Limbe Authorities Fight Over Key while Northwest and Southwest Burns

In the wake of the visit of Ni John Fru Ndi, National Chairman of Cameroon's Leading Opposition Party the Social Democratic Front SDF to the Southwest Region, tongues have wagged over the warm reception that was given to the SDF Party Boss by HRH John Manga Williams, Paramount Ruler Elect of the Chiefdom of "Victoria" now called Limbe.
During this visit, Chief John Manga Williams in a gesture that falls in line with the catchy phrase "Limbe, a town of friendship" that welcomes you as you enter the city handed a symbolic "key" as gift to Fru Ndi. The key among many other things meant that the visitor was always welcome to Limbe. The doors of the Kingdom were by this gesture open to Fru Ndi. This, taken for what it truly meant was a sign of respect and acknowledgement of what Fru Ndi had contributed to the democratic process in Cameroon as well as a recognition of the values he stood for.
With the raging Anglophone Crisis that is practically burning the two English Speaking Regions, the visitor had taken out time as a patriotic and National figure, to visit SONARA and sympathize with its GM and workers just like the Southwest Chiefs had done some hours earlier undisturbed.
The National Chairman left behind as he quit "the town of friendship", fuming Administrative and Traditional Authorities. What were they fuming about? You would think they were fuming over the present stalemate and lack of meaningful suggestions to solve the problems plaguing the two English Speaking Regions. No! The apparently busy councillors ,mayors and Traditional rulers had time to sit and reprimand a Natural Ruler for choosing to give a key to a Royal guest. They argued over a key and even ordered a Natural Leader to apologise.
-Ignoring the present National shift towards encouraging " Le Vivre Ensemble".
Any Cameroonian who truly loves the country should certainly know that the notion of "vivre ensemble" which means living together is a principle that is presently being encouragement even from the office of the highest authority in the country. How can this inconsistency from apparently intelligent Cameroonians forge a way forward for Cameroon? Who are they struggling to please? If the painstakingly written and signed communiqué is to show the Head of State that they are loyal CPDM lackeys then they missed the point. That "modus operandi" is outdated. President Paul Biya is presently too preoccupied with important issues to notice that drama.
-A complete disrespect for the Kingdom of Victoria.
The most basic knowledge of anthropology shows that Natural leadership has a stronger influence on the people than Administrative Authority albeit the apparently strong administrative authority in Cameroon. It is not unknown to anyone who cares to know that a Natural ruler worth the salt is not ordered around by anyone talk less by somebody who is not of the same ethnic group. Blasphemous! The power of natural leaders should be protected by them working together rather than playing the roles of lackeys to administration. This was seen during the build up to the May 20th celebration. Traditional Leaders must have some degree of self-esteem. Asking your fellow natural ruler to apologise is a demonstration of the fact that you don't even know the worth of the sacred stool on which you sit. You don't know that you represent not only a people, but traditions that have lasted for hundreds of years.
Chasing Shadows and leaving real issues on the sidelines provides no solutions.
The story of the key is like the story of two hunters who argued over the distribution of the parts of an antelope even before the animal was killed. While arguing they failed to notice that another hunter had killed the antelope. They lost everything.
Reacting to the drama that took place after he left Limbe, the Chairman said this was the third time he was receiving such a gift. He said some years back during a visit to the USA two cities presented gifts to him practically making him a citizen of their cities.  He said he was bemused when he heard about what was going on in Limbe because of the key that HRH John Manga Williams gave to him. He said he never expected such a thing to happen in his own country.

Chief Henry Fonderson President of Limbe Chiefs Conference has insisted that The Paramount Chief elect was not yet qualified to carry out such a gesture because he had not yet been fully recognized by government authorities.

Meantime Mola Thomas Likiye Otto of the Socia Democratic Front  in Limbe has reacted to the squabble over the key in the following manner:

The Chairman was very honored to receive the Keys to the Chiefdom of Limbe from HRH Johny Manga Williams the Paramount Ruler of Limbe. As the Chairman always says he is a “ colanut eater" for those who don’t know colanut eaters are respecters of tradition and there was no way he could visit the great city of Limbe without honouring the charismatic traditional ruler of a city that for centuries has practiced and preached the culture of living together.

However if a few municipal councillors and their executives feel they have another set of Keys that they would like to present to the Chairman they are free to make a proposal and we would evaluate it and give them an appropriate response. For now we are very happy with the one we have. In the future we would collect more keys, not from those who signed the hate filled communique but from the great people of Limbe.

Finally we would like to add that it was very embarrassing to see the Calibre of people who put their signatures on that communique but understanding very well the politics of the city and observing the name[s] we did not see, we know very well the devil is in the details. To conclude we encourage all to lead by example and in the true spirit of the city of Limbe to solve problems in-house in a family setting befitting of the great city you all represent."
A school of taught believes that the detractors of HRH John Manga Williams are at work with an intention of presenting him in a negative stance. Those of this line of taught question the reason behind making so much noise over a very little issue. The authorities know that HRH John Elufa Manga Williams is yet to be endorsed by government but is that what makes a true traditional ruler? Is the issue of not being qualified to give a key more important than the beauty behind the gesture. Is it more important than "Le vivre ensemble" propergated by the Biya Regime that encourages a rapprochement between Cameroonians from different parts of the country? Is it a solid enough reason to distract people from major problems plaguing the state? Chasing Shadows.

Belo Council puts in place Strategies to continue with Development projects

Tefu Emmanuel, Lord Mayor of Belo Council has insisted that despite the unfavourable conditions for the implementation of projects at the moment the council under his guidance was poised to put in place the most feasible approach to guarantee the continuity of development initiatives. Lord Mayor Tefu Emmanuel also disclosed that despite the multiplicity of things to be handled, the Council was putting in place a strategy to handle the increasing problems of Internally Displaced People from his Subdivision. He further said the present crisis rocking the two English Speaking Regions of the country had not helped matters. He made this declaration recently in an interview accorded "Le Gideon" Newspaper recently in Bamenda.
He intimated that the Council he recently took over, had a lot of ear marked projects yet to be completed. "We hope that things will quickly return to normal so that we can continue from where the former mayor stopped" he said adding that working  now at home was a herculean task.
The mayor further intimated that the main challenges being faced at the moment included working on projects to meet up with the aspirations of people in Bello. "We are still studying the situation and trying to sort out possibilities of continuing with our projects. Nothing could be done in 2018 and we want to make sure that we forge ahead with our projects in 2019," he explained.
Lord Mayor Tefu Emmanuel further explained that there was actually no life in Bello at the moment especially for those who were operating petit businesses and stores. He however said when you left Bello, the center of the municipality and moved into the villages you could find some activities but that in the heart of the municipality no activities were really going on.
The mode of operation the mayor said was that of team work. Hear him; "Our mode of operation has always been that of collective team work. During campaigns I promised my people that my style of work would be the team work approach. I work with council staff as one just like I work with the people as one."
Mayor Tefu Emmanuel said there was the persistent problem of increasing numbers of Internally Displaced People from the municipality. He said though the Council had been doing something in that direction, the problem still persisted and that he would continue to reach out to IDPs in the Subdivision. "Last time when I went to Yaounde, I noticed that there were about a thousand IDPs from the municipallity and that something had to be done and that we should do something there as a team. In Bamenda there are very many IDPs and  I am looking forward to doing something about this in the days ahead" he intimated.
Talking about council activities, he said they carried out all activities on the council premises albeit security challenges.
"The only thing I plead for is that authorities should do everything possible to make sure that things return to normalcy so as to permit us continue with the development of our municipality."

Separatists, Armed Gangs, Marauding Soldiers make Bui inhabitable

-Countless youths fleeing "Scotch Earth" operations!

Bui Division like many other  Divisions in the restive Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon has been amongst the most hard hit Divisions since the Anglophone Crisis set in some three years ago. Separatist or Restoration forces were created with the support of Separatist activists in the Diaspora and information so far published over the years indicates that the creation of the Ambazonian Defense Force ADF transformed the Anglophone struggle into an armed struggle. Just like in other Divisions, a faction of these fighters sprouted in Bui.
This group which has gradually grown to be referred generally as "Ambazionian Fighters" wield considerable influence in Bui Division and has greatly influenced the pace of human activities in the Division.
With the decision of the Yaounde regime to completely stamp out the " Amba boys" and any other dissenting group, there was a corresponding deployment of contingents of the Cameroon Regular Army in the area. The resultant skirmishes led to a lot of blood shed especially among youngsters who for most of the time are not usually connected with the battle.
An added ingredient has been the fact that armed groups which are not necessarily "Ambazonian Fighters" have joined the dance. They have profited from the anarchy to meet up with the personal agendas which include organised crime through kidnapings and the demand of ransoms, settling of scores amongst other things completely unrelated to the initial reasons behind the armed conflict.They are generally referred to as " Fake Ambas."
The Anglophone Crisis has as such divided tribal communities and destroyed huge royal households like the Nso Palace historically one of the most important in Cameroon.
The regime in Yaounde makes use of a lot of Intelligence information using people from within the community as sources. When such informants are made known to the local population which is dominantly against the regular army, they are given the treatment of mob justice and their houses and property burnt.
On the other hand, if progovernment informants identify a family or member of any family to be collaborating with Separatist Forces like the ADF or any other group, it becomes absolutely necessary to quit the stage while you can that is if your family is spotted by intelligence force to harbour any sentiment or to collaborate with Separatists or terrorists as they have come to be referred to by the Biya regime.
This background provides all the necessary ingredients for total anarchy irrespective of the perspective from which you look at it. If you are an identified enemy of any of the above groups then you are as good as dead in Bui Division. If you are identified as an enemy of the state due to secessionist activism then its exceptionally dangerous. You simply go under ground or flee.
The regime according to declarations made during the last Senate Session in March is making use of what is referred to as the Scotch Earth Policy which has sent many fleeing from their home and country.
In Kumbo, one of the oldest Royal Dynasties in Cameroon, the Nso Kingdom was quasi destroyed by gangs alleged to be "Amba boys". Investigations have so far shown that groups involved in this attack on the Royal Family fall in the category of armed groups prepared to go to any length to eliminate the royal family. The Fon of Nso HRH Sehm Mbinglo III barely escaped from Kumbo with his life. Meantime his son, the Prince was brutally murdered by armed men yet to be fully identified.
In Noni still in Bui Division the Scotch Earth Policy by the regular Cameroon Army has been on course. Speaking recently in an interview with this reporter, the SDF Senator Kinyang George who hails from Bui and specifically from Noni said the killings and burning of property in Bui was dominantly carried out by the Cameroonian Army.Kumbo, the Capital of the Division is now quasi deserted with almost every member of the Royal family having fled abroad.
Another SDF Senator Kemende speaking during the Senate Session said Noni was one of those places where regular troops were implementing the Scotch Earth Policy. Among other gory examples, the senator explains how victims were told to dig their own graves before eventually being shot and buried in them. These victims are dominantly being identified through intelligence information sources.
Many youths in Noni who's families have been identified siding with Separatists have been victimised. They have been killed and family houses in some cases burnt. There is the case of youngsters like Ndikaka Anthony Soge, Lontum Dieudonne, Tan Kesitor Mangew among others whom this reporter could not ascertain their identity who have been identified to be linked with Separatists. Their whereabouts are presently not known but they are suspected to be on the run if still alive.
Bui Division has been therefore turned upside down and it is a case of survival of the fittest. The three groups mentioned above call the shots and unconfirmed reports state that some of the groups referred to as "fake Amba" are actually militia groups sponsored by the Yaounde regime. In this confusion and insecurity, youths have been escaping to seek safer abodes out of the country under precarious conditions.