A SORRY TALE IF TRUE: Fru Ndi Confronts Asonganyi, Refuses to Shake Hands, Says Facts in His Book Are Inaccurate

By Tazoacha Asonganyi in Yaounde.

A story is trending in the net titled “A SORRY TALE IF TRUE: Fru Ndi Confronts Asonganyi, Refuses to Shake Hands, Says Fact in His Book Are False.”

    My book “Cameroon: Difficult Choices in a Failed Democracy,” was effectively launched in Bamenda on August 19. Judged by the standards of what happened in Yaounde, Douala and Buea, it was also a very successful event.

     Ni John Fru Ndi attended the launch and refused to shake hands with me when I went to greet him; I had a warm handshake or embrace with every other person around him.

      Ni John FruNdi was given the opportunity by the Chairman of the occasion (Dr. Ngwanyam) to unveil the books at the start of the launching proper – this was the decision of the Chair of the occasion not mine, although I found nothing wrong with the decision.

     Ni John Fru Ndi used the statement he made before unveiling the book to make all types of disparaging statements about my person and my family! He probably felt that since issues about his wife – the late first lady of my former party – were discussed in my book, he had the liberty to talk about my late sister who was not even a member of the party. He unveiled the book alright, but took no copy.

     My sister Emefua died on 19 August 2001 at the Mary Health of Africa (MHA) hospital Nveuh (Fontem). I was far away in Yaounde when she died so her remains were preserved in the mortuary of MHA. A week before she had to be buried, I went home and spent time making necessary preparations. On the day of the burial we removed the remains at 8:00 a.m. and laid them in state in our compound which is a 15-minutes’ walk from MHA, for some three hours; the remains were buried at about 10:30 a.m. and we kept the celebration of her life for a future date. After that we entertained the population; a majority of the population left after that except members of my family with whom I had to hold a family meeting at 7:00 p.m. I left the compound briefly around 2:00 p.m. with Hon. Ndobegang and we went and sat at the veranda of Pub Sengalaise, an off-license bar of an SDF militant which shared boundaries with the Constituency Office of Hon. Ndobegang which was by the roadside; we were sharing a drink. It is when we were sitting there that the cars of Ni John FruNdi appeared where we were sitting – I had no information that he was coming (as he confirmed in his statement at the book launch). Since the drinks for my evening meeting had been packed in Hon. Ndobegang’s car by three SDF Vanguards in uniform that accompanied us to the place, we visited Hon. Ndobegang’s Constituency Office briefly and then drove back to the compound. While my wife made arrangements for their entertainment, he made a brief statement of greetings to my family members and others that were still in the compound. They were then entertained and we went to the graveside of my sister where we were led in prayers by I think Dr. Azefor (RIP) or Mr. Atekwana; they left for Bamenda immediately after that.

     When Fru Ndi took the microphone at my book launch he said the following among other things: “I left Bamenda and went with a delegation to the funeral of Asonganyi’s mad sister and waited for over 45minutes without seeing him. When I asked they told me he had gone to buy drinks. When I went to see him he was drinking a bottle of beer while the sister was lying on a bamboo bed and I asked Asonganyi if he found no SDF militant who could handle those errands for him.”

     Fru Ndi had made a similar statement at a NEC meeting in 2005 when we had some misunderstandings. I was embarrassed but I did not care to respond. This time around, he repeated the statement in hopes that I would react and my reaction would probably lead to a disruption of my book launch. Since I was the host of the event, I did not react.

     My sister’s remains “lying on a bamboo bed” is a reference to a woman of Fru Ndi’s fertile imagination! I do not think that any family in Lebialem still uses bamboo beds; talk less of laying your dear one in state on a bamboo bed! My sister was lying quietly in her grave when he arrived in our compound.

    In his interview I published as Appendix II in the book that was being launched, Rtd Justice Nyo’Wakai (RIP) concluded as follows:

“Let the world judge us by our language and conduct. It is a sad experience that at the highest hierarchy of the Party we find people who are strangers to the truth.
God save the SDF and Cameroon.”

     Mr. Fru Ndi should know one thing: He is the one seeking to be President of Cameroon; for now, I am just an ordinary citizen trying my little best to ensure that our country is governed on a rational basis.

CAMEROON :LAKE NYOS NIGHTMARES

 By Ayah Paul Abine

August 21, 1986, was a Thursday – another Thursday! And in August! We hear that Lake Nyos suffered from acute constipation and it belched, releasing lethal gas. Being a market day, there is no doubt that the village population grew. As the official coroner, I had first hand information: the school enrolment of GS Nyos alone was 620 pupils. But then, people died at Char and Subum as well; and in some inaccessible villages on the slopes, including Iseh. If officially only 1.750 persons died, it is as opaque as the origin of the disaster itself…

     Who was not afraid to go to Nyos? Of all the administrators and the forces of law and order, only the second assistant (or was it the 3rd?) who accompanied us to the scene on Sunday, August 24! My wife had eventually agreed with me that, as the official coroner, my presence was indispensable. My group of four or so buried more than a dozen corpses, including the eleven in Bah’s house. We were helped by the uncompleted septic tank in Bah’s compound…
     The slopes were turned white with the carcasses of “Aku cows”. We are told that 4.000 of them died… Every living creature that was at Nyos village itself that night died! People were too stunned to cry. The silence was absolute: most uncanny! Forty-three months later I had not the courage to eat beef…
     Our worry today should not be the number of the dead though. It should be about the survivors and the subsequent events. We hold that the people reserve the right to know. We are of opinion that the survivors deserve more attention than they have had. And the cloud surrounding the handling of relief supplies ought to blow away. No-one can feel the pains of the victims! I was there and I know what I talk about!
     May the good Lord never allow me to live such scene ever again!

Cameroon’s Human Rights Situation Needs Improvement, Says Expert

                                   By Kain Blessing Tung*

Obasi Clarkson, chief executive officer(CEO) of HELP OUT, a Buea-based NGO  that promotes respect  for  Human Rights says the human rights situation in Cameroon  is fairly good compared to other countries in the sub region.

        In an interview with The Recorder last August 6 Friday in Buea, Mr. Obasi who has been monitoring the human rights situation of Cameroon for many years, advised that Cameroon , which is strategically located in the central African sub-region ,should strive  to  serve as a model  of human rights  promotion to its neighbors.

“The human rights situation of Cameroon is not what it used to be. I would not say it is good or that it is bad. But much still needs to be done by the state to improve the situation.

      “The government should open its doors for international investments-investments that will touch people’s lives by way of job creation,” he told The Recorder. “I think that, with the abundant natural resources Cameroon has, there is just no reason why the country cannot have a good spread of industries here and there”

      Mr. Obasi, who is a Cameroonian, regretted the fact that inhabitants of localities where resources are found are not treated with fairness in terms of job opportunities. “Cocoa, for example, which is produced in Kumba should have its factory there rather than Douala. If the factory were in kumba, it would offer job opportunities to many people there. But this is not the case.”

Mr. Obasi Clarkson (extreme right) ,CEO ,HELP OUT, briefing  the Canadian High Commissioner to Cameroon  and wife on  the NGO's activities on Dec 10,2014  in Buea on the occasion of Human Rights Day \photo credit: Chris Ambe, The Recorder,Cmr.

 He cited corruption as a hindrance to Human Rights promotion in Cameroon. “The most pressing problem is for the government to open up to the citizenry and curb corruption  ...”

 The CEO admitted that promoting human rights is not an easy task. “When you talk of Human Rights, there are people-those who like to oppress others, who don’t want to hear it” .He cautioned Human Rights campaigners: “As you are advocating for the rights of others, you must also take care of yourselves else  your own rights may be violated”

Mr. Obasi recalled that when he stated his human rights NGO in 1997, state security forces summoned him and sought to know whether the organization was created to fight the government.

      The rights advocate noted that, despite the numerous odds they face in the promotion of Human Rights , Help Out, has recorded a lot of successes “ We have touched the lives of thousands of people both rural and urban areas.”

Help Out, has  not only carried out  human rights education for   Cameroon prisons especially in the Southwest Region, it has also ensured good sanitation, encouraged  cordial relationship between penitentiary staff and inmates for the well being of prisoners

     Mr. Obasi, who insisted that he would continue the campaign for human rights observation, noted: “When I see the person near you smiling because his rights are protected; it gladdens my heart…”

He implored everybody to endeavor to know their rights and fight for their protection, adding that human rights promotion is a collective responsibility.

• *Kain Blessing Tung is a University of Buea Journalism student

Cameroon:Fake Soldier Arrested in Muyuka

                         By Smart Njikang Gabriel*

     Gendarmes in Muyuka have arrested a man who was passing for a military officer. The impostor Ntohvaa Hosea was arrested recently during a raid in Muyuka led by Gendarmerie Brigade Commander, Taku Valery.

     According to the Commander, Ntohvaa Hosea who paraded himself around as a Chief Sergeant, claiming to be serving with the Rapid Intervention Brigade (B.I.R) at Man-O-War Bay- Limbe had been using his fake status to extort money from the Muyuka public

 Ntohvaa Hosea at Muyuka Gendarmerie Post

. After a thorough investigation opened by Commander Taku, it was discovered that the so-called Chief Sergeant was an impostor.

When he was arrested and asked to present his National Identity Card, it was discovered that his occupation indicated that he was a military man.

     But Ntohvaa Hosea faulted those who produced his National Identity Card for mistakenly indicating against his occupation that he was a soldier

    To worsen matters, the fake Chief Sergeant would later to Gendarme investigators that he was a civilian working as a mechanic with B.I.R in Limbe.

Contacted by investigators, the head office of the Rapid Intervention Brigade in Limbe said from their records there was no such as Ntohvaa Hosea.

   Attempts made by reporters to get the alleged impostor talk were futile as he insisted that “I will speak when the right time comes.”

Commander Taku Valery warned that “Muyuka is unsafe zone for criminals particularly now that the Cameroon is fighting hard against the Islamist Terrorist Group, Boko Haram”.

     He commended the inhabitants of Muyuka who collaborated with the forces of law and order to ensure that the impostor was arrested. Commander Taku called for greater collaboration between the public and the forces of law and order to  stamp out criminality and insecurity ,especially now that  Boko Haram terrorists have killed many Cameroonians and destroyed valuable property.

     During the arrest of the impostor soldier the aspect of lack of resources by the Divisional Security Post was brought to the light, especially as it emerged that Commander Taku used his private car to chase and arrest Ntohvaa Hosea.

    Ntohvaa Hosea was immediately transferred from the Muyuka Gendarmerie Post to the Buea Central Prison where he is awaiting trial. 

*Smart Njikang Gabriel is a University of Buea Journalism Student

How useful is vacation for school children?

                By Kain Blessing Tung* 

      Holidays or vacations play a significant role in the life of pupils and students and almost all of them would protest if there are no breaks between school terms or semesters for universities.

     Simply defined, a holiday period is the suspension of work that you have been involved in for quite sometime. Vacation for scholars is the period set aside for the suspension of study or calls it book work.

Mother takes  kids on vacation  to Limbe Zoo for  leisure and tourism

      The whole idea for holidays is arguably for workers or school children to rest and or engage i n other recreational activities.

       The debate whether scholars should completely relax or keep themselves busy during holidays has been on-going, but not without interesting arguments.

      Anumbong Claudia Meh, 39, a Molyko-based seamstress says that during the vacation her daughter, aged 18, runs a telephone booth where her monthly allowance for school is raised. To her, the issue of staying at home during holidays doing nothing is sheer laziness.

      According to hair dresser and resident of Muea town, Elodie Annette, 22, students who relax at home during the holiday should be those from wealthy backgrounds. She argues that students from such homes would always get their school needs supplied to them by their parents and they are always ready for school resumption.

      Elodie advises that, if well-to- do students are relaxing at home during vacation, those from underprivileged families must not emulate them. Rather, she notes,they should engage in income-generating businesses  so that they can raise some money to assist their parents in procuring their school needs.

     “The underprivileged are bound to work hard to fend for themselves, if not they will be found wanting and might end up as drop-outs because of lack of parental support.”

     Corroborating the Elodie, Mr. Lyonga Emmanuel, 47, principal of a lay private institution in Tiko says holiday period is a time when students -whether rich or poor, should venture into businesses. Mr. Lyonga thinks that the income students especially girls obtain during the vacation will help them in so many ways.  The principal notes that when a girl-student is dependent, she is needy and exposed to many negative influences. Her needy nature may cause her take her boy friend or friends for a bank, thereby always asking for money from them. He adds that when lady is too dependent on her boyfriends for money, they may want to sexually take advantage of her.He adds that the men\boys may consider needy ladies as pests.

    “Most girls are pests to their boyfriends because they rely on them for even basic needs; but this should not be the case if they are hardworking and can be able to raise some money for themselves,” notes the principal.  Mr. Lyonga says he is appreciative of all hardworking students, and encourages all to be so.

    On the other hand, there are some people who strongly believe that holiday is a period for leisure, recreational activities and relaxation; that it is a period for students to relieve themselves of stress associated with book-work.

     According to 42-year old father of four Eseme Max Mpako, who resides in Molyko-Buea, two of his daughters are presently studying computer programs while the two others attend holiday classes.

    Mr. Mpako says he is totally against young scholars hawking during the vacation.

“I have heard of how female students disappear mysteriously. Hawking during the holiday is dangerous especially for girls who are exposed to many negative things. Rape cases are very common during this period too”. He added that if young girls who about hawking are not very careful during these holidays’ days, they can end up getting pregnant, jeopardizing the future.

    To   Elvis Chetey, a former student and now self-employed, “The Bible says there is time for every thing. It is holiday period and it is meant for rest and relaxation, let it be so. There is this saying that learning without playing makes jack a dull boy”

    Whichever positions people take on this debate, what is more important is for both parents and scholars to do during holidays what is good for their overall health, what is morally and legally correct; and above all, what guarantees their own security and that of others .After all, it is nice to do the right thing because it is right.
 

      *Kain Blessing Tung is a University of Buea Journalism student

          

Cameroon:New Southwest ELECAM Boss Tasked to Boost Voter Registration.

  By Smart Njikang Gabriel*

 Barrister Okha Bau Okha, new Southwest Regional Delegate of Elections Cameroon (ELECAM), appointed on July 9,2014, was  last Wednesday August 5 - slightly one year after, at Mountain Hotel Buea, commissioned into his  new functions, by no other than the newly appointed Director-General(DG)of Elections Cameroon, Mr. Abdoulaye Babalé.

DG, Abdoulaye Babalé(in white) instructs  Barrister Okha

      Power tussle and personality conflict between Dr.Samuel Fonkam Azu’u, ELECAM BOARD Chairman and Mohaman Sani Tanimou, former Director –General of ELECAM, were blamed for the late commissioning of Barrister Bau Okha by Sani Tanimou’s successor, Mr. Abdoulaye Babalé, who is a former cabinet minister.

       The Director-General, in his installation speech, last Wednesday, tasked Barrister Bau Okha to ensure a significant increase in the number of registered voters in region before the end of the current voter’s registration period.

      “Put in every effort to ensure that the number of registered voters in the South West Region increases before the end of the voter registration period on 31 August 2015.... I enjoin you to do every thing in your power to strengthen the confidence Cameroonians have begun to have in Elections Cameroon and in its management of the electoral process”, the DG instructed.

      According to Mr.Abdoulaye Babalé, the new regional ELECAM boss can only succeed provided that he builds a strong and faithful team of collaborators.

Mr. Babalé advised the new Southwest boss to assume a true leadership role that would enable him earn and deserve confidence and trust of personnel under his control.

Barrister Bau Okha was also urged to ensure discipline among his staff, give them the necessary protection and assistance.

The regional ELECAM delegate was also told to be fair and equitable in his management of financial and material resources allotted to the region for running cost and operational expenses.

     The functions of the regional ELECAM boss include but are not limited to: the organization, supervision and follow-up of electoral operations,  follow-up of voter registration and  establishment of voter cards, supervision of the distribution of voter cards, distribution of  election materials within the region,  centralization and forwarding of election results to the Directorate-General of Elections in Yaounde , the maintenance of IT equipment, the preparation of the operating budget of the regional delegation, the management of regional personnel and the management of the operating budget of the Delegation.

Barrister Bau Okha and   Director-General Abdoulaye Babalé,in family picture after former's installation

     After his installation, the Southwest Regional ELECAM Delegate reportedly told reporters:

“So far, we have registered well over 12,398 voters and I promise to do my best to increase that number before the deadline runs out. I think we have improved this year because last year, by the time the exercise ended, the region had registered just a little over 7,000 voters...”

      Barrister Bau Okha, was born on December 21, 1961 in Kumba, he studied Law at the University of Yaoundé, obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree in Law in 1985. He went on to study Law at postgraduate level at the Nigerian Law School in Lagos and the Indiana University School of Law, obtaining a Master’s Degree in Law in 2004. Before he joined ELECAM, Barrister Bau Okha was a member of the Bar Associations of both Nigeria and Cameroon. He was a practicing lawyer from 1998 to 2010.

      Before his appointment as the Regional Delegate, Barrister Bau Okha was the Service Head in charge of Electoral Operations at the Southwest Delegation of ELECAM. The ceremony was witnessed by a host of dignitaries who included the Secretary -General at Buea Governor’s Office, Mr. Clement Fon Ndikum; Professor Dorothy Limunga Njeuma and Mr. Tambe Tiku, both members of ELECAM’s Board of Directors, and also Professor Nalova Lyonga, Vice Chancellor of the University of Buea.

Barrister Bau Okha took over Emmanuel Njang Mbeng,now on retirement. 

 *Smart Njikang Gabriel is a University of Buea Journalism student

Suicide bombers spread fear of Boko Haram in Cameroon

Chad police officers control men on April 4, 2015 on the N'Gueli bridge, marking the border between Chad and Cameroon near N'Djamena (AFP Photo/Philippe Desmazes

 By Reinnier Kaze in Yaounde and Celia Lebur in Libreville

Yaounde (Cameroon) (AFP) - Empty streets, body searches and tips to police embody the fear that Boko Haram has instilled in northern Cameroon, where they killed more than 40 people in suicide bombings in July.

Raiders from the Nigerian sect later kidnapped 135 villagers and killed eight others in a pre-dawn strike across the border last Tuesday, police and local sources said.

Boko Haram has attacked villages in Cameroon's Extreme North region for about two years, but the horrific bombings mark a change of tactics, while Cameroonian troops have joined a regional force to tackle the Islamists.

The suicide bombers can be young women and even teenage girls, who behave like locals and blend in at crowded places to cause maximum casualties.

Residents of Maroua, the main town in the Extreme North, were spared until successive blasts tore though the bustling central market and a bar on July 22 and 25. Those bombs killed 33 people and wounded dozens more.

"We're very worried and no longer know where to turn," says Albert, a worried father.

"Should we send the children to school when the next school year starts?" he ponders. "Boko Haram is against Western education and may very well carry out attacks on schools."

The sect's name loosely translates as "Western education is forbidden", and Boko Haram notoriously abducted 276 Nigerian schoolgirls in April last year.

 Some managed to escape but more than 200 are believed to be held in the large Sambisa forest, where the Nigerian army this week said it had freed 178 captives.

- 'People like you and me' -

Boko Haram has frequently massacred students in northeastern Nigeria during an insurgency with the aim of establishing an Islamic caliphate, at a cost of at least 15,000 lives since 2009.

"When you see somebody who isn't familiar in the neighbourhood, you call the police," says Oumarou, who works for a Maroua logistics firm.

He has sent his family away to Douala, Cameroon's economic capital on the Atlantic, more than 1,300 kilometres (810 miles) away.

Information Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary has meanwhile heaped praise on an astute taxi-motorcycle driver who turned in a 15-year-old boy carrying explosives last week.

The driver found the teen was behaving suspiciously and decided to drive him to a police station, where he was detained. Two other suspects were picked up.

"Their objective was to blow up inside a mosque," Bakary said.

Security has been tightened repeatedly in Maroua. When the market closes at 5:00 pm, "everybody goes home. There is nobody left on the streets apart from the soldiers," Oumarou says.

Sources in the security forces believe that Boko Haram infiltrators and sympathisers have operated in Maroua for months, relaying information to their chiefs

"They are people like you and me," a Cameroonian army officer says. "It's almost impossible to identify them."

Bus terminals catering for southern destinations, notably big cities like Douala and the capital Yaounde, are closely watched. Passengers are always frisked as they board their coaches.

"You feel the threat most because of all the checkpoints on the roads," says Olivier, a young French expatriate in Douala.

"The police have tightened up their searches. They make us empty our cars completely, and our bags."

- 'We no longer know who's who' -

In Yaounde, police and troops are omnipresent.

"People have been very ill at ease since there were suicide attacks" in the north, trader Abdoulaye Sani says.

"We no longer know who's who. I'm afraid when I'm walking... I'm afraid that something will happen, that a bomb will explode and take me with it," adds the young man.

In one working-class district with a large Muslim community, police last week used strong-arm tactics during searches of houses and mosques. They rounded up several dozen people, according to the local media.

The information minister said that security forces were carrying out a sweep in several parts of the country, which led to the arrest of "many suspects".

But such assurances fail to reassure.

"We don't go to parties, we avoid places where there is too much of a crowd," says Darly, an adolescent in the capital.

"We're afraid that the suicide bombers will come here to Yaounde," she said.

2015 Cameroon GCE Results Published: Registrar Says Integrity of Exams Intact Despite ‘Noises’

By Christopher Ambe, with Report from Kain Blessing Tung*

     The 2015 results of the General Certificate of Education (GCE) were last Friday, July 31 released . The GCE examinations' practical, written and marking phases were conducted in serene atmosphere through the national territory, even if there were allegations of examination fraud, which, according to Sir Humphrey Ekema Monono, GCE Board Registrar, did not negatively affect the integrity of the examinations.

Sir Ekema Monono:GCE Registrar

     The EEC and the GCE board of directors (Council) hailed the GCE Registrar for the brilliant manner in which the allegations of examination malpractices were handled.

      The Registrar said the allegations were being investigated by the police, while results of the centers implicated have been withheld for the time being pending outcome of the probe.

“The performances this year though not significantly modified could be read as following: for Ordinary Level General 44.93 %; Ordinary level Technical 45 % up from 32% last year. Advanced Level General scored 60.42% pass as against 63.98 % last year; Technical Advanced Level examination scored 64.24% up from 55.7%. The exams both in ordinary and advanced level have moved up a little, though they have not yet by-passed the 50% mark. But the A-Levels are all above 60%,”Sir Ekema Monono told the state radio

   This year there has been slight improvement in the results of candidates with special needs.

According to the GCE Board 92,767 candidates wrote the O-level exam this year, of which 41,681 passed giving 44.93%,up from 34.41% against last year. Some 17 schools scored 100%.

At the A-level, 48,058 candidates sat for the exam, 29,031 passed, giving 60.41 % down from 63.98% for last year. Some 16 outstanding A-level candidates who had 5 papers each scored all 25 points.

Twelve (12) institutions scored 100% at the A-level this year and the results of Our Lady Mount Camel in Buea are the best with 65 candidates who wrote and passed.

For the GCE Technical, 4039 candidates passed at the O-Level out of the 8,976 who wrote, giving 45% up from 32.47% last year. Twelve institutions have 100% and SACC Bafut stands out with all its 42 candidates passing.

Out of the 28 outstanding candidates, 16 passed in 11 papers, with one of them scoring 31 points the highest in the GCE ordinary Level Technical

For the Advanced Level Technical 5,462 wrote and 3,509 passed scoring 64.24 %, up from 55.1% last year. Six institutions have 100%.

Twenty (27) candidates emerged  with outstanding results at the A-level Technical this year, with five  papers each, all of them scored 25 points.

Traditionally the results are disseminated through the candidates’ result slips which should be picked-up where the candidates registered beginning last Monday. Results slips are given to candidates free of charge.

The results have also been broadcast by both the state-owned and private radio stations, and some newspapers have published the results.

Results could also be obtained by sms (Center number +Candidate number sent to 8006 to any of the mobile telephone companies in Cameroon (MTN, Nextell and Orange)

Despite measures taken by the GCE Board to enable results reach candidates as fast as possible the results were still hawked along the streets. To refer the result of one candidate from the hawkers cost 500Francs.

*Kain Blessing Tung is a University of Buea Journalism Student.