Military Headquarters, Yaounde:

Bakossi Community steals show as new Generals receive insignia

Brigadier-General Ekongwese Divine

The 11 new brigadier-generals appointed on 29 June 2017 by the Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, President Paul Biya, on Saturday 15 July 2017 received their insignia and other attributes

The minister delegate at the presidency in charge of defence, Joseph Beti Assomo, presided over the brief but solemn ceremony that was devoid of speeches.

                The ceremony was witnessed among others by government ministers, senior military and police officials, diplomats, traditional and religious authorities and a stampeding crowd of curious family members, friends and onlookers.

                After receiving their insignia and other attributes the senior army and gendarmerie officers now become full generals. They will later in the course of the week be commissioned into their respective posts of responsibility.

                A thrilling march past by detachments of the military and the gendarmarie added colour and solemnity to the event.

                Expressions of joy and happiness got to frenzy when the new Generals were called up to take their various positions to immortalise the event through group photos with the Defence Minister, Beti Assomo, the Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence in charge of the National Gendarmerie, Jean Baptiste Bokam and the secretary of state in the ministry of defence in charge of Ex-servicemen and war victims, Koumpa Issa.

Bakossi Community makes its presence felt

               

The B’hons came all the way from Bangem and Tombel

The presence of Bakossi chiefs and b’hons with their colourful traditional outfits, who joined the two ministers from Kupe Muanenguba, Ngole Philip and Elung Paul, and a huge crowd of dancing and chanting Bakossi indigenes added colour and circumstance to the impressively attended occasion.

                The Bakossi community had come powerfully to thank President Biya and also exalt their son and brother, Brigadier-General Ekongwese Divine Nnoko, who was one of the privilege laureates of the day.

                The raising and clapping of fists, the singing, the dancing and the heavy feasting that followed later in the evening at the gendarmerie headquarters at Camp Yeyap, where Brigadier General Ekongwese rallied his Kupe Muanenguba brothers and sisters, and his hundreds of other guests, was revealing of the joy in the hearts of the Bakossi people, who were celebrating their first general, and one of Cameroon’s very few Anglophone Generals to be appointed since reunification and independence in 1961.

                Thus the Bakossi community had reason enough to shout at the top of their voices: arobo nso! Ho nso o nso….ho nso o nso…ho so o nso.. ho!