972 to August 1983. As of 2007, he is chairman of the Board of the National Social Insurance Fund (CNPS).

Political career A native of northern Cameroon and a friend of President Ahmadou Ahidjo, Ousmane Mey was appointed as Federal Inspector of Administration for the North Province in 1968. He was part of the small circle of Ahidjo's associates who crafted the 1972 constitution providing for a unitary state, and he was responsible for typing the initial draft. When the unitary state was established, Mey was appointed as Governor of North Province by Ahidjo in 1972.

In an entirely unanticipated move, President Ahidjo announced his resignation on 4 November 1982 and was succeeded by Paul Biya, a southerner, two days later. Although Ahidjo voluntarily transferred power to Biya, a power struggle soon developed between the two, and Biya acted to weaken Ahidjo by splitting his key support base, the North Province, into three smaller provinces: North Province, Adamawa Province, and Far North Province.

Although key Ahidjo loyalists were removed from office during the power struggle, President Biya later restored some of them to administrative posts.