Fon Buh II Joseph Meh,
late fon of Esu wrote to the Governor of the North West Region explaining how
Elhadj Baba Danpoullo, the proprietor of Eba Ranch won and has kept the
confidence of Esi people. The letter which justifies the presence of Elba Ranch
in Esu is dated December 1, 1997. Here below is the letter
Fon’s Palace
Wimeh-Esu
Fungom Sub
Division
Menchum Division
Northwest
Province
1st
December 1997
The Governor
Northwest Province
Sir,
A
Declaration in Favour of Alhadji Baba Ahmadou by me, Fon Buh II Joseph Meh,
Traditional Ruler of Esu, Concerning a Protest Letter dated 24th November
1997 signed by Kum Chu Bie Chrysantus, SDF Divisional Chairman of Menchum
Division of the Northwest Province
Your Excellency,
 |
| Alhadji Baba |
I have acknowledged receipt of a copy of
a letter relating to the above captioned matter addressed to you and copied me
amongst others, and have the honour to furnish you with the following facts in
order to prevent the good name of Alhadji Baba from being soiled by a person
with little or no sound rectitude who has no farm, no house and no children in
the many schools in Esu.
By this I mean that the writer is an
experienced and uncontrollable politician who is attempting to ruin the Esu clan
by misleading the peace loving Esu people whom I have peacefully ruled for over
forty-three years without bloodshed. He is always talking about war in Esu
without knowing that if war comes, according to him it will first take away his
personal head before anybody else’s. This fellow is an empty vessel which makes
the loudest noise in Esu and causing bitterness and uneasy peace in Esu.
To the best of my knowledge, Alhadji
Baba Ahmadou is making no arrangements to plant pillars in his ranch under my
fondom. But whether he plants pillars or not, the area where he is working
belongs to him as a hard working Cameroonian who is ambitious and is interested
in the development of Esu clan. According to decree No 76.166 of 27th
April on the administration of National land, Alhadji Baba Ahmadou has all the
right to develop his land in whatever way he intends to do it.
Further still, according to the new
constitution of the Republic of Cameroon, Law No 96-06 of 18th
January 1996, Special Official Gazette of 30th January 1996, page 5, I
quote: ‘every person shall have to move
about freely. Subject to no statutory provisions concerning public law and
order, security and tranquility” unquote. Therefore, the quack politician,
namely Kum Chu Bie Chrysantus, is making fruitless and baseless protest against
the personality and Cameroonian who is blameless to all what he is making
mentioned in his protest letter.
Special note should be taken that the
grant of land to Elba Ranch of Alhadji Baba was not a secret matter, but was
done by the venerated traditional council of Esu including my personal self in
our letter dated 17-07-1987 according to an application for agriculture and
grazing land in my Fondom by Alhadji Baba dated 02/07/1986. Alhadji Baba since
then had built permanent structures in Esu which remain Esu property and will
never be possibly carried away from Esu. The broken bridge of Yemenong which
disconnected Esu with other side of Esu was single-handedly built by Alhadji
Baba Ahmadou. Those who took part in building the bridge were Esu people who
were paid arge sums of money by Alhadji Baba. How then does the SDF
Spokesperson in Menchum come out with the idea that Alhadji Baba doesn’t employ
Esu people? One of Alhadji Baba’s house in Esu was built by Mr. Wung Samson
Kum, a registered contractor who also employed Esu technicians for the
construction of the project. This is to dismiss what the SDF leader in Menchum
claims namely that Alhadji Baba does not employ Esu people to work for him. Mr,
Kum Samson is an Esu man.
The SDF Divisional chairman seems to
have forgotten that his party, the SDF advocates for non payment of taxes,
economic blockades and “Ghost Towns” just to ruin the economy of the state. The
SDF is also aginst foreign aid entering Cameroon. But the SDF Chairman in
Menchum wants Alhadji Baba Ahmadou to pay taxes in Menchum all alone.
I do not support his unpopular ideas for
the interest of justice, peace and foreplay of all my subjects. As regards the
question of planting pillars in the raffia bushes belonging to Esu people and seizing
land of farming land by Alhadji Baba raised by the SDF Chairman in Menchum, he
does not know that this matter was thrashed out in a meeting chaired by the DO
of Wum sub Division in 1987. Mr. Azeufak Gaston, some arms of the
administration, all the quarter heads of Esu, traditional councilors and
myself. Elba Ranch has come to stay while all raffia bushes along the Ranch
remain the property of the natives of Esu. (see minutes of the said meeting
which took place on 10th February 1988). Therefore, the matter
should be regarded as ended because there exist no problem between the Elba
Ranch and the owners of these raffia bushes. On the 23rd of August
1987, all the Esu people including their notables collectively received Alhadji
Baba together with all his colleagues the graziers of Esu at the fon’s palace. They
all feasted as Alhadji Baba gave them two fattened cows, food and several
crates of assorted beer. Hot drinks and large sums of money were given as gifts
to the traditional dances of Esu. Since then and over 10 years today, Alhadji
Baba has been an Esu man and sometimes in 1989 he was decorated with a
traditional robe by the Quarter Heads of Esu including a population of Esu
dancers. During this time, Alhadji Baba was given a traditional title “Ngeduwungondele”
meaning Quarter Head of Wango Ndele.
The allegation of appointing Ardos by
Alhadji Baba and the Senior Divisional Officer of Menchum Division is a blatant
lie. Allow me, Your Excellency, to inform you that the creation of Aku ardorate
in my fondom was the general wish of the Fulani population, including myself,
for the easy settlement of framer/grazier problems in our clan which we have
succeeded together with our new Ardo Alhadji Jaja Nasamu who was recently
installed by the Prefect for Menchum Division and was assisted by the DO for
Fungom Sub Division in the presence of all Fulani people who came from all the
four corners of Menchum Division. This means that it was a peaceful ceremony. The
SDF chairman for Menchum Division should be held responsible for attempting to
subvert Esu people and inciting them to cause (dangerous) problems with Alhadji
Baba whom they do not only treat as my chum, but also as a son of Esu who
intends to aid them financially for the many development projects in Esu, especially
the GSS Esu, and the Esu Gayama farm-to-market road project.
During Alhadji Baba’s last visit to Esu,
he hinted me of the arrangement at hand to provide electricity in Esu and the
grading of Weh-Esu road. The SDF party is a national party and is not property
of Mr. Kum Chu Bie Chrysantus’ father. He is doing everything to blackmail the
national chairman of the SDF Mr. John Fru Ndi. The Menchum SDF Chairman is one
of the uncivilized politician who promotes disunity between the quarters heads
of Esu and should be brought before the law to be punished for the threats of
war in Esu, and for making false allegations about the planting of pillars by
Alhadji Baba. Investigations should also be ordered by the Governor of the
Northwest Province through the Senior Divisional Officer for Menchum to find
out if there exist a Prefectoral Order relating to the planting of pillars by
the land commission in Fungom Sub Division of Menchum Division.
Lastly, Your Excellency, do everything
possible, I pray you to open an investigation regarding all the false points
raised according to decree No 78/263 of 4th April 1978 concerning
the methods of regulating and settling farmer/graziers in the Republic of
Cameroon. Since my enthronement as fon of Esu in 1954, I have never allowed
myself to be used as a tool by anybody as contained in one of the paragraphs of
the protest document by SDF Chairman of Menchum Division. I am speaking with
all the pride as a shrewd ruker. His Excellency the President of the Republic
admired my loyalty to the people of Esu and the state as a whole and decorated
me with four national honours.
Thanks, while I pray Your Excellency the
Governor of the Northwest Province to act promptly and help Esu people not to
run into dangerous problems and conflicts as contained in the protest letter by
SDF Chairman for Menchum Division.
I, remain
Yours faithfully
Fon Buh II Joseph Meh
Traditional Ruler of Esu
Cc
-
MINAT
Yaounde
-
The
Senior Divisional Officer for Menchum
-
The
Divisional Officer Fungom Sub Division
-
The
SDF National Chairman
-
The
SDF Chairman Menchum Division
-
Alhadji
Baba Ahmadou
-
The
Company Commander National Gendarmerie
The Commissioner of Special Branch WumWhen News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
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