Bello Bouba Maigari: Laughingstock of a Politician!

By Tazoacha Asonganyi in Yaounde

Christian Cardinal Tumi wrote a book “The political regimes of Ahmadou Ahidjo and Paul Biya, and Christian Tumi, priest” in which he brought out the following mentality of state authorities he encountered in northern Cameroon: 1) “One Divisional officer even dared to say that Christianity was for the south and Islam for the north of Cameroon;” 2) “A senior divisional officer even went as far as to say that he had the power to take a decision that went contrary to the provisions of the law;” 3) “There was the impression at that time that a Moslem could commit any crime and go unpunished by the laws of the land. One divisional officer even had the audacity to declare that laws of the land only applied to the southern part of the country!” 4) “… [M]any young, non-Moslems of the north believe that they can only get work with the government if they become Moslem; or at least, bear Moslem names.  That is a moral pressure that violates the individual’s freedom to choose in conscience his own religion…” 5) “Even to this day, I still wonder why some senior divisional officers allow certain Lamibe to act the way they like…dreadful traditional rulers, who are dreaded by their people. The senior divisional officers give the impression that they are powerless in the face of the excesses of those uncompromising Lamibe…I had the impression that in the north, the senior divisional officer who represents the Head of State, is the auxiliary of the Lamibe…”

Bello Bouba Maigari

 Bello Bouba Maigari hails from Garoua in North Region. He is the president of the National Union for Democracy and Progress (NUDP) political party. The party was founded in the early ‘90s in his absence, while he was on political exile in Nigeria. The first president was Samuel Eboa, who hailed from Nkongsamba in Littoral Region. When Bello Bouba returned from exile he schemed with other northern barons of the party at a controversial convention of the party to replace Samuel Eboa as the president of the party; Eboa stormed out of the party in anger and founded his own party, Movement for Democracy and Progress (MDP).

                One would think that Bello Bouba was anxious to take over the party to use it as a vehicle to end once and for all the appalling human rights abuses described by Christian Cardinal Tumi. This has turned out not to be the case. The violations described here are a testimony of this.

GCE Board workers reject Minister’s Labour Medals

By Nkwoh Daniel Agbor-Tarh in Buea

From the look of events at the GCE Board, one may conclude without wincing or mincing that the recent grandiose celebration of its 20th anniversary was nothing but a window dressing. Some authorities of the board who collaborated with government against the setting up of the Board in 1993, but who are today feeding fat on its resources, used the the 20th anniversary celebration as a veritable occasion for showmanship and playing to the gallery.

GCE Board Registrar, Humphrey Ekema Monono

                The Median gathered that twenty pioneer workers of the GCE Board, who were  awarded labour medals during the 20th anniversary for meritorious services rendered to the Board, have rejected the medals and have threatened to return them to the Minister of Labour. They complained that the money which was supposed to accompany the medals (which usually equals one month of salary per medal) was not completely paid to them.

                In fact, the laureates were paid one hundred thousand francs each on the eve of the  anniversary celebration and the pay vouchers stated that it was only an advance of the total due. The grumbling workers say this is against the provisions of the labour code which awards financial benefits for labour medal laureates.

FCFA 10m disappears at K’ba 1 council - Both Ekale Mukete and Abel Ebako have claimed their innocence

Sources say the money was provided by the MINFOF for trees-planting on the Southern Bakundu Forest Reserve in 2013 and was made available only towards the end of the year, during the transition between the former and the present mayors. Interestingly, neither Ekale Mukete nor his successor, Ebako Abel Ndoh has accepted ever managing the funds.

By Eddy Bokuba in Kumba

Former mayor, Ekalle Mukete

The Meme Divisional Delegate for Forestry and Wildlife, Enow Kenneth Eyong is yet to come to terms with authorities of the Kumba 1 council, following the alleged disappearance of the sum of FCFA 10 million at the council’s coffers. The money was the council’s allocation from the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife, M.I.N.F.O.F in 2013, for the planting of trees in a portion of the Southern Bakundu Forest Reserve (S.B.F.R) that is jointly owned by the Kumba 1 Council and the Mbonge Council.

                Enow Kenneth told The Median that he understands that the first disbursement of FCFA 5 million came in November 2013. However, Enow maintained that he was at a loss as to whether the funds were managed by the former Mayor, Prince Ekalle Mukete or the new S.D.F Mayor, Ebako Abel Ndoh. 

           Enow however noted that whether the funds were managed by

Current mayor, Ebako Abel

the former or present mayor, it is inadmissible that the funds should be depleted when not even a single tree has been planted at the forest reserve. Besides, Enow expressed surprise that the two mayors concerned, Ekalle Mukete and Ebako Abel, have decided to maintain sealed lips about the matter.

                Acknowledging that other councils like the Mbonge and Konye Councils that also received similar amounts have since planted the trees as required, the MINFOF Delegate speculated that the funds for Kumba 1 Council might have been embezzled.

                Enow said he was confounded the more because each time he presented the matter to the Meme administrative hierarchy they either shunned him or simply asked him to keep cool, promising that the matter would be handled. He recalled that during the last budgetary session of the Kumba 1 Council early this year, he drew the Meme S.D.O’s attention to the matter in the presence of the former Mayor, Ekalle Mukete. But the SDO only asked him to stay calm as usual. He said Prince Ekalle Mukete for his part, instead asked him to apologize to him for insinuating that he had embezzled the money.

National Assembly: MPs quarrelling over “gombo”

The 157 floor-member MPs of the National Assembly may soon benefit an increase in their car allowances and micro-project grants, after they mounted a recalcitrant protest against what they described as the princely treatment accorded to bureau members as opposed to the catechist treatment reserved for them.

By Mbeh Moses Eben in Yaounde

Cavaye Yeguie Djibril

It was with divided minds that MPs of the National Assembly adopted some five bills that were tabled by government for their examination last week. The MPs had their minds diverted to the issue of the allowances and other benefits allocated them by President Biya and to an extent the House Speaker, Cavaye Yeguie Djibril.

                Some floor member MPs made it an issue and created a scene at the Glass Palace when they vigorously protested the allocations reserved for them as car, house and other allowances, meanwhile their colleagues of the bureau were allocated very huge sums for the same purposes.

                “Why this very wide gap between us and the bureau members, did they come to the Assembly through a special election? We shall accept such discrimination only over our dead bodies,” swore some MPs from mostly the smaller opposition parties but whose views were shared and supported by the rest of the 157 floor member MPs.

Intra-urban transportation:Tic Le Bus hit the roads again

The industrial action embarked upon by workers of the urban transport company in Yaounde was called off on Wednesday 26 March after a lengthy crisis meeting

By Mbeh Moses Eben in Yaounde

Le Bus is discredited for having very old, wornout buses

Workers of Tic Le Bus, the Yaounde-based intra-urban transport company have resumed work after nine days of strike. They called off the strike on Wednesday, 26 March following a tripartite crisis meeting that brought on the negotiating table workers’ delegates, authorities of Le Bus and the regional delegate for labour and social security for the centre region, Benjamin Tsoung, who presided over the meeting.

                “The workers’ delegates have resolved to call-off the strike and for work to resume beginning Thursday 27 March 2014, to restore the company’s credibility vis-à-vis its bankers and the state,” read a statement issued after the meeting and signed by all the parties to the negotiation.

Cricket has come to stay in Cameroon - Agbor Victor Nso, president Feca-Cricket

The Cricket Association launched its activities for the 2014 season recently. What were the high points of the launching?

Agbor Victor Nso, president Feca-Cricket

Thanks for the question. We launched our activities with the visit of Cricket without boundaries, CWB, to Cameroon. They were here for their second visit which took them a whole two weeks of activities geared towards developing cricket in Cameroon. The cricket season was also launched as part of activities to mark the Commonwealth week in Cameroon. We launched the activities with a match between the Commonwealth Cricket selection and the Cameroon Junior Cricket selection. You need to know that the Commonwealth selection comprised mostly volunteers from CWB and other citizens from Commonwealth countries resident in Cameroon notably Australians, Indians, British, Pakistanis etc. So the major high point of the launching was that gala match between the Cameroon Cricket selection and the Commonwealth selection.

You said CWB were here to execute a 2nd project with your Federation. What was this project about?

Cameroon Cricket imbibes British experience

A team of experts from London-based charity, Cricket Without Boundaries, CWB, have ended a two-week working session in Cameroon.

By Balemba Macquens in Yaounde

CWB trainers in working session with prospective Cameroonian Cricket coaches

The two week tour took the CWB delegation through Yaounde and Obala in the Centre region to Buea and Limbe in the South West region. Their target population were school teachers and students.               

                “Our objective is to train the teachers to become coaches of Cricket and the students to become cricket players,” said David Terrace, the CWB Cameroon team leader, who explained that 

their aim is also to empower the teachers (coaches) so that they will in turn continue to train the students and other Cameroonians when the CWB team would be gone.