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| Hon,Hilarion Etong, decorating posthumously the fallen Hon.Lifaka |
By Christopher Ambe
Hon. Emilia Monjowa Lifaka, MP for Fako West
constituency and one of deputy speakers of Cameroon’s 180-member National Assembly,
who died on April 20, 2021, was buried in her village of Bojongo in Buea Subdivision,
Southwest Region.
She died at Buea Regional Hospital, where she
was hospitalized.
During her funeral at the Independence square (Bongo Square), Buea,
the deceased MP was raised posthumously to the dignity of “Commander of the Cameroon Order of Valor” by the First Vice
President of Cameroon’s National Assembly, Hilarion Etong, who represented the
Speaker of the National Assembly, Cavaye Yeguie Djibril, at the ceremony, which
was attended by thousands of mourners,coming from within and out of Cameroon.
The Archbishop of Bamenda,
Andrew Nkea who was chief celebrant at the requiem at Bongo Square, revealed
that he had been serving as the spiritual leader of the late Hon.Lifaka.
“I have journeyed with Hon.Lifaka as her
spiritual leader”, the Archbishop said, noting that the grave is the destiny of
all humans. “For, Scriptures tell us that, we are dust and until it we shall
return.”
The prelate said when Hon.
Lifaka took ill, complaining of difficulty in breathing, she called “me and I
prayed with her on the phone”, only to be surprised shortly afterwards with news of her sudden
death.
Nkea Andrew described the
deceased MP as a committed catholic and woman of faith, who served the ruling
CPDM party loyally.
“She was a politician and
patriot with a difference; she was what politicians worth the salt should be”,
noted the Nkea, adding that Hon.Lifaka spent all her resources to ensure her
constituents were happy.”
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| MP.s paying last respects to their fallen colleague ,Hon. Lifaka |
The archbishop contrasted
Hon.Lifaka with many Cameroonian politicians whom he likened to political scammers,
noted for duping their constituents.
Nkea used the funeral to
urge politicians to be common interest-driven and ensure that their love for Cameroon
must be sincere.
There were seven eulogies at the funeral ,which came from Jacob Matike,family head;Mbawo
Kenneth,son of late Hon.Lifaka;Joanna Agbor Ntui,representative of elites of
Southwest region;Mrs.Ndoh Bertha, representative of CERAC whose founder is
First lady Chantal Biya;the Director of Commonwealth in Cameroon’s Ministry of
External Affairs who read the condolence message from the Secretary=General of
the Commonwealth; former Premier Peter Mafany Musonge,leader of the CPDM
Central Committee delegation and Hilarion
Etong,representative of the National Assembly Speaker, Cavaye Yeguie Djibril,who was unavoidably absent.
ous eulogies presented the late Hon.Lifaka as a committed, resourceful, generous, God-fearing, patriotic and development-driven woman, whose death has created a huge vacuum hard to fill.
Among delegations of
mourners from abroad were Mola Nathaniel Mosaso, president of Bakweri Elements
Cultural and Development Association USA & North America (BECDA –USA/NA)
and the association’s Cultural Director, Iya Enanga Lemeh.
“BECDA-USA/NA deemed it
necessary to participate in her funeral. In so doing, we are acknowledging her
contributions in the accomplishments of Bakweri people”, Mola Nathaniel Mosaso
told this reporter at the funeral ceremony at Bongo Square.
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| Nathaniel Mosaso,president of BECDA-USA/NA and Iya Enanga Lemeh |
How
Hon.Lifaka will be remembered
Emilia Monjowa Lifaka he became an MP since
2002 until her death: she was MP for 19 years.
Before becoming MP,she was
director of state-owned Intensive Vocational Training Center for Office
Employees(IVTC),Buea
Hon Lifaka, looked healthy
and cheerful on Saturday April 17, 2021 at Mountain Hotel Buea where she hosted
a sumptuous party to celebrate her 62nd birth anniversary; little
did she know it would turn out to be her farewell party.
She was elected Deputy Speaker
of National Assembly since 2009. But before ascending to the rank of deputy speaker,
Hon Lifaka was Vice-President of the ruling CPDM Parliamentary Group and National
Coordinator of Cameron’s female MP’s.
A native of Bonjongo in Fako
and mother of two, Lifaka was considered by Fako chiefs and elites, and her
constituents as a duty-conscious, committed and development-focused MP
The deceased MP, noted for
her gorgeous dressing, carried out development projects aimed at empowering
constituents- especially rural women and school children
Socio-economic Works
The late MP was frequently
in touch with her base; made material and financial donations to needy schools
and other groups in her constituency; supplied farm equipment and seedlings to women; sponsored
some underprivileged but deserving children in schools and vocational training centers.
For example, in 2008 she paid tuition fees for
25 female children at the Buea Women’s Empowerment Center and did same for same
number children in subsequent years,
In 2016, Hon.Lifaka
offered scholarship worth about seven million Fcfa to thirty-six (36)
underprivileged youths from her constituency to undergo training in different
trade areas at Cameroon Opportunities Industrialization Center (COIC) Buea. In
In September 2010, Hon.Lifaka donated 100 plastic chairs and FCFA 500,000 to
the Southwest Chief Conference to help them equip their secretariat in Buea,
whose conference had inadequate seats and other office equipment.
She was hailed for what
many of her constituents likened to her transparent use of parliamentary micro-project
grants.
Lifaka
as Peace Advocate
The deceased who was also
leader of the CPDM Central Committee to Fako Division, was a peace advocate.
She often used party events to reiterate President Biya’s appeal to separatist fighters
to lay down their arms for the sake of peace and unity. For instance, in 2019 in Buea at the 37th
anniversary of President Paul Biya’s ascension to power in Cameroon, she made
this appeal to separatist fighters:
““My children in the
bushes, I am speaking to you like your own mother…
“The government has heard
and noted your worries; please leave the bushes and return to the comfort of
your homes, because there is no other better place like home.
“Please don’t terrorize your own mothers.
Today mothers are even scared to go to their farms, markets or to do anything.
Our children are now school drop-outs. You cannot build a community without
educated people.”
Friendly
to Constituents
Hon Lifaka was conscious
that her rise to political prominence was largely dependent on her
constituents. As such she made it a tradition after electoral victories, to go
back and say “Thank You” in various forms, to her electorate.
The
Politician at Work
Hon. Lifaka was a substantive member of the Central
Committee of the ruling CPDM. In 2007, she became a parliamentary group leader.
In 2009, she was elected deputy speaker the National Assembly, a position she
held till her demise.
In her 19-year duration in
parliament, other positions she held included:
of member of Finance and the Budget Committee and Constitutional Laws Committee;
member of Good Governance Committee. She
also represented the legislative chamber at the then National Commission for
Human Rights and Freedom; represented the National Assembly in the National
Decentralization Council from 2007 to 2014.
Her
Commonwealth Prominence
Hon Lifaka since 2017 to
her demise was voted chairperson of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth
Parliamentary Association, CPA. (She was first African to occupy the
chairmanship).
She once served as CPA
Executive Committee Regional Representative for West Africa Sub-region.
In 2014, when Cameroon
hosted the CPA 60th parliamentary Conference, Hon. Lifaka was Conference Coordinator.
Educational
Qualifications
She was an MBA student in
Human Resource Management at Anglia Ruskin University in the United Kingdom.
Hon.Lifaka had a diploma
in Secretarial and Business Studies, from Crown Secretarial and Business
Studies College, London; had a diploma in Administrative Management from
University of Maryland Eastern Shore USA.
State
Honours
While alive she received
honors from State of Cameroon: Knight of the Cameroon Order of Valour, Officer
of the Cameroon National Order of Merit, and Knight of the National Order of Valour.
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