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| Raymond Dinga Gwanyalla: Outstanding Leader |
If leadership qualities
were to be measured by impact, our leader of the month Raymond Dinga Gwanyalla
would have done appealingly fine on the hinges of that weighing machine given
that he has proven his worth in very many domains. And if leadership as they
say is a career committed to solving societal problems, Raymond Gwanyalla is for
that reason a gigantic problem solver.
And he has been fairly
rewarded for his leadership skills both as mayor of Bali Council and President
of BOBA where he was voted by acclamation to build the future of emerging
leaders. But since nature demands that everyone who exudes excellence in the
line of duty deserves a pat on the back or some prizes for making the
difference, Raymond Gwanyalla has enjoyed some good romance with glittering
accolades for his leadership qualities. In the North West Region of Cameroon,
one of the leaders who have built his great influence to excellently empower a
new generation of leaders is Gwanyalla. He is one that always takes the lead and
receives the support of others. People have a lot of trust in him for his
honesty and spirit of accountability. His influence is inspiring change all
over North West Region. Born and raised in a typical Christian family, he grows
up to be a high flying academic achiever. His Alma matter CPC Bali has remained
in his heart for ever.
Last January 17, 2015
he was re-elected by acclamation at the BOBA Elective General Assembly. This is
so because where Gwanyalla had taken the lead, there evidences have been glaring
that he is one of those who run of the wheel of positive change for society to
prosper, an audacity of integrity whose passion reflects his desire to see
sustainable development being put into practice. CPC Bali is likely to be the
first secondary school in the North West Region where students and teachers
will say bye-bye to blackboard and chalk and say welcome to laptops and book
notes. Thanks to the dynamism of Gwanyalla, BOBAN has been transformed into exemplary
enterprising venture. The BOBA warehouse in Douala is a model example.
Gwanyalla’s confidence has always given him a place in different leadership
capacities, increasing his favourable influence at every favourable occasion
and putting forth innovative ideas into concrete actions. The renovation of the
CPC library, pavement in campus, the biogas project and water supply scheme are
amongst the realizations of Gwanyalla at the helm of BOBA.
Ba Nkom Raymond Gwanyalla
is an accomplished leader, philanthropist, devout Christian, family man and pragmatic
politician. His outstanding leadership skills have won him several awards; including
the prestigious title of Ba Nkom (the highest title for nobles in the Bali
Fondom). Besides, he was also voted, Best Mayor, Best Politician, Most
Result-oriented mayor etc by readers of frontline Anglophone newspapers such as
Chronicle, The Guardian Post, and Cameroon Post International etc. Ba Nkom Gwanyalla’s
leadership skills are many and varied. This strong and resilient man loves what
he does; his influential drive for development, education has made him the most
active man of all men in action. The way he promotes humanitarian activities,
social welfare and the social cohesion distinguishes him as one of the silent
achievers in Cameroon who is changing lives. When two or more are gathered to
talk development, he is always present.
Meet him to talk about
politics and you would not regret to have met a refined politician. And
politics has played a very important role in his life-shaping mission to his
community. When he retired at the head of the Costumes Department, he returned
to Bali and engaged into politics. He was honoured as the head of the council
list for the CPDM in the 2007 Twin Elections. His list won and he was elected
mayor. As mayor, Ba Nkom Gwanyalla left an indelible mark of greatness and a
catalogue of achievements. He targeted and solved the water crisis in Bali and
he solved them with dexterity. He embarked on the opening of farms to market
roads, construction of classroom in areas where there were none, and at the end
of his mandate, he stepped down democratically from the position of mayor. Bali
youths would never forget the scholarships he offered to promote excellence in
schools to youths ranging from Nursery through Secondary, High Schools,
Universities and professional schools. Popular opinion in Bali sees him as the
next section President. Yet Ba Nkom Raymond Gwanyalla is yet to declare his
intentions. The people Call may likely usher him to take over the management of
the CPDM in Bali given that without him, the CPDM may be naught.
In the domain of
business, he is a successful businessman who like Fafre in the Mayor of
Casterbridge is blended with the gifted charm that everything he touches grows.
The Chief Executive Officer of Cargo Management Services is not a man to pigeon
hole with. Through this structure he has been able to demystify transactions at
the Douala Port. It is his greatness and savoir-faire that CAMAStransit is a
household name in Cameroon. At CAMAS he has employed hundreds of youths to work
for his company CAMAS.
The
Unsung Hero
He was born to a father who was a
court clerk and a housewife mother. That is to say Ba Nkom Gwanyalla was not
born with a silver spoon in his mouth, yet he was not equally born into abject
poverty. His parents understood the significance of schooling and enrolled him
early in Primary School in Momo Division in 1964 where he later moved to P.S
Azire to obtained his FSLC in flying colours and got admitted into CPC Bali.
After CPC Bali, Ba Nkom Gwanyalla was recruited into the Costumes. Yet he continued
learning while working. He then moved out of Cameroon to Sierra Leone where he
enrolled in the University of Furrabe. After graduation, Raymond Gwanyalla
being a patriot refused all work positions abroad and returned to Cameroon.
Back home he decided to fine-tune his knowledge of customs. He entered the
Advanced School of Administration and Magistracy, ENAM in 1972 where he
graduated as Custom Inspector. Proof of this is that he started as a customs
clerk and because of his hard work and commitment; he gradually rose through
all the rungs of the professional ladder to the coveted and prestigious
position of Director of Customs. His appointment by the powers that be was in
recognition of his contribution to the growth of the customs department and the
economy of Cameroon through revenue collection and the stamping out of
corruption.
A President Paul Biya’s loyalist of
the first order, Raymond Gwanyalla does all in his powers to support the ideals
of the New Deal government. He has always told his people of Bali that the CPDM
is a large enough umbrella to shelter everybody and there was no need for some
of his people to keep on standing under the rain of the opposition. He has
converted many militants from the opposition into the CPDM through his
practical politics of development and not sterile promises.
To say that the municipality of Bali
has witnessed great changes is to use to weakest idiom to describe the great
silent achievements of Ba Nkom Raymond Gwayalla. To say Bali has grown in leaps
and bounds under Ba Nkom Raymond Gwanyalla as mayor worthwhile. When he was elected
mayor of the Bali Council, there was no befitting council hall.
Today, the Bali town hall is one of the best in
the region. As mayors he has graded old roads
and opened up new ones. He has electrified villages and established water
schemes in almost all the villages that had none. The Bali market today is of
modern standards thanks to the assistance Ba Nkom Gwanyalla got from FEICOM to
build the market. Before he solicited assistance from FEICOM, the Bali market
was an eye sore as it had dilapidated. When News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
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