Barrister Agbor Felix Nkongho.
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By Christopher Ambe
Celebrated human rights advocate, instructor in the Faculty of Law and
Political Science of the University of Buea, Barrister Felix Agbor Nkongho,will
today Wednesday May 6 be tried by the
Disciplinary Council of the University of Buea
for allegations leveled against
him “for non-compliance of professional obligations for a question you set on law 243,titled Political & Constitutional
History of Cameroon,during the
2019/2020first semester examination”, according to a summons, dated
29 April 2020, that was served him yesterday,Tuesday May 5.
The summons, titled “Letter of Invitation to a Disciplanry Hearing”,
addressed to “Barrister Felix Agbor
Nkongho, Instructor , English Law Department ,FLPS,University”, was signed by
Professor Atangcho Nji Akononoumbo,Dean of FLPS(Faculty of Law & Political
Science) on the instruction of the Vice-Chancellor of University of
University(UB), Professor
Horace Manga.
Pundits are of the opinion that Vice-Chancellor Horace Manga must have
asked for Barrister Agbor Nkongho’s trial now,following mounting pressure from the
Minister of State for Higher Education,Professor Jacques Fame Ndongo,who is
also Chancellor of Cameroon’s varsities that, the lawyer/instructor’s alleged unprofessional
activities on campus be stopped forthwith.
Athough the minister’s second letter,
dated April 20,2020, to the Vice-Chancelleor calling for the ejection of Barrister Agbor
Nkongh from the University did not mention the violation perpetrated by him,the
summons makes it abundantly clear, that
he set an examination question on the Anglophone crisis, in which he had played
a coordinating role when it erupted in 2016 and is yet to end.
The controversial exam question on the course “Political & Constitutional History of Cameroon (course code:Law 243), read : “The Anglophone crisis since 2016 was caused
by lawyers’ and teachers’ strikes.Assess the validity of this statement.(4O
marks).
According to reliable Unversity
sources, the course exam was successfully written and evaluated-and students
validated it.
It is unclear whether the UB administration will cancel the course exam and another exam set, since authorities think that the exam question was “subversive”
and the instructor is now on trial.
It would be recalled that in September 2019, the Vice-Chancellor of University of Buea(UB), chaired
the launching, on campus, of a new book titled “ Anglophone Lawyers and
Teachers strikes (2016 -2017):A Multidimensional Perspective” co-edited by Emeritus Professor of Literature
, Kashim Ibrahim Tala (retired from the University of Buea,UB) and Dr. Kingsly
L.Ngange,head of the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication,
University of Buea.
At the book launch, the Vice-Chancellor
of University of Buea described the new publication as “very topical and relevant” to the Anglophone Crisis and bought copies for
institution.Students were also urged to get copies of the timely publication.
A law lecturer in the same
FLPS,who asked not to be named in this report because of the sensitivity of the matter, told this reporter
that he is –just like many others,strongly convinced that the exam question for
which Barrister Agbor Nkongho is about facing trial has relevance to the course
taught.
Barrister Agbor Knogho, who has
taught in the University of Buea since 2015 (and whose teaching contract is
supposed to end in 2021) was only served the summons yesterday (in his absence through
one of his staff ) to appear today Wednesday
May 6,at 10:00 AM at the Boardroom of
the Central Administrtaive Block,University of Buea,for hearing .
Barrister Agbor Nkongho had, on April 30,following the circulation of
the leaked Minister’s instruction letter to the Vice-chancellor on the subject,on
the social media and before his summons yesterday,said, “”I have never been
accused by the University authorties of politicizing my lectures or any
activity there as a lecturer.”
It would be recalled that Barrister Nkongho was
President of Cameroon Anglophone
Civil Society Consortium(CACSC),which coordinated civil disobedience and peaceful anti-government protests in 2016
and early 2017 as a way of forcing the Cameoon government grant and protect the
rights of minority English-speaking Cameroonians,who have complained of gross
marginalization for decades.
In a desperate effort to quell
the wide-spread protests,the Government banned CACSC on January
17,2017,arrested Barrister Nkongho same
day and jailed him in Yaounde for eight months as the Anglophone Crisis
escalated.
The rights campaigner was charged, among others, for promoting
terrorism, a crime that is punished, maximally, with death.
But the Anglophone community rather hailed him and described him as
their Nelson Mandela.
International and national pressure
mounted on the Biya government to release Barrister Nkongho.
It was on August 30, 2017 that
President Biya ordered, through the Secretary-General at the Presidency
Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, “ the discontinuance of proceedings pending
before the Yaounde Military Court against Messrs Nkongho
Felix Agbor,Fontem Aforteta’a, Paul Ayah Abine…”
Since then public statements made on national issues by Barrister Nkongho,who is also founder of
the Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa(CHRDA),are scrutinized by Government-
apparently for fear that they could instigate a mass protest against the leadership of President Paul Biya, 87,
who has ruled Cameroon since 1982.
The Anglophone crisis has resulted
to the deaths of over 2000
people, the destruction of public and private property worth billions of FCFA
and the internal displacement of over half-million people (IDPs) ,with over
thirty thousand seeking refugees in Nigeria,according to credible rights
groups.
It is public knowledge that the Anglohpne
crisis since 2016 has badly shaken the Cameroon Government.
Today’s trial will determine whether Barrister Agbor Nkongho will be
dismissed as an instructor of Unversity of Buea or maintained.
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