Anglophone leaders Vs the people of Cameroon:

Balla, Fontem & Bibixy to appear before Military Judge Wednesday

The three Anglophone activists will be expected to plead guilty or not guilty of the charges brought against them by the Commissioner of Government (Examining Magistrate) of the Military Tribunal. They were charged with terrorism, inciting rebellion against the state, breach of the constitution and inciting the population to civil unrest. Legal experts say the gravity of the charges need not be over-emphasized

By Ojong Steven Ayukogem in Yaounde

Dr. FontemNeba, SG of the outlawed Consortium

The president and Secretary General of the now outlawed Consortium of Anglophone Civil Societies will on Wednesday 1st February, be taken from their prison cells at Kondengui, to the Yaounde Military tribunal.

Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor-AnyiorBalla and Dr. FontemAforteka’aNeba would be brought to court along with ManchoBibixy, the leader of what is now popularly referred to as the coffin revelation.

                Balla and Fontem were arrested in the evening hours on Monday 19 January, around Molyko, Buea, barely hours after the government pronounced a ban throughout the national territory, of the activities of the Consortium of Anglophone Civil Societies and the Southern Cameroons National Council, SCNC, and all other related bodies and their activities.                                            Following their arrest, the two leaders (Balla is also the President of Fako Lawyers Association, FAKLA, while Fontem is the SG of SYNES UB-Chapter) were immediately whisked-off to Yaounde and put under pre-trial detention at the gendarmerie headquarters (SED).

                The other activist, ManchoBibixy, was arrested on Wednesday 21 January, in his girlfriend’s room in Bamenda. He too was immediately ferried to Yaounde to join the others at the SED.

               

ManchoBibixy, leader of the coffin revolution

The three Anglophone activists (now referred to by many as the new legitimate Anglophone leaders) were on Friday brought before the commissioner of government at the Yaounde military tribunal, Col. Nzie Pierre Narcisse, who edified them on the reasons for their arrest and the charges brought against them.

                Balla and Co. were charged jointly and severally with terrorism, breach of the constitution, rebellion against the state and its institutions, inciting the populations to civil unrest among several other counts. All of the charges attract at least a life jail sentence, or even a death penalty, by virtue of the new law on terrorism.

                By virtue of law No 2014/028 of 23 December 2014 bearing on terrorism, “whoever, acting alone as an accomplice or accessory, commits or threatens to commit an act likely to cause death, endanger physical integrity, cause body injury or material damage, destroy natural resource, the environment or cultural heritage with intent to....intimidate the public, provoke a situation of terror....disrupt the national functioning of public services....create widespread insecurity in the country, shall be punished with a death penalty.

                Given the gravity and especially the terrorism conotation of the charges brought against the Balla and Co., knowledgeable observers say their legal counsels notably Senior Barrister Ben Muna and his junior brother AkereMuna (both of them former presidents of the Cameroon Bar Council), will have an uphill task convincing the military judge about the innocence of their clients. If anything they may only evoke mitigating circumstances to woo the judge to downplay the penalties to acceptable prison terms.

                However, when this reporter talked to Barrister Balla through one of his lawyers, he wasted no time to pronounce his innocence. Balla said he and the two others are just the scapegoats of a genuine cause that is been fought by the entire Anglophone community in Cameroon.

                When reminded of the gravity of the charges brought against them and how they risk being sentenced to life jail or very long jail terms, Balla retorted that because he is not guilty of any wrongdoing, he is psychologically prepared for whatever the authorities have in store for him. He said he has no fear because whatever punishment and suffering that would be visited on him will only go a long way to invigorate the people whose rights he is defending and dying for.

                It is however, not immediately known how the procedure at the military tribunal would proceed on Wednesday. But knowledgeable commentators say it may just be a short court session where the leaders would be reminded of their charges and asked to plead either guilty or not guilty. There would be no debates on this first hearing of what can now be rightly called a landmark and defining case in the chequered history of a reunified, decentralized but one and indivisible Cameroon.

Enter Ayah Paul

                It is also not immediately known whether the Advocate-General of the Supreme Court who doubles as president of opposition Popular Action Party, Chief Justice Ayah Paul Abine, would also be brought to court on the same day lkeBalla and Co. Justice Ayah was arrested in his Yaounde residence on Saturday last week and taken to the gendarmerie headquarters were he is presently detained.

                The reasons for Ayah’s arrest are yet unknown. But speculations are that he was arrested in connection to his active and avowed role in the Anglophone struggle and perhaps because of his active involvement in politics.

                Though it is understood that because of the nature of their job, magistrates are supposed to be politically neutral, Ayah’s supporters say before his appointment to the Supreme Court the authorities already knew of his active participation in politics.

                However, it is expected that before long, Ayah would be told the charges brought against him and be made to defend himself like Balla and the two others. But one point must be made here and this is that being a super-scaled magistrate, Ayah can only be tried by a college of judges equal to or superior to him on the judiciary hierarchy. And we are told that magistrates of that category are not ready to find in the country. Besides, it lives to be known whether or not Ayah’s colleagues would accept to judge one of theirs for the crimes he allegedly committed.