Cameroon: Fongoh & Partners Real Estate -Buea

Appropriate Solution to Landed Propriety Problems 

Fongoh Valentine,CEO, Fongoh &Partners Real Estate Company,Buea

By Christopher Ambe  and  Zifac Fatima

Recently ,Buea, capital city of the South West region has been identified by experts as one of the fastest growing cities in Cameroon.

Magnificent and towering structures are sprouting up every day as investors at home and from the Diaspora struggle for landed property for profitable investments.

This has made real estate not only a highly profitable but also a high-risk venture. Cases of unscrupulous and shady land deals abound resulting in never-ending litigations in court.

Faced with the situation, some young Cameroonians have created a real estate company-FONGOH AND PARTNERS REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS to legally and officially serve as real estate agents in Buea.

With a financial capital of hundreds of millions of FCFA the company is developing fast and gaining ground.

Africa Excellence magazine caught up with the young CEO of the company, Fongoh Valentine Tekang, 38, who is a graduate of the University of Buea.

In an exclusive interview with AFRICA EXCELLENCE, the CEO explains how and why the company was founded and how it is faring.

Read on:

There are many real estate agents and institutions in the Town of Legendary Hospitality, but the one that has become a household name in Buea is FONGOH and Partners Real Estate Solutions, located in Bonduma-Buea

As the name suggests FONGOH AND PARTNERS provides genuine solutions to people who face real estate problems and approach them.

Company's surveyors at work

 In an exclusive Interview with AFRICA EXCELLENCE magazine, Fongoh Valentine Tekang, CEO of FONGOH AND PARTNERS REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS, walked us through the creation of the company and how it has distinguished itself from other competitors in the domain.

Fongoh Valentine, 38, disclosed that he worked as a real estate agent in Buea for eight years and realized how lucrative the business was, and as such he could not resist an inner voice in him urging the creation of a real estate company.

“I was a real estate agent for eight years. It was lucrative and that influenced me to start my own business”, he said, noting that FONGOH & PARTNERS REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS was incorporated in 2021, even as it was conceived in 2019.

Fongoh expressed happiness that his company, which has partners at home and abroad, already has   about 30 workers and hoped to employ more in the near future.

Citing as one of the achievements of FONGOH AND PARTNERS REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS, the CEO said, “We have been able to solve the problems that people who bought land in the past used to have; initially, people used to buy landed property bedeviled by   problems. But we have been able to solve that. Apart from that, we have been able to create some farm-to-market roads due to our activities.

“Wherever we buy, we open roads; in the course of opening roads we provide roads that farmers use to transport their products.”

Corporate Social Responsibility.

Although a young company, Fongoh disclosed that FONGOH AND PARTNERS REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS is conscious of and is performing its corporate social responsibility.

For example, mindful of the water crisis in Buea subdivision Fongoh disclosed: “We have been able to provide bore holes to some villages in Buea subdivision. We have earmarked ten (10) bore holes, out of which we have already drilled five.

“One bore hole within the Bonavanda area is very expensive costing about 4.5 million Fcfa because water is not easy to be found there.

“We dug a borehole in Bokwai, one in Bwitingi, two in Bonakanda and one in Lyongo, a village in between Bokwai and Bova.”

One of the company's buildings near completions

Battling Real Estate Challenges

Like in other activities, the real estate business has its challenges. But with a positive mindset and determination, all challenges are quickly overcome.

Fongoh admitted that there are many challenges dealing with land:

“Sometimes, you don't get the information you need; people give you information contrary to what is on the ground. Sometimes we meet people who sell land that doesn't belong to them; we also have problems in the course of developing the land like opening up of roads.

“I don't know why people don't understand that to open road is a good thing. We have to spend a lot of money before providing roads to some plots.”

 Success Secret

 Although many people are engaged in real estate, not all can boast of succeeding. But the CEO of FONGOH AND PARTNERS REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS told AFRICA EXCELLENCE his company is hitting the mark.

“Well our success secret is honesty. We don’t allow an applicant buy land that is problematic. Even if you come and buy land from us and we come to realize that the said piece of land has a problem we relocate you elsewhere; but if you don't want to be relocated, we have a capital of above 350 million FCFA and we can guarantee the reimbursement of your money.

“I would like to state here that before we buy any land, we carry out our investigations from the village level right up to the Delegation in charge of land matters; at the village, we meet the chiefs to make assurance doubly sure before we buy to avoid future problems”

Fongoh said he has cordial relationship with other people in Buea dealing in real estate but quickly added that  “as at now the only office that is well established is ours”, noting that  some of those selling land are “mobile and don’t have a steady place where they do this”.

Grass-to-Grace Status

 If Fongoh is today said to be a shaker and mover in real estate business, it is not because he got some inheritance from the parents that paved his way to prominence. It is his hard work and determination to brave the odds and succeed.

“Actually, I was brought up by a single mother; my father died when I was still young and I saw how she toiled to sponsor me.

“There were times when she used to go to my primary school, begging to pay   250 Fcfa [as part of my school fees] for the teacher to allow me in class.

“Indeed, I passed through very rough times and when the Almighty God later on blessed me I made philanthropy my policy; so I always extend my generosity to the less-privileged.

“For example, for this 2023/24 academic year I have allocated 2.5 million Fcfa to assist some needy pupils and students pay their school fees.

 Philanthropic Activities.

“I also sponsor needy persons wanting to learn a trade, thereby empowering them with marketable skills.  My assistance is not limited to people from my village or tribe but is extended to the general public. I assist in paying house rents for some students, school fees etc.

“If I discover that you are sincerely in need and lack the means I extend my generosity to you,” Fongoh told AFRICA EXCELLENCE, noting  that  sometimes he himself scouts around for the needy  and at other times  he publicly announces  his  readiness and availability to help  via groups and social media platforms.

“I have given assistance to about 200 less-privileged people “

Farming is Profitable

Before becoming a real estate broker, Fongoh engaged in commercial farming and even now that he is CEO of Fongoh and Partners, he still does farming.

He urges those interested in farming to do commercial farming and employ workers “Because if they want to work alone they may not derive huge profits”, he pointed.

Wife’s Contribution

Mrs. Fongoh Chanceline Mbinja is the wife of Fongoh and they are blessed with four children. According to Fongoh, his wife who is also business-inclined is a booster to his efforts. “My beloved wife is so supportive of my business and development efforts. I lack words to describe her; in fact, she has contributed a lot through prayers, moral support and otherwise to the business and family progress”, he remarked.

Graduates Should Be Job-Creators.

Many university graduates spend years at home only hoping to be employed by the State or some big corporation instead of trying to be self-reliant.

But Fongoh thought differently upon his graduation from University of Buea.

“In this fast-evolving world, a graduate should think out of the box. The government must not employ every graduate. When I graduated in 2012, I had a serious problem with my family because they wanted me to apply for civil service jobs, but I refused.

“I said I’d rather take the money that I would have used to register public service competitive exams and do business with. They  did not like my decision , but  later on they realized that  my decision was a great one, because I have been sponsoring  my family and even  extended family  members with profits derived from the real estate business.

Fongoh’s Profile

Fongoh Valentine Tekang, now CEO of Fongoh and Partners Real Estate Solutions, Buea, was born some 38 years in Ashong, Batibo, Northwest region of Cameroon.

He got his basic education at CBC Ashong, GS Ngaku-Ashong and Government Practicing School (GPS) Molyko- Buea where he obtained his First School Leaving Certificate (FSLC).

Fongoh lost his father when he was still a child and was lef

CEO Fongoh Valentine

t only with his mother to cater for him. He attended the Musole Evening School and Frankfils Comprehensive School, Great Soppo-Buea where he obtained his GCE Ordinary Level and GCE Advanced Level in three subjects (Literature, History and Philosophy) in 2008 respectively.

A struggling Fongoh would later enroll into the prestigious University of Buea, where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Curriculum Studies and Teaching (History) in 2012.

Upon graduation from University of Buea, he taught for a period of five years at the Holy Child Comprehensive, College Bomaka-Buea; Government High School (GHS) Bolifamba and Baptist High School (BHS) Buea, before deciding to focus on real estate business.

 Couretsy: AFRICA EXCELLENCE MAGAZINE,Cameroon,Edition:September-October 2023

 

Election-related Conflicts in Africa

By Mwalimu George Ngwane*

Mwalimu George Ngwane

Conflicts during elections, especially at the Presidential level in Africa, have become a special trademark. 
 
Because of the centralized systems of governance where power, perks and prestige are accumulated at the helm of state, conflicts may occur before, during and after elections depending on the content and context against which they are held.

Causes

Some of the major causes of election-related conflicts include the absence of a robust broad-based democratic architecture, a controversial Election Management Body and the lack of a functional conflict management system.  Since Independence but more especially after the reintroduction of multiparty democracy in Africa in the mid-80s, most African countries have failed to institute a democratic dispensation that speaks to the welfare and aspiration of the people. 

 Democratic architectures are informed by how we define them, how we relate them to development, how we respect the supreme law of the land and how political parties effectively play their roles as conduits for people-centred leadership. Elections therefore become problematic or a frivolous exercise in futility when our democratic character (one party, no party or multi-party sytems) fails to recognize the supremacy of public good over private greed. 

 Election Management Bodies have recently become the Achilles’ heel because they are often crafted out of survival instincts than democratic conviction.  

Whatever nomenclature the bodies assume ( Independent Electoral or National Elections ) the fundamental issues such bodies need to address are their membership colouring,how are the members recruited?, who do they serve?, and what authority do the bodies have?.  While it is true that Election bodies as umpires of inter-party elections have always stood out for criticism, little is mentioned of Election bodies as referees of intra-party elections. 

Yet political parties are the laboratories of national leadership and therefore deserve close scrutiny on the caliber of Presidential Aspirants that emanate from such intra-party elections.  Presidential Aspirants from free, fair and transparent intra-party elections enjoy greater credibility, wider support base, and national acclaim than ‘natural’ or ‘routine’ candidates who virtually manoeuvre themselves or are foisted on the electorate.  While solid democratic structures and neutral Election bodies may prevent or minimize nascent election conflicts, conflict management systems are often established to regulate or resolve conflicts before they escalate into violence or war. 

 Conflict management systems either in the form of early warning signals or mechanisms that encompass post-electoral justice must be equipped with non-violent avenues that can speedily and dispassionately address and redress election litigations.  Indeed robust democratic architectures and state-centred Election bodies are first and foremost institutionalized conflict management systems.  But when they fail to prevent conflict at a latent stage and once the conflict becomes open, the conflictual parties rely on an Independent judiciary, a human-face law and order force and a non-partisan International community as the last line of defence.

Manifestations

Election conflicts often manifest on a psychological and physical level.  Some of the features of psychological conflict are the warped composition of the election body, the disenfranchisement policy that excludes real or imaginary opponents, Draconian conditions for Independent candidates, biased and incendiary media, inflammatory political rhetoric or diatribe, and an election calendar that is shrouded in secrecy. 

 Because most of these features are perpetrated by systems in power that tend to favour the ruling or incumbent power elite and which in turn has captured the state machinery, psychological conflicts tend to be called systemic, institutionalized ,state or structural election conflicts. 

The second level of election conflict is the physical and it is often a response to the psychological and quite often readily transforms into physical violence.  Voter apathy is the first, albeit, the mildest form of physical conflict as the anguish, frustratation and even violence is personalised and internalised.  Before elections, physical conflict or violence is witnessed in the tearing of opponent party gadgets (posters, manifestoes, flyers etc), confrontations and riots during election campaigns, kidnapping and assassination of political opponents. 

 During elections, violence is evident when confrontations arise against ambulant voters and election thugs (multiple voting, stuffing and carting of ballot boxes), bribery of opponent party election officials, lack of indelible ink, meddling of  partisan government officials in the elections, unscientific comments by national and international observers and the contentious compilation and early reading of vote tallies. 

All of these come to a climax after elections when the results proclaimed are perceived or seen to be flawed whether in favour of the ruling or incumbent party as it was in Kenya in 2008 or in favour of the opposition party as it was in Ivory Coast in 2010. 

 Physical conflict or violence is always spontaneous, grave and protracted with arson, looting, civil disobedience and mass indiscriminate killings taking the toll and civil war, internal displaced persons and refugees being the worst scenarios.

Conflict to Violence

Why can Africans not solve their election related-conflicts peacefully?  Election-related violence accrues from proximate causal factors and pent-up causal factors. Proximate factors are those that relate directly to election flaws especially as our democratic game is based on the winner-takes-it-all.  And that is the reason for a national constitution that limits the mandate of a President.

 Such a constitution for term restriction attenuates the level of violence because it gives hope to the aggrieved party or electorate that there is a time frame for the fraudulent leader to exercise power that was not given to him or her by the people.  

The aggrieved takes consolation in waiting for the end of the term of mandate.  Violence also results from the absence of a conflict management outfit that neither enjoys trust, faith or legitimacy. 

 A Judiciary system in what ever name that identifies overtly with the incumbent elite can never be seen to dispense of arbitration that would be free and fair; a trigger-happy and gun-totting army that responds with high handed brutality against a peaceful demonstration can only make a bad situation worse; a demonstration of stone pelters and sadist arsons can only be met with further violence.  Be it as it may, until the concept of peaceful demonstrations with the guidance of a community army is embedded in our state security psyche, post-election violence shall continue to see blood letting and structural destruction.  Finally proximate factor occurs when external forces use their diplomatic and military prowess to influence the outcome of elections of a sovereign country simply because their political and economic interests are at stake.  

Pent-up causal factors on the other hand, are deep rooted causes that may not be directly related to election flaws but emerge during election periods as a conveyor belt for other suppressed grievances.  Some of the pent-up features include horizontal and vertical inequalities, youth frustration due to unemployment and the capture of every facet of opportunity by a gerocrantic cabal, couched army power ambitions, constitutional tinkering, identity-based discrimination and the lack of non-traditional security issues. 

 Pent-up causal factors can also be as a result of a mere hunger for change or a symbolic alternation of power.  So the tenacity syndrome or elongation of tenure in office through constitutional panel-beating or flawed elections can give rise to an individual being demonized as it is the case of a dozen African Heads of state who have counted more than two decades in office and have no desire to quit or an ethnic group whose grip of power has transformed other ethnic groups into expendable electoral material. 

 Whether the elections are free or flawed, the electorate simply needs a change even if in some cases the change only enlarges access to the ‘national cake’ rather than deepening the democratic space.

Consequences

Election-related conflicts lead to social dislocation, a breach of trust between leaders and the people, a crisis of legitimacy of the foisted officials, an absence of faith in periodic elections as the elections are seen more as the politician’s election rather than the people’s election, the emergence of a nonchalant citizenry that divorces itself from nation building, a resignation to fate rather than hard work, a brain drain, a loss of patriotism, a lack of focus in social and political policies, the entrenchment of an authoritarian system, military interventions, and an unconduisive economic setting that scares domestic and foreign investments.

Exit

 Nonetheless there is empirical evidence to show that not all election conflict is negative.  In some societies it serves as a reminder of the potency and relevance of people power and a valuable disposal mechanism for garbage politicians.  In other cases it serves as a maternity for the birth of a new society with new citizen-bonding, new visions and reenergized hopes and aspirations.  Therefore as long as peaceful avenues for settling disputes are plugged, election-related conflicts shall continue to manifest themselves in diverse manner and magnitude and our safety valve or damage control should be for a critical mass of state and non-state actors as well as non-partisan external forces to be sensitive, responsive and gain entry points to the causes and manifestations of election-related conflicts in Africa.

 *Mwalimu George Ngwane is author of the book “Settling Disputes in Africa” and this article culled from www.gngwane.com was written in 2011.

Cameroon's MND Recommendations:PM Says Gov’t Actions Minimizing Effects of Anglophone Crisis.

By Christopher Ambe

The implementation of recommendations of the Major National Dialogue (MND) of Cameroon that took place from September 30-October 4, 2019 in Yaounde   is going according to plan despite some challenges.

Prime Minister, Chief Dr.Joseph Dion Ngute (middle) talking to reporters after the session

The MND recommendations are intended “to restore growth and productivity and to reverse the negative economic impact of the Anglophone crisis in the Northwest and Southwest regions”- and they are yielding fruits, the country’s Prime Minister, Chief Dr.Joseph Dion Ngute, has declared.

Dion Ngute, who had chaired the MND on behalf of the Head of State, President Paul Biya and in March 2020 was appointed by the latter as Chairman of the committee to follow up the implementation of its recommendations, on August 11, 2023 in Buea, expressed satisfaction that Government’s plan of action to minimize the negative impact of the crisis was succeeding and called for more collective efforts.

The crisis erupted in 2016 as teachers of Cameroon’s English subsystem of education and the country’s common law advocates staged peaceful protests over corporate demands.

The protests later turned violent and deadly: over 4000 people have reportedly died because of the crisis and property worth billions of FCFA destroyed. Over 40 thousand Cameroonians are asylum seekers in Nigeria and tens of thousands of citizens are internally displaced.

The crisis has badly hit the economies of the Northwest and Southwest regions. In the Southwest region, for example, two giant agro-industrial companies PAMOL Ltd and CDC are barely recovering as thousands of their workers have been rendered jobless.

But President Pual Biya in his December 2019 end-of-year address to the nation said the MND “will, in line with our Constitution, enable us to seek ways and means of meeting the profound aspirations of the people of the North-West and South-West Regions, but also of all the other components of our Nation.”

The MND recommendations included : the reconstruction and development  of the conflict-affected areas; the granting of special status to the NW and SW regions with regards to decentralization and local developmet;the promotion of  bilingualism, cultural diversity and national social cohesion;  educational reforms that integrate the two educational subsystems; judicial reforms that draw inspiration  from  the country’s bi-jural systems; state  ensuring return of refugees and protection of internally displaced people; reform nationality code to allow for multiple nationality and governmental representation of the Diaspora ; ensuring the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatants

Premier Dion Ngute was in Buea last August 11 to chair the 5^th Session of the Committee to follow-up the implementation of the MND recommendations.

The session took place at Mountain Hotel Buea and was attended among other dignitaries by some government ministers, and the governors of the Northwest and Southwest regions.

The session, which evaluated the implementation level of the recommendations, adopted some resolutions to speed up recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation. 

The committee resolved  to : intensify  the economic recovery measures to consolidate progress already registered in the agro-industrial domain; encouraged the community-based approach to the identification, studies and execution of projects; discouraged self-destructive attitude that has been adopted by the population; called on local authorities and development agencies to work in collaboration with competent government institutions to open-up farm-to-market roads and plantation roads for benefit of small-holder farmers; urged ministries and institutions to take appropriate measures to ensure the signing of further enabling instruments for the complete transfer of powers and resources to the regional and local authorities; implored Regional Assemblies of the Northwest and Southwest regions to explore the  existing legal framework to complement the actions of the state and propose viable development initiatives that promote the people-centered approach to peace and development; The committee called on authorities to explore possible ways of  increasing budgetary allocations to entities involved in social and economic development and activities geared towards improving the livelihoods of the people; they expressed  the need to forge ahead with the ongoing reconstruction and rehabilitation of infrastructure and to continue dialoguing with all stakeholders on the imperatives for  collective efforts to return peace and normalcy; urged stakeholders to reinforce efforts to combat miscommunication and propaganda that institute fear and continue to propagate reports on the prevailing situations in local communities; they called for  the creation, where possible, and particularly in areas  where sporadic and armed violence is  recurrent of specialized military posts to rapidly restore the confidence of plantation workers and local cocoa farmers ; urged participants particularly religious leaders to continue dialogue  and engagements with stakeholders  and their willingness to offer their services to this regard;  they resolved that that it is time for all to help  put an end to wanton  killings  and self-inflicted damage.

It should be noted that the committee’s duties include: follow up the implementation of the recommendations of the Major National Dialogue;  issue strategic guidelines for the implementation of the recommendations of the Major National Dialogue; order, as and when necessary, the conduct of activities that could contribute to the effective implementation of the recommendations of the Major National Dialogue; prescribe any measure aimed at mobilizing Cameroonians at home and abroad to take part in peace building and in the pursuit of the country's development; record opinions and suggestions likely to facilitate the implementation of the recommendations of the Major National Dialogue; and  perform any other tasks prescribed by the President of the Republic.

The committee members included: the Chairperson of the National Commission on the Promotion of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism; the Metropolitan Archbishop of Yaoundé; the Archbishop Emeritus of Douala; the President of the National Youth Council; two (2) representatives of the Roman Catholic Church from the Ecclesiastical Province of Bamenda; one  representative of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon; one  representative of the Cameroon Baptist Convention; two representatives of the Muslim community based in the North-West and South-West Regions; one representative of women's associations of the North-West and South- West Regions; three representatives of the diaspora; and four  representatives of civil society.

 

 

Anglophone Crisis: A teacher who faces death threats on two fronts

 By Tanji Nguma

Suh Vitalis Ngwai was a state-employed teacher. He was teaching at Government High School Kombone in the Southwest, one of the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon plagued by the Anglophobe Crisis.

Although he was living in a nearby neighborhood called kwa-kwa, Suh went about his teaching job peacefully in Kombone until the Anglophone crisis erupted in 2016 over corporate demands by Anglophone teachers and Common law advocates.

He found himself in a dilemma as he was accused of double standards by Separatist fighters and Cameroun Security Forces, and allegedly became a target of attacks and torture by the two warring entities. 

The crisis, which started as peaceful protests across Anglophone Cameroon, soon turned violent and bloody, putting many lives in danger and sending many others to their early graves as Cameroon forces launched a counter offensive against   separatist fighters, who were (and are still) asking for the independence of the two English-speaking regions (Northwest and Southwest) of Cameroon.

Houses of suspects razed during the Anglophone Crisis

The country’s two English-speaking regions were formerly called Southern Cameroons -a former United Nations Trust Territory that was administered by Britain and it gained its independence on October 1,1961 by joining the majority French-speaking La Republique du Cameroun, to form a single country.

But after joining the majority Francophones, the minority English-speakers started complaining of being marginalized and discriminated against in appointments and development projects by the latter who dominate the administration of Cameroon.

The on-going crisis has led to the deaths of over five thousand   people (civilians and soldiers). Enormous property (private and public) worth hundreds of billions of FCFA have been destroyed,

Over 40 thousand Cameroonians have fled to neighboring Nigeria where they are seeking asylum. Over 500 thousand people are reportedly internally displaced.  Hundreds of others fleeing the crisis are found in the US, Europe, Asia and in other African countries like South Africa.

As the story goes, Suh Vitalis Ngwai respected the 2023/2024 school resumption of the Cameroon government as he went about his teaching in Kombone even as the separatists had called for school boycott throughout Anglophone Cameroon.

That put him at war with the separatists who reportedly attacked and tortured him on several occasions, threatening him with death if he continued going to school.

Other the hand, when a traumatized Suh, for fear of his life, stopped going to school, he was also accused by school officials of being sympathetic to the separatist agenda of dividing Cameroon, which the country’s President Paul Biya has insisted is “one and indivisible.”

The attacks on him by the two warring entities left him traumatized, as he started living in hiding for fear of the unknown.

Reports say when he decidedly left kwa-kwa, a fief of separatist fighters, he was only lucky to have narrowly escaped arrest because security forces on, 15 September 2023, raided their family residence, ransacking it in search of him. The house would later be razed by unknown persons.

Burning of houses of suspected separatists, ghost towns, vandalism, arrests, torture of accused persons, extra-judicial killings, kidnappings, beheadings, sexual assaults and several other vices have characterized the Anglophones crisis.

The escalation of the crisis has been largely blamed on the social media being used by activists to mobilize anti-government protests. It would be recalled that in the heat of the crisis, Cameroon Government first suspended access to the internet early in 2017 in the Northwest and Southwest Regions for three months and later for another one month.

English-speaking Cameroonians in the Diaspora have been accused by the Cameroon Government of instigating and funding separatist fighters.

The Government has blacklisted some Anglophone activists abroad who include Mark Berata, Cho Ayaba,Tapang Ivo,Akwanga Ebenezar,Chris Anu, John Mbah Akuroh,Nso Forcha and Akoson Raymond  .Due to the mass arrests back home and the hunt for activists abroad, many Anglophones abroad - even students are scared to return home.

In late 2019, President Paul Biya convened what was styled National Major Dialogue (NMD), with the intention of looking for lasting solutions to put an end to the Anglophone crisis. But the implementation of the recommendations of the NMD, which included the granting of a special status to the Northwest and Southwest regions, has not put a stop to the crisis, which is in its 8^th year.

 

 

Cameroon : Late Barrister Ekontang Elad’s Legacy

By Christopher Ambe and Warien Mbongo Ake*

Senior Barrister Samuel Ekontang Elad , 82,  who  breathed his last on May 29 ,2023   at  Buea Regional Hospital where he was admitted for treatment, was last 26 August, entombed  at his Bonduma residence in Buea,following a requiem at St Anthony Padua  Catholic Church  ,Buea Town, officiated by a college of priests led by the parish priest  ,Rev.Fr. Emile Tanka

A day before the requiem, the remains of the deceased were taken to the Southwest Court of Appeal in Buea,for judicial honors.

The requiem was attended among many VIPs by former Cameroon’s Prime Minister, Peter Mafany Musonge, former President of the Cameroon Bar Association, Barrister Eta Besong Junior , sitting President of the Cameroon Bar Association ,Batonnier Mbah Eric and University Distinguished Professor emeritus, Ndiva Kofele Kale,

After the legal luminary was consigned to his grave, Batonnier Mbah Eric on behalf of the Cameroon Bar Association handed over Barrister Elad’s wig to the deceased’s son, Ryan Elad, in the hope that he would follow, career-wise, in the footsteps of his fallen father.

The late Elad was an exceptional lawyer with about forty years of practice to his credit. In 2022, Barrister Elad’s professional excellence was acknowledged by the Fako Lawyers Association (FAKLA) with an award.”

He was also a famous minority   rights campaigner

Late Barrister Elad became even popular in April 1993 when he chaired the 1993 All -Anglophone Conference (AAC) in Buea and later AAC II in Bamenda  

The 1993 AAC birthed the Buea Declaration, which advocated –unsuccessfully-   that Cameroon should have a system of government that is federal in character.

The ACC would later be transformed into the Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC), which advocated the restoration of the Independence of Southern Cameroons, guided by its motto “The Force of Argument and Not The Argument of Force”.

Barrister Elad became the pioneer Chairman of the SCNC upon its creation in 1994 and led a delegation, which included former Anglophone leaders J .N Forcha and S.T Muna, to the UN to fight for the rights of minority English-Speaking Cameroonians, who complained of being marginalized by their majority French-speaking compatriots

But the SCNC, considered by the Cameroon government as a separatist group, was banned on January 17, 2017 following the eruption in late 2016 of what is today known as the Anglophone Crisis.  The Cameroon government had suspected the SCNC of fuelling the Anglophone crisis, behind- the-scene.

Barrister Elad also served for several years as Board Chairman of Cameroon Opportunities Industrialization Centre (COIC),Buea.

At the time of his death “Barrister Sam Ekontang Elad was one of the most senior Lawyers in the South West Region”, noted Barrister Samuel Eboa, when he learned of the former’s demise.

“Barrister Elad was a Bar Council Member and the Representative of the Batonnier in the South West Province (Cameroon) around 1975 .He was trained in one of the Inns in England and was amongst the first indigenous lawyers. Between 1960 and early 1970’s, we only had British trained lawyers and lawyers from Nigeria practicing in the former West Cameroon.”

Barrister Elad trained now senior barristers like Emeritus Batonnier Eta Besong Junior, Tangunyi Gilbert and Loh Patrick.

Barrister Felix Agbor Nkongho, founder of the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa (CHRDA), Buea,who attended Barrister Elad’s funeral ,had said this of  the deceased senior colleague: “He was a larger-than-life figure, a legal colossus, a pace setter; he had a mastery of the law; a gentleman par excellence; he was courteous and honorable.

“I related with him not only as a lawyer but someone who was a rights activist, fighting against oppression and marginalization of the Anglophones in Cameroon. His death is a big loss! He has left his footprints on the sands of time”

Barrister Shribe Wilfred, a former trainee of Barrister Elad, said the deceased was not only his mentor but much more like a father.

Lawyers paying last respects to late Barrister Ekontang Elad in Church.

Biography

Samuel Ekontang Elad was born on 4^th May 4 1944 to Evenye Mbonde Wange

Amonica and Richard Ntang Elad. He had eleven siblings.

Ekontang started school in Bonjongo; he briefly attended school in Mbo and

Oron Nigeria. Ekontang graduated from St. Joseph’s College Sasse and subsequently attended CASS Kumba.

He was an avid scholar. During the clamour of independence and post- colonial

period, he wrote articles and journals including “Famous wasMaking Independence Meaningful”.

He won the Aspow scholarship to study Political Science at the Virginia Union University. He aspired to Harvard University in Cambridge,Massachusetts and graduated with distinction in Government. Ekontang was influenced by both John and Bobby Kennedy whom he met and was awarded citizenship in Massachusetts and was offered lucrative government jobs.

Ekontang’s selflessness made him choose home over the luxury in the United

States.

After graduating from Harvard, Ekontang had a scholarship to attend Middle Temple and Oxford University, where he met the beautiful Hannah Mojoko

Monono. Hannah was also studying law. Ekontang got engaged to her  in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Shortly after both earned their law degrees they got married in London. And they had their first child a girl who was named after his beloved mother Evenye.

Returning to Cameroon Ekontang established a successful career as a lawyer

Ekontang’s role in the emerging political changes that occurred in Cameroon in the early 1990’s was memorable.

Indeed, Ekontang lived an extraordinary life

*Warien Mbongo Ake is a University of Buea  Journalism Student on internship

Anglophone Crisis: Ex-PTA president in hiding as he faces threats of arrest

 By   Tanda Njong

Bong Devine Kenah, a former President of the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) of Government High School Esu in the Northwest west region of Cameroon is reportedly living in hiding for fear that he could be arrested either by separatist fighters or  security forces.

Bong, who was elected PTA President of GHS Esu in September 2016 just before the eruption of the Anglophone crisis in October same year, later fled his village of Esu as school boycotts, violence, vandalism, torture, killings, mass arrests, and kidnappings became characteristic of the Anglophone crisis.

He had been threatened and accused and by both separatist fighters and security forces of being a traitor (commonly known as blackleg).

Bong was reported to have been strongly supportive of the protesting Anglophone teachers and Common law advocates who sparked off the Anglophone crisis with their corporate demands. Yet separatist fighters accused him of being a government informant monitoring and reporting   about the activities of the separatists in the locality.

In the face of such dilemma, the ex-PTA president had to flee to Douala especially as security raids in his village that reportedly left several inured and persons dead.

Last January , fresh reports emerged that security forces have intensified the hunt for separatist fighters  and that  a warrant of arrest was reportedly issued against Bong for his alleged links with some  separatist leaders.

Wung Marceline Ndum, a mother of several children and wife of Bong Devine kenah told reporters that since they got hint that her husband was a target for arrest, they have been living in fear and anxiety.  But she claimed not to know the whereabouts of her husband.

““My family has been living in fear and anxiety since the start of this crisis- especially as we’ve   got information that my husband is a target for arrest”, she lamented. “For now, we don’t know his whereas but we believe he is alive wherever he is. We look up to God for his safety and protection.”

Many Anglophones facing threats from combatants of the Anglophone crisis have fled the country to the USA, Europe and Asia and over 40 thousand of them are seeking asylum in neighboring Nigeria.

The Anglophone crisis started as peaceful protests and in January 2017  Cameroon government banned the Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC), a pressure group that was spearheading the independence of English-Speaking Cameroonians, when it realized that the group was fueling the crisis and making it violent.

Sisiku Julius Ayuk Tabe,first-ever President of the unrecognized Republic of Ambazonia and his members of government were in January 2018 extradited from Nigeria to Cameroon. They have since then been incarcerated at the Kondengui Maximum Security Prison in Yaounde.

Cameroon :Lawyers say late Barrister Ekontang Elad was an epitome of professionalism

Barrister Samuel Ekontang Elad was in 2022recognised by Fako Lawyers' Association

By Christopher Ambe

Samuel Ekontang Elad , a Buea-based  veteran lawyer  who practiced  for  over three  decades and mentored  many outstanding  Cameroonian advocates including former  President of  Cameroon Bar Association ,Barrister Eta Besong Junior, on May 29,  died at  the Buea Regional Hospital  where he was receiving treatment for an undisclosed illness.

Late Ekontang Elad had turned 82 last May 4 and breathed his last 25 days after his 82^nd birth anniversary. He was born in Buea on May 4, 1941 to Richard Ntang Elad and Mary Evenye Elad.

After his university education, he trained as a lawyer in Britain and thereafter excelled as a legal practitioner, to the admiration of many of his colleagues and clients.

 Although a popular lawyer, Barrister Elad became even popular in April 1993 when he chaired the 1993 All -Anglophone Conference (AAC) in Buea and later AAC II in Bamenda  

The 1993 AAC gave birth to the Buea Declaration, which advocated   that Cameroon should have a system of government that is federal in character, to no avail.

But the ACC would later be transformed into the Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC), which was advocating the restoration of the Independence of Southern Cameroons, guided by its motto “The Force of Argument and Not The Argument of Force”.

Barrister Elad became the pioneer Chairman of the SCNC upon its creation in 1994 and led a delegation, which included former Anglophone leaders J .N Forcha and S.T Muna , to the UN to fight for Anglophone rights.

But the SCNC, considered by the Cameroon government as a separatist group, was banned on January 17, 2017 following the eruption in late 2016 of what is today known as the Anglophone Crisis.  Cameroon government had suspected that the SCNC was fuelling the Anglophone crisis, behind- the-scene.

According to the banning order of the then Minister of Territorial Administration, René Sadi, “These groups Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC) and the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC) are declared null and void for their purpose and activities, which are contrary to the [Cameroon] Constitution and liable to jeopardize the security of the state, territorial integrity, national unity and national integration”.

Barrister Elad also served for several years as Board Chairman of Cameroon Opportunities Industrialization Centre (COIC),Buea.

Because of his high sense of professionalism and excellence, Barrister Elad was held in high esteem by the public especially by magistrates and lawyers.

According to Barrister Samuel Eboa, “Barrister Sam Ekontang Elad was one of the most senior Lawyers in the South West Region and might be in Cameroon.

“Barrister Elad was a Bar Council Member and the Representative of the Batonnier in the South West Province (Cameroon) around 1975 .He was trained in one of the Inns in England and was amongst the first indigenous lawyers. Between 1960 and early 1970’s, we only had British trained lawyers and lawyers from Nigeria practicing in the former West Cameroon. Barrister Weledji, who is in Limbe is senior and older to Barrister Elad”

 Barrister Elad trained now senior barristers like Emeritus Batonnier Eta Besong Junior, Tangunyi Gilbert, Loh Patrick and a host of others …

“Some of us are his grand professional sons.  I was trained by Barrister Eta Besong, one of his trainees.

“Last year Barrister Elad’s professional excellence was acknowledged by the Fako Lawyers Association (FAKLA) with an award.”

Reacting to the sad news, Barrister Felix Agbor Nkongho, founder of the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa (CHRDA),Buea  ,said this of  the deceased senior colleague:

“The death of Senior Barrister-at-Law Ekontang Elad has left a vacuum in the legal profession in Cameroon. From a personal perspective, he inspired me to read law. My father used to talk a lot about him as a fine lawyer.

“He was a larger-than-life figure, a legal colossus, a pace setter; he had a mastery of the law; a gentleman par excellence; he was courteous and honorable

“I related with him not only as a lawyer but someone who was a rights activist, fighting against oppression and marginalization of the Anglophones in Cameroon. His death is a big loss! He has left his footprints on the sands of time”

Barrister Shribe Wilfred, a former trainee of Barrister Elad, said the deceased was not only his mentor but much more like a father.

“I was admitted to Ekontang Elad Chambers in 2005 when I was aspiring to become a lawyer. I became a full-fledged lawyer in 2011 and worked with Barrister Elad until 2016 when I and Barrister Dickson Mbumbu opened our own chambers, Hallmark Law Firm. My time with Barrister Elad was so fruitful because I learnt so much. He was quite resourceful.”

Barrister Shribe said he was fortunate to have worked for over 10 years with Barrister Elad   whom he likened to a “generous, soft spoken legal juggernaut”

“He has left his foot prints on the legal profession in Cameroon. He was a legal icon that I'll always live to remember. He was a legend”, Barrister Shribe noted.

(This article initially published in The Horizon Newspaper, Cameroon, of Thursday June 1, 2023 has been updated here)