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| MPs, who attended the requiem mass, carrying Lisinge's casket to the hearse |
By Christopher Ambe
Buea-Cameroon- “From dust we came and unto dust we shall return’,
according to Genesis 3:19.
So was the case with Hon. Lisinge Arthur
Ekeke, a Cameroonian MP for Buea Urban, fondly called Manboy,
who died on October 10, 2017 in Buea, after a protracted illness.
The late MP, aged 55 plus,
was, last Saturday November 25, buried at his Bonalyonga residence in Buea .
The burial, which was
preceded by a funeral service at Presbyterian Church Buea Town, registered a huge
attendance of mourners (numbering thousands) who included dignitaries such as
Former Premier Peter Mafany Musonge; Hon. Emilia Lifaka, vice-speaker of the
National Assembly; Dr.Humphrey Ekema Monono, Registrar of the GCE
Board;Hon.Paul Meoto Njie,former Director of Cabinet at the PM’s Office; His
Excellency Churchill Monono,adviser at the Presidency of the Republic.
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| Late Hon. Lisinge's picture being displayed |
The requiem mass was
officiated by a college of Reverend Pastors.
In his sermon, drawn from
Psalms 90:12 which says:”God teach us how short our life is, so that we may
become wise”, the very Rev.Dr. Nyansako-ni-nku,PCC Moderator emeritus, challenged
mourners to use any opportunity they may have to do good to others because life
is so short and death is certain, noting that we shall only be remembered here
on earth for what we have done: our legacies.
“In a world where there is
death, there should be no room for hatred”, the preacher said, adding that late
Hon,Lisinge “held unto his faith as a Christian despite his ill-health but when
God rang him ,he breathed his last”
Rev.Dr.Nyansako-ni-nku
opined that by his death, the late MP has been “set free from this evil world.
We believe that he is now with God in paradise”
Eulogies came from family
members: Dr. Robert Tama Lisinge and Mrs. Estherine Lisinge Fotabong;Hon.Njume
Peter-the deceased’s friend; the CPDM Central Committee ,the National
Assembly’s Vice President Hon.Emilia Lifaka; the Vice-chancellor of University
of Buea(where Hon. Lisinge was a board
member);from CMF president Luma Stephen and the congregation.
All the eulogies pointed
to the fact that the Hon. Lisinge was a model of a man: likeable, humble,
respectable, resourceful, generous, a political guru, forgiving, fatherly and
God-fearing.
Hon.Lifaka,who led a
delegation MPs to the funeral, regretted that the tough times the National
Assembly is going through. She said Hon.Lisinge, was the 6th Member
of Parliament who has died during this 9th legislative session. She
said the demise of Lisinge was a huge loss to the entire nation, conscious of
his resourcefulness and availability for nation-building assignments.
Before the requiem
mass,Hon.Lisinge’s remains were removed from the Buea Regional Mortuary and
laid in state at his Bonalyonga residence where hundreds of mourners filed past to view the fallen Buea elite.A
day before there was Virgil at his residence.
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| The hearse leaving the church to the graveside |
Lisinge’s sudden death
brought to two the number of Buea Urban MPs who have, mysteriously, died in
active service in recent memory.
In 2012, Adolf Ngalle
,Lisinge’s predecessor did not complete his five-year term of office as MP for
Buea when he took ill towards the end of his mandate and died.
Lisinge too would have
ended his first term in November 2018, everything being equal.
Manboy
was said to have adopted humility at an early age as his guiding principle in
life.
His friendly and simple lifestyle, pundits
hold, favored his election to the covetous position of the representative of
the people of Buea Urban in Cameroon’s National Assembly on September 30,2013.
Lisinge had defeated two
other powerful candidates (retired senior military officer Ekeke Njuma Moses of
the Social Democratic Front (SDF) and IT Engineer, Rudolf Ephungany Lyonga, of
the People’s Action party (PAP) at the September 30, 2013 parliamentary
election to become the Member of Parliament for Buea Urban.
This fallen law-maker obtained
a Bachelor’s degree in law (LL.B) from the then University of Yaoundé in 1983.
Before becoming Member of
Parliament, Hon.Lisinge who held a CNCC Diploma –Multimodal Transport since
1985, was the Southwest Regional Delegate of Transport for 16 straight years (1998
-2013), performing his duties to the admiration of both the general public and
hierarchy in Yaounde.
He reportedly stayed that
long as Regional Delegate of Transport because of his professional dexterity, and
the several ministers of transport under whom he served saw no need to transfer
him elsewhere.
In fact, Lisinge then as
the longest serving regional delegate in the Southwest was Dean of the Region’s
delegates for several years until November 2013.
Career Profile
After his university studies, young Lisinge
was employed into Cameroon’s Public
Service as contract officer in 1986, precisely in the Ministry of Transport.
Working there, he was
appointed as the Second Assistant Provincial Chief of Service, Land Transport,
Bamenda:1988-1991; he later occupied the post of First Assistant Chief of Service ,Land Transport,Bamenda:
1991-1997.
In May 1997, he was
transferred to Buea in the same ministry and he held the position of Provincial
Chief of Service for Land Transport until May 1998.And from May 1998,he was
appointed Regional Delegate of Transport until November 2013.
Lisinge, the political Leader.
It is said that once a
person is well educated and has leadership qualities he can lead anywhere. And
that was Hon.Lisnge. This Presbyterian Christian, as a CPDM apologist, gave his
best in supporting the ruling CPDM in Buea and that in turn paid off: he was
overwhelmingly elected as the President of Buea CPDM (Fako III Section) in 2002
for a five-year mandate. It is no secret that he was actively involved in
political campaigns that ensured the victories of the CPDM in all elections in
Buea and the reelection of President Paul Biya.
As MP, Lisinge mainly used
his parliamentary grants to support education in his constituency and donated
didactic materials to over 45 primary and Nursery schools Buea subdivision.
Conscious of the
difficulties Basic Education schools encounter, Hon.Lisinge in 2014 publicly
vowed at a ceremony to donate didactic materials to schools in his constituency:
“I have decided to sign a pact with Basic
Education Sector. This donation will become yearly until my mandate ends. I
will continue to give minimum packages to schools here in my constituency”
Even before becoming President of Buea CPDM, Hon.Lisnge
had been Vice President of Buea Central Subsection. Hon. Lisinge also served as Councilor of Buea Council for
years.
Other leadership positions.
As a devout Presbyterian Christian,
Hon.Lisinge once served as Chairman of the Finance Committee of the
Presbyterian Church, Buea Town. A lover
of football, Hon.Lisinge was one-time President of Prisons Club of Buea. He
also served as leader of several other groups.
Family Life
Hon. Lisinge was married
to Esther Namondo, with whom he had three children; the MP was a very caring
husband and father, and as such received huge support and encouragement from
his wife, children and other relatives.
His Christian back ground
transformed him into a generous man.
Education and qualifications.
Born on January 7, 1962 in Buea,young Lisinge travelled with his parents to Nigeria, where
he did his primary education at St.Mary’s Nursery School, Lagos (1966-1972: and
part secondary education at Birch
Freeman High School ,Lagos(from 1972-9175).
Upon his return to
Cameroon, this native of Buea-Fako, continued his studies at Presbyterian
Secondary School,Kumba (1975-77) and Cameroon College of Arts and Science,Kumba
(1978 -80),from where he passed his GCE Ordinary and Advanced levels, before
enrolling to the then University of Yaoundé(1980-83),where he bagged a law
degree.
Hobbies
Hon. Lisinge was widely
travelled in and out of Cameroon. He visited several countries such as China,
France and Nigeria, South Africa) for varied reasons including professional ones.
The MP loved reading entertaining and educational books; liked research and watching
documentaries.
Hon. Lisinge will be
fondly remembered but missed by his dear wife, Esther Namondo Lisinge,
children, father and mother, relatives, friends, colleagues and the general
public.
NB: This article was first published in The Horizon Newspaper,Yaounde,of November 27,2017
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