Kumbo water crisis gets ugly

-Soldiers stationed at stragegic areas of Kumbo town to preempt brewing uprising

-Undaunted, SehmMbinglo orders his subjects to disconnect water pipes and consume free water

By Njodzefe Nestor in Bamenda

Fon of Nso, SehmMbinglo reassuring his subjects that the gov’t

cannot take ownership of their water

Efforts to resolve the Kumbo water crisis which has for over one year now seen Kumbo Council and Kumbo Water Authority KWA on one hand and NSODA and the Fon of Nso on the other, disembowel themselves in a gory public spectacle over who should manage, appear to be far from over as the Fon of Nso HRH SehmMbinglo has declared that the water should be consumed free of charge.

                He made the declaration on August 19, 2016 at the courtyard of the palace in the presence of curious subjects reportedly defying a prefectoral order signed on August 18, by the SDO of Bui, NzekiTheophile banning any public gathering.

                The order we learnt was motivated by a call from the Fon of Nso to his people to assemble at the palace for them to address the water problems and to plan how to celebrate the life of Prof Fonlon who gave the water to Nso people.

                Worthy of note is the fact that prior to the declaration, there was heavy military presence in some strategic areas in Kumbo.

The heavy deployment The Median understands was in a bid to prevent a 1991 scenario where a locally orchestrated campaign led to the forceful expulsion of SNEC from Kumbo in October of 1991.

                In a rare public outing that saw the Fon speak directly to his people without an interpreter (contrary to what tradition demands), HRH SehmMbinglo instructed his people to buy pipes and install water in their houses, free of charge, and called on those who have meters to remove all of them and bring to the palace.

             

Heavy military presence at strategic areas in Kumbo

   This decision to speak directly to the people The Median learnt was to show the severity of the issues at stake and to avoid the situation where many have been accused of using the Fon's letterhead to misrepresent him.

                The Fon also revealed that he has been called to Bamenda and Tobin, by the Governor, and the SDO, at short notice, for meetings on the water crisis.

                “I have done everything possible to find a peaceful solution to this water problem. Since they now say that I am stubborn, I won't step out of this palace again for any meeting. I will die in this palace. Nobody should provoke the soldiers. It is not the first time that soldiers are in Nso land because of this water problem or whatever. Just look at the soldiers from a distance. We shall all decide the fate of our water. Nobody shall decide on our behalf,” he reiterated.

                Addressing fears of the sustainability of his decision, HRH SehmMbinglo said “Nso sons and daughters of goodwill like Bernard Fonlon, shall provide chemicals for us to treat the water”.

                While this decision has been welcomed by a cross section of some Nso sons and daughters, there are some who see little or no logic and sustainability of the Fon’s decision.

                “Is it possible to afford to run a big water scheme like that of Kimbo without a substantial budget? What is the annual budget of the scheme and how does the Fon intend to cover it. I do not think the only item on the budget is water treatment with chemicals. Can we really in this present era rely on the goodwill of people to run such a water scheme, what happens if there is a short supply of this goodwill?” wondered a concerned elite of Nso who spoke to The Median on conditions of anonymity.

                Worthy of note is the fact that various efforts have been made to resolve the Kumbo crisis but all have ended in a fiasco. Late last year the Governor of the NW region, Adolf LeleL’Afrique installed a regional management committee to manage the water with various meetings haven been held there after but none has yielded any fruits.

                The Kumbo water supply system initiated in the late 1960’s and completed in 1972 has a complex ownership claim. On the one hand, it is claimed to be aNso community water scheme realised with the financial support of the people of Canada through the efforts of an elite of Nso, Prof Fonlon.

                Others consider it as a government-owned scheme considering the provisions of the national legislation relating to water supply, and the technical and diplomatic role of the Government of Cameroon in the construction and mobilization of financial resources from the Canadian government.