Outgoing D.O. accused by Elites for fueling problems in Bafut.

Erstwhile Divisional Officer for Bafut and new D.O. for Kumba III, Ewane Jude Mbong has left behind a very unattractive legacy in his former post of duty Bafut in the Mezam Division. This was the grim reality presented by a cross section of elites that this reporter spoke to during the installation of the new Divisional Officer for Bafut Achu George Fru. Their dark picture of Ewane Jude Mbong was compounded by the lack of any sense of organisation during the installation of the new D.O. and also the lack of clarity on the handling of specifics which according to some of them amounted to lack of respect for the Bafut person.

D.O. Ewane Jude Mbong/ SDO Mezam Pierre Songa Rene/D.O. Bafut  Achu Fru George 

According to Ngwa Nfor Ivan Wanzie, the First Deputy Mayor for the Bafut Council, the installation ceremony which started off on a not too bad footing ended up poorly. He complained that despite contributions from Heads of Services and other quarters to see that there was a befitting handover ceremony, there was nothing to show for it. Hear him; “Even traditional dances that were invited were not motivated. Things that were supposed to be done were not done and the excuse was that the council did not give anything. Sitting for the Mayor who gave the speech we gave 300.000 FCFA for the occasion. He also took it upon himself to task heads of Services and some traditional dignitaries. All what was paid at the level of the Sub Municipal Treasurer was 400.000 FCFA. We went for his installation in Kumba and when we came back he did everything alone delegating no responsibilities for things to be better handled. Out of the 500.000FCFA that he applied for at the Council, we gave him 300.000FCFA taking into consideration that he had already said reception was going to take place at Saddle Hill Ranch. We could not again go and prepare for another reception. We were surprised that at the end there was not even a thousand francs for traditional dance groups that were invited. He told the Seniour Divisional Officer that the Bafut Council had done nothing and the SDO left very disappointed. When you work somewhere, don’t give people a bad impression about the place when leaving.”

A retired Sub Treasurer and Municipal Cashier Niba Cecilia Lum Chungong highlights what she refers to as financial impropriety. “The council and service heads among other dignitaries were asked to contribute and they did. But at the end of the day the occasion was the peak of disorganization itself with the most basic things that should grace an occasion being completely ignored.” This she intimated was a deliberate attempt to sabotage Bafut to the incoming Divisional Officer.

Susi Peter Ambesi, Councillor from Mambu Council Area in the Bafut Council and Secretary in charge of projects in Bafut Council cum Vice Chairperson of the Bafut Traditional Council said “the Fon of Bafut was embarrassed today. We had about five to seven dance groups that were invited today but to my surprise these groups were stopped by the outgoing Divisional Officer. Some problems that we have in the municipality are caused by him. We are happy that we now have a son to work with. He is from Mankon and Mankon and Bafut are one. We plan to work with him towards success.”

When this reporter contacted the outgoing Divisional Officer for comment, he declined stating that the only person who was in a position to comment on such an occasion was the SDO for Mezam. 

EDEV Web News: Email:francoeko@gmail.com/ edevnewspaper@gmail.com/ Tel:+237678401408/ +237696896001

Did Teacher’s Trade Union Leaders boycott Minister Bibehe’s Meeting in Bamenda?

By Wambo Emmanuel

The absence of the Teacher’s Trade Unions during a crucial Crisis Meeting with the Minister of Secondary Education, Jean-Ernest Massena Ngale Bibehe, has raised a lot of questions and fears in the minds of Secondary Educational stakeholders of the North West Region. This meeting which took place at the Government Technical High School GTHS, Bamenda down town on Tuesday, August 29, 2017 brought together educational stakeholders from across the North West Region to woe parents to ensure effective school resumption for the 2017-2018 Academic year in the region.

Jean-Ernest Massena Ngale Bibehe

The Minister however felt satisfied after he was assured from various speeches presented by educational stakeholders on their readiness to have schools reopen. Many people present however found the absence of Teachers Trade Unions intriguing, funny and embarrassing since the voices of these same teachers had been heard during back to school crusades.

 Minister Ngale Bibehe, was quick to notice the worries on the people’s faces which he knew was due to the absence of the Teacher’s Trade Unions in such a crucial meeting. There was as such nothing left than to inform stakeholders that Teacher’s Trade Union Leaders had had an earlier meeting with the Minister in Yaoundé. This attempt to explain why secondary educational stakeholders of the Region were absent did not gel. Accusations and counter accusations were raised. One of the leaders in attendance who wanted anonymity said even if there had been a previous meeting with the minister in Yaoundé, the union leaders were supposed to be present to make their stand on school resumption heard. Meanwhile others held that the failure of Unions leader to attend such a meeting could be interpreted as a boycott, while others felt that their hands were full considering that they had just decided to suspend the ongoing strike. At the time of publication attempts to meet leaders of the two main teachers trade unions, PIATTU and CATTU for them to confirm that they had vowed not to resume classes if their nine months salary areas were not paid failed.

 After listening carefully to Presidents of the Parents Teachers’ Associations, representatives of Proprietors of Lay Private Schools, the President of North West School Councils, the Spokes Person of North West Fons’ Union amongst others, Minister Jean-Ernest Massena Ngale Bibehe, congratulated especially parents who used their time and money to guarantee security of the children while in schools considering that they were under threats and intimidations. He assured them that over 400 troops had been deployed to the North West Region to guarantee the security of children.

He further noted with satisfaction the fact that students of the region despite threats went ahead to take part in the FENASCO A games. He said the will of education should move on collectively and individually and called on the parents to take commitment in support of the security measure put in place by the government to ensure that no one attempts to disrupt resumption of schools. He said measures had also been taken to ensure that teachers organise catch up classes during the 2017—2018 academy year.  

EDEV Web News: Email: edevnewspaper@gmail.com/ francoeko@gmail.com/ Tel: +237678401408/+237696896001

Presidential Amnesty perceived as poisoned gift in some Quarters.

 Comment By Francis Nzante

Francis Nzante

Presidential Amnesty leading to the release of some 55 Anglophone activists has been viewed as a poisoned gift in some quarters. Following the euphoria immediately after the release, many unanswered questions are beginning to surface.

The questions touch on a wide range of issues. Out of the 74 “terrorists” in detention only 55 have been released and a lot of eyebrows are being raised concerning what will eventually happen with those still in detention. The continuous detention of one of the most popular detainees, the Radio Presenter Mancho Bibixy is also being viewed with a pinch of salt in the North West Region where he comes from. The question is, if Cameroonian Authorities truly want things to return to normalcy then why not release all the detainees for the nation to move to the much needed dialogue that has been proposed by almost all interested parties as the only way forward.

The conclusion by many is that prisoners are being used by government authorities as baits for the achievement of specific purposes. The release of these detainees just before school resumption on Monday September 4 was according to many Cameroonian weekly and Daily newspapers a move towards showing good fate in order to enhance school resumption in the two English Speaking Regions; to prevent a repeat of what happened during the 2016-2017 Academic Year during which there was almost no school attendance. This view was buttressed by declarations made by the leaders of the outlawed Consortium after their release urging schools to resume.

Meantime Barrister Ntumfor Nico Halle a leading peace crusader and Cameroonian legal luminary has said he is “accomplished but disappointed” and vows to continue on bended knees for the release of the others and general amnesty for those on the run.

Considering the fact that amnesty for those on the run has never been considered and that the fate of those not yet released still hangs in the balance, the situation has hardly changed. The palpable tension that was felt when court hearings of the detainees were continuously adjourned is still there. Activists still remain unsure and on the run while unreleased detainees still stand the same risks that they stood before. Last but not the least, school resumption has been a almost a complete failure in the two English speaking Regions.

Many and varied solutions have been proposed as the best way forward in the present impasse in which Cameroon finds itself. Both sides of the coin however have to come to a compromise and agree on a middle playing ground if any concrete solution has to be arrived at. The message on the wall is clear. A completely centralized government like the one presently in place in Cameroon is completely unacceptable to a majority of English Speaking Cameroonians. On the other hand, the extremist secessionist stance taken by some activists in the Anglophone struggle is equally unacceptable to the regime in place in Yaounde. The population, especially those of the North West and South West have been held hostage by the extremist stance of the two parties. The children can’t go to school normally because of insecurity and the economic weight of sending children to schools in the French Speaking Regions is weighing enormously on generally small income Anglophone parents.

Meantime there is this tendency for the Cameroonian government to persistently throw a blind eye at calls for a release of all detainees and an all inclusive dialogue to get things sorted out. 

EDEV Web News/ Email: edevnewspaper@gmail.com/ francoeko@gmail.com/ Tel:+237696896001/+237678401408 

“Bali should be raised to the status of a full Division”

-Ajong Dobgima Sylvanus

Ajong Dobgima Sylvanus is presently the Lord Mayor of the Bali Nyonga Municipality. Before becoming Mayor, he was the CPDM Section President for Bali. He is a product of the prestigious Higher Institute of Administration and Magistracy known in its French acronym as ENAM where he studied Administration and Finance. From this institution Ajong Dobgima Sylvanus served in different capacities in the Civil Service. His last appointment was at the Regional Delegation of Agriculture for the North West Region from where he retired in 2005. Amongst other things, Ajong Dobgima Sylvanus declared that the problems of Cameroon lie in an over centralized system. He equally points out that the Bali Nyonga Sub Division is one of the oldest in the North West Region and should be raised to the status of a Division. He was interviewed by Francis Ekongang Nzante. He begins by touching on what inspired him to get into politics.

Ajong Dobgima Sylvanus

“Throughout my career I have been managing finances and taking care of people. When I retired I became a full politician and this gave me an opportunity to better take care of people.”

During this period Bali has been transformed into one of the biggest towns in the North West Region. What is this force that has been pushing the town forward?

Our trick is just hard work with all of us putting hands together. The elites have been lobbying and putting all their forces together to bring development to Bali. This gave us the possibility to transform Bali into the town that you have here today.

If you were to suggest that something still had to be done in Bali specifically and Cameroon at large, what would that thing be?

Bali is one of the oldest Sub Divisions in the North West Region and if there is anything that I want to ask, it will be that Bali should be raised to the status of a full Division. Bali was among the earliest places to become an academic hob and to have some of the most educated elite. One of the oldest secondary schools in these parts of the country was created in Bali; Cameroon Protestant College and Bali has now become a University town with the creation of the Cameroon Christian University. 

What specific problems can you identify in Bali and what solutions do you propose?

The powers that be should let decentralization become a reality in Cameroon. The problems in Cameroon are as a result of an over centralized system. For anything to be done here, one has to constantly go to Yaounde. We have water crises in Bali and there is also the problem of shortage of electricity supply. These are the major problems. When there is water and electricity, other development projects will follow. If this is done in Bali and in the other villages within the Municipality then the place will be completely transformed. 

EDEV Web News: Email: edevnewspaper@gmail.com/ francoeko@gmail.com/ Tel:+237696896001/+237678401408

   

Widikum Solidarity Tournament asserts itself as unifying force.

The maiden edition of the Widikum Solidarity Tournament has turned out to be one of the most unifying events in the recent history of the town. This one month long tournament which was organised by Hon. Enwe Francis, MP for Momo West and Tayo Denise, the Lord Mayor of Widikum rounded up triumphantly on Saturday September 2, 2017 in a heavily attended final.

Hon Enwe Francis Hands Trophy to Maya FC

 

The Widikum Solidarity Tournament assembled 13 Football teams divided into two pools and six female Hand Ball teams. The Female Hand Ball final was a hotly contested confrontation between Boffe United Hand Ball Club and Tikom Hand Ball Club. Boffe United emerged victorious with a slight 6-4 win over an equally good Tikom Hand Ball Club.

Meantime, Cutting FC and Maya FC locked horns in the final of the Men’s Foot Ball category. In the hotly contested encounter that ensued, the winning team only emerged after post match penalties. Maya FC’s narrow 4-3 win over a no nonsense Cutting FC in post match penalty shot out made them the maiden winners of the Widikum Solidarity Tournament. 

Hon Enwe Francis, D.O. Widikum, Tayo Denis(Mayor) Akwa Stephen...

 

Hon. Enwe Francis contentedly summed up the event in the following words; “It has been a wonderful period in the Widikum Sub Division and I have sailed through thanks to the collaboration between me and the Lord Mayor. The aim was to make sure that youths of Widikum are kept in check and we have succeeded. The ambiance you see here today in Widikum has lasted for over a month. We are through with playing and the next business is that of school resumption on Monday September 4^th. If you see the number of children that turned out here today you should have seen the excitement on their faces when I announced that school was going to start on Monday. I feel proud because Widikum cannot be left behind in Education. We know Cameroon has problems but the education of children cannot be compromised. 

Boffe United Hand Ball Club

 Lord Mayor Tayo Denise of Widikum said “for the month long tournament to be successful there was complete collaboration between me and the Honourable Member of Parliament for Momo West, Enwe Francis. We also received complete collaboration from the Administration, the forces of Law and Order. We thank the Almighty God for making things to turn out the way they did.”   

 

EDEV Web News/ Email: francoeko@gmail.com/ edevnewspaper@gmail.com/ Tel:+237696896001/+237678401408