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Common Law lawyers from four different associations in Cameroon have begun a four days sit-down strike action beginning on Tuesday October 11, 2016.

In a letter addressed to the Presidency of the Republic signed by Barristers Nkongho Felix Agbor president of Fako Lawyers Association, FAKLA, Harmony Bobga-Mbuton President of North West lawyers Association, NOWELA, Awuta Philip Atubah President of Meme Lawyers Association and nkongho Sopseh Emilien President of Manyu Lawyers Association, the lawyers denounce negligence by the government on numerous complaints of the erosion of Common Law in Cameroon as manifested in the OHADA Legislation.

The letter partially reads that, “Whereas recently, some of our members attempt to exercise the constitutional right of freedom of expression through the medium of Press Conference and were stifled with administrative bans and police harassments.”

They also denounce governments silence over an earlier correspondence after the Common Law Lawyers conference in Bamenda. They complain that since two years not even an acknowledgement has been sent from the Presidency.

They called on President Paul Biya to create an Ad Hoc Commission to respond to the Bamenda Resolutions of 9th May, 2015 and the Buea Declaration of 13 February 2016 regarding the erosion of the Common Law in Cameroon.

The Common Law Lawyers have also demanded the Head of State to hold an emergency session of the Higher Judicial Council and re-deploy ALL CIVIL LAW MAGISTRATES from the two Common Law jurisdictions of North West and South West and in the same vein re-deploy ALL COMMON LAW MAGISTRATES from the Civil Law Jurisdiction to the two Common Law Jurisdictions of North West and South West regions.

Details: Rita Akana; 11.Oct.2016; Hits: 2892

Cameroon’s lone National Oil Refinery Cooperation, SONARA has awarded a contract worth 56.236. 396 million Frs CFA (some $112000) to a Douala based company named Toys Center Sarl.

An award of contract notification dated September 19 2016, from the Director General of Sonara, Ibrahim Talba Malla, gave the supplying company two months to deliver the toys.
Though it is not precise which event Sonara would be hosting with toys worth some 56 million frs cfa, it is suspected that it is in preparation for end of year festivities.

As the publication of the tender went round social media, a heavy debate was sparked off on how a company in a country hit by unemployment, lack of energy and water and roads could be spending such an amount for toys.

“What has Sonara done for the city of Limbe where it is based? Cape Limbo cannot boast of roads, portable water and or a health facility erected by Sonara.

How many Anglophones are working with Sonara by the way,” fumed a chief of Limbe I subdivision who preferred not to be named.

Other compatriots argued that it was important to observe that petroleum companies have certain standards when it comes to the treatment of its workers.

Sonara was created on March 23, 1973 and now has a capital worth 23 billion frs cfa.

Details: Solomon Amabo; 11.Oct.2016; Hits: 2168

The Presidency of the Republic is in the murky waters of a scam in which some unscrupulous individuals have been using fake mission orders to facilitate the travel of some people abroad.

The racket that seems to have been going on for so long was uncovered at the Swiss Embassy recently. One official of the Civil Cabinet of the Presidency of the Republic, Gabriel Mbesse Ngojo, and one Alain Jean Claude Ngoulou, who claimed to have worked at the Presidency as private secretary to President Paul Biya’s junior sister, are languishing in pre-trial detention at the Kondengui prison over the matter.

Three other people, Vanessa Lynne Amougou Foe, Eveline Youmbisse and Yannick Nguedjo, who tried to use the racket to obtain visas from the Swiss Embassy in Yaounde, are also awaiting trial in prison.

Even though the scandal dates back to December 2015, it was only blown open when the Mfoundi High Court began hearing the suspects last September 27.

According to facts of the case, main accused person, Ngoulou, used the fake documents and applied for visas for himself at the Swiss Embassy and three of his “clients”.

Going by the persecution, the three “clients” had a deal to pay FCFA 3 millioin each to Ngoulou as soon as he obtained the visas for them.

Ngoulou had attached to the visa application he sent to the Swiss Embassy a collective fake mission order with a fake signature of the Secretary General at the Presidency of the Republic, Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, on it.

A written note purportedly signed by the Secretary General at the Ministry of External Relations was also attached to the application.

After receiving the documents, consular officials at the Swiss Embassy insisted that they must have confirmation from the official who has been following up visas for the Presidency, Gabriel Mbesse Ngojo.

The latter who worked at the protocol service of the Presidency was in charge of following up visas for officials of the State House at the Swiss Embassy.

Instead of waiting for the Embassy to do its independent verification on the controversial mission orders, Ngonlou quickly went and convinced Mbesse Ngojo to accompany him to the Embassy and defend him. As soon as the duo arrived at the Embassy, police arrested them for using fake documents.

Going by the Examining Magistrate at the Mfoundi High Court, Ngoulou’s three clients were fully aware that the documents were fake and so avoided following up their visas themselves.

The Examining Magistrate, Justice Marthe Annie Onana, said Mbesse Ngojo was part of the racket because he accepted to go and defend the fake documents Ngoulou deposited at the Swiss Embassy.

During the investigations, The Post learnt, the Chief of State Protocol at the Presidency of the Republic, Simon Pierre Bikele, and the Technical Adviser at the Civil Cabinet of the Presidency, Oswalde Baboke, were also interrogated.

They reportedly rejected claims by Ngoulou that his “clients” were going on mission on behalf of the Presidency. The two officials said there was nothing at the Presidency like a collective mission order as Ngoulou claimed.

Taking the floor in court to defend himself, the main accused person, Ngoulou said he actually worked at the Presidency for over a decade.

He said he worked as private secretary to President Biya’s younger sister, Elizabeth Mekou Me Mvondo. During this period, he was the one responsible for obtaining visas for members of the Presidential family.

He admitted during cross-examination by the prosecutor that he used the position to enable many other people who were not members of the Presidential family to travel out of the country. Ngoulou said he only stopped working at the Presidency in 2010 because he was a victim of a cardiovascular attack.

The accused person said the Chief of the State Protocol and the Technical Adviser at the Civil Cabinet were wrong when they told the investigators that the collective mission order does not exist at the presidency When asked how he got the controversial mission orders, he said he got them with the help of the brother-in-law of the Secretary General at the Presidency, whose name he presented as Ngah Koumda. He said he got them at the price of FCFA 500.000

When asked if he verified to see if the mission orders were authentic, he said he was sure because Ngah Koumda is a serious person who works at the Presidency.

When the prosecution turned the heat on Mbesse Ngojo, he swore that he had not seen the documents. He said he only went to the Swiss Embassy because Ngoulou convinced him to go there.

As we went to press last evening, the other three accused persons were still being heard in court. The defense lawyer was also expected to make their submissions.

Talk is rife that when the court finally get into the crux many big heads who have been surreptitiously part of the racket, are going to hell at the presidency.

The racket is akin to a recent case at the National Assembly in which one worker forged the signature of the speaker and used it to recruit his family member and promoted some.

Cameroonpostnewsline

Details: Rita Akana; 08.Oct.2016; Hits: 2524

Three brothers returning from a night drinking out in Douala where involved in a tragic accident early today, Wednesday, 5.October 2016 at around 5:30 am at the 4EME Round about.

Eyewitnesses say the driver of the car lost control and crashed into the fence securing the area around the roundabout, he was pronounced death on the spot while the other two occupants sustained minor injuries.

According to sources the two survivors are based in Europe and are on holiday in Cameroon, while the deceased is a local of the AKWA neigbourhood in Douala

Details: Mbi James; 05.Oct.2016; Hits: 2931

Barely a day after the foodmarket accident, Bamenda wakes up to another traffic incident.A HIACE 19 sitter bus lost control and hit a bus belonging to Amour Mezam travel agency before hitting some students who stood by the road waiting for a cab at the Finance junction in Bamenda. The injured victims have been taken to the General hospital in Bamenda.No lost of life has been reported so far

Details: Rita Akana; 30.Sep.2016; Hits: 4370

An atmosphere of uncertainty looms at GTC Mbah in Kumbo central sub division as lightening is reported to have stroke seven students. Tangwa Lawrence in a Facebook post recounted that the lightening destroyed electricity line and the cables used in wiring the school. The incident which occurred on September 27 at midday affected four girls and three boys. The victims, according to reports were immediately covered with soil to release electron charges from their bodies, before being transferred to the health facility where they were being taken care of by medics.

Informed of the indent, the Divisional Delegate for Secondary Education for Bui, Asah Mbenkum William visited the scene and victims.

Latest reports say the students are responding to medical treatment.

The Eye Newspaper

Details: Rita Akana; 30.Sep.2016; Hits: 2611

Some 15 Chiefs drawn from villages in Fako Division, Southwest Region have written to President Paul Biya, beseeching him to intervene and grant them clemency before they are jailed.

In the letter dated September 5, a copy which The Post procured, the traditional rulers vented out what they termed their “difficulties, embarrassments and predicaments” relating to the land surrender they applied for.

According to them, it is over three years since they applied for land for their various communities’ expansion.

“When our applications got to the SDO, we were each asked to pay FCFA 500,000 for the creation of a Site Board Commission, SBC.

A date was fixed for the SBC to meet in the field for the selection of the sites. Each concerned village was asked to provide logistics in the form of fuel and entertainment that ranged between FCFA 500,000 to FCFA 1million.

We were again asked to pay FCFA 1.5 million for the production of a sketch site plan.

Before the Minutes of the SBC after visiting the Site were signed, the Secretary who is usually the Fako Divisional MINDCAF Chief of Service for Lands collected between FCFA 500,000 and FCFA 1million from the various villages.

After the exercise, we were individually invited by the Divisional Delegate of MINDCAF and requested to pay between FCFA 2 and 3 million to enable the file to be signed by the relevant services and forwarded to the CDC for their approval.

We were again requested each to pay various monies ranging from FCFA 2.5 to FCFA 5 million for the demarcation and planting of pillars pending the forwarding of the files to the Ministry of State Property, Surveys and Land Tenure in Yaounde

Ironically, we realised that some of these files were transmitted to MINDCAF Yaounde, while others were kept behind for unexplained reasons till date,” the Chiefs narrated to the President.

They however, regretted that some of the files have been treated by MINDCAF Minister, but no land have been earmarked to serve the purpose and given the huge sums they have spent to fulfill the lengthy procedure, ranging from FCFA10 to over 15 million, “we are shocked and surprised to learn from these very authorities that the sites were earlier allocated to other villages.”

The custodians of tradition said, such an action is a deliberate and well-calculated ploy to extort monies from them and that even the complaint they made to the CONAC Chairman has fallen on deaf ears.

The Chiefs bemoaned that they are in a fix as most of them are being dragged to Court “since the monies we used to follow-up the files were principally obtained from individuals who acted as “sponsors.”

The Chiefs said it is for this reason that one of their colleagues, Chief Ndoto Elionge of Ewili is serving a nine year jail term in the Buea prison.

“It is now glaring and evident that we shall eventually be jailed for collecting monies falsely. What impressions would the people of Buea municipality represent, if about 14 of their traditional rulers are thrown into prison?

It is worth mentioning that the rural masses and the indigenes of this municipality are ardent militants and supporters of the CPDM Party and the backlash of this situation may certainly have a very negative effect to our cherished party and its Chairman, who doubles as the President of our Country,” the Chiefs wrote.

The Chiefs further prayed Biya to transfer the over 150 hectares of the University of Buea land to them to use it and liberate themselves from their creditors and avoid imprisonment “Considering that the Buea University is an integral part of the State and they don’t face any prejudice if they don’t obtain the land, it is our fervent suggestion that the State gives us the opportunity to solve our problem by obtaining the said land.”

Cameroonpost