I will Spend my Last Blood to Fight for Anglophones-Fru Ndi

By Fai Cassian Ndi

Fru Ndi addressing the crowd at Mbot Palace

The chairman of the leading opposition in Cameroon has declared that he will spend the last blood of his life to fight for the Anglophones. Ni John Fru Ndi, chairman of the Social Democratic Front-SDF made the declaration on March 10, 2014 while addressing over 5000 Wimbum people at the Mbot Palace. Ni John Fru Ndi who was at Mbot Palace, Donga Mantung to pay homage to the departed Warr Clan head and also welcome to the seated Fon Mbunwe II also used the opportunity to extend a hand of fellowship to the Southern Cameroons National Council-SCNC, arguing that the time to press Biya for Constitutional Review is Now. “We will press from all the angles” he continued. Harping on the need for constitutional review SDF National chairman said that when the SDF requested for a federal system of governance in Cameroon, Biya looked the other way round and flashed the country with decentralization which today has been unable to move a step.  According to Ni John Fru Ndi, the peace that Cameroonians have enjoyed for the past 53 years is thanks to the Anglophones given all French colonies Ivory Coast, Central African Republic, Egypt, etc, have recorded chaos. Yet he emphasized that dark clouds hang over Cameroon.

On the fiftieth anniversary celebration of reunification, SDF Chieftain lamented that what he saw in Buea was a disgrace to the dignity of those fought for the reunification of Cameroon. He said he was shocked and flabbergasted that the heroes of reunification like Amadou Ahidjo, JN Foncha, ST Muna, Endeley, JT Ndzi (citing a long list of names) were all ignored and unfortunately “nameless”. ”Not even one effigy of them was displayed during the march-pass”, he continued. Ni John also narrated a scenario how Presidential guards wanted to scan him before he could enter into the grandstand. He revealed that the Biya regime is so panicking to the point that they are even afraid of telephones. “They even asked me whether I was having a phone on me. When I say yes, they requested that I should give them. I gave and they latter gave it back. You see the regime is so shaky that they are even scared of telephones. I am not a security risk in this country”. In actual fact, SDF Chieftain in a way was telling the population that there was nothing in Buea that portrayed that Cameroonians were one nation and indivisible. He said that he even rejected the seat reserved for given that they wanted to bury him behind CERAC women. And more so, they reserved a room that was synonymous to a toilet for him to stay the night and his private secretary rejected. To cut it short, the fiftieth anniversary of reunification to him was a sham that calls for an urgent need for the Anglophone dignity to be recognized constitutionally or else he would spend the last blood of his life to fight for it.

It should be recalled that in 2011, Fru Ndi in an outburst at the Supreme after all petitions on the irregularities of that year’s Presidential elections were rejected reminded Alex Dipanda Mouelle that what was transpiring was not what was agreed in 1961.

On the September 30, 2013 local elections, SDF chairman said he felt very sorry and disappointed that in Donga Mantung some people reduced themselves to selling their consciences for 500 FCFA, 1000 FCFA and 2000 FCFA. “When somebody steals my item, I do not run after him fighting, I only sit and observed to see what he/she will do with the stolen item”. He reiterated that SDF militants should not wept over the stolen Nkambe council rather they should sit and observe at what those who stole it obnoxiously will do with it.

To the Mbot people, Fru Ndi the fon disappeared like a pupa and resurfaced back in the throne like a butterfly and he applauded them for that. He told Fon Mbunwe II that his reign should be that of plenty and prosperity. “I am admired your tradition and that is why every time I go for a cry-die I would fire my gun. It is part of our tradition and I think anyone who wants to destroy this tradition will have to destroy me first”, he hammered.

On his part Hon. Awudu Mbaya thanked the SDF chieftain for the homage paid to the people of Warr. He said that Ni John Fru Ndi has not only raised him but the entire Wimbum people given that he is Questor at the National Assembly. Hon. Awudu also thanked SDF National chairman for the fight he took for part of the ring road to be tarred. “Your Excellency, I was lucky to be present when you told President Biya that he promised tarring this road and he said he will do it. And you even questioned where he was going to get the money given that nothing was mentioned in the tarring of the ring road in the budget”. Hon. Awudu said that even though construction work has not reached Donga Mantung, the fact that the tarring is getting to Kumbo is already a great deal to the people of Donga Mantung Division. Harping on the September 30, Twin elections, he lamented how people stormed Nkambe to buy peoples’ consciences with money and how cards were printed and shared. To Hon. Awudu, the elections were a masquerade of the highest order with the complicity of elections Cameroon. This, he said could easily be detected from the conflicting figures, such as the difference in the total number of registered voters for municipal and legislative election result sheets, in polling stations with out-numbered voters etc.

Mangoh Jones Tanko, former mayor of Nkambe said that the Mbot people had long fallen in love with the SDF but during last year’s election, some people refused registering. Out of the potential 7500 voters, only about 2000 voters registered. “It means that there was something wrong going on” he insisted. He said that politics has made people to be so hopeless that they went as far as buying votes.

HRH Fon Mbunwe was disturbed at the manner at which traditional rulers have entered into partisan politics.

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Meet Nigeria's First Female Billionaire, Folorunsho Alakija

Folorunsho Alakija

Nigeria's first female billionaire, Folorunsho Alakija built her fortune on fashion and oil. She began her career in the 1970s as a secretary in a Nigerian bank before she quit to study fashion design in England. After returning to Nigeria she founded Supreme Stitches, a fashion label that catered to the country's high society women. Her biggest patron was Maryam Babangida, wife to Nigeria's notorious former military president. She reportedly leveraged that relationship to get a lucrative oil prospecting license, which went onto become OML 127. One of Nigeria's most prolific oil blocks, it produces as much as 200,000 barrels per day. Famfa Oil, which Alakija controls, owns a 60% stake in the asset. At 63, Flolrunsho Alakija is happily married and mother of four. Her fortune is estimate at $2.5. She is a model that all African young girls look up to for inspiration.

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Women in Action: Meet Money Making Women of 2014

Courtesy Forbe

It was a record-breaking year for women on the FORBES list of the World Billionaires. Out of 1,645 billionaires, a record 172 are women – up from 138 last year. There’s no denying that women are still a tiny minority on the list, representing a little over 10% of the total.

At the top, Christy Walton reclaims her spot as the richest woman with a $36.7 billion fortune. The widow of John Walton has had that title for four out of the last five years. She has boosted her fortune above the rest of the Walton family members through her ownership of First Solar shares. That stock rose nearly 50% in the past year.

Back in second place after a year at the top: Liliane Bettencourt, worth $34.5 billion. The L’Oreal heiress remains France’s richest person. Her fortune increased this year thanks to the company’s stock surging. She is 91, and it’s been years since she’s been involved in running the company.

The third richest woman is another Walton family member – Alice Walton($34.3 billion). The daughter of visionary retailer Sam Walton is Christy’s sister-in-law. She opened her Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas in 2011. It features works from her personal collection.

Notably, of the 268 newcomers to the ranks, 42 are women. However, only five of them built their own fortunes as opposed to inheriting them from their parents or husbands. These five remarkable women include Sheryl Sandberg($1.05 billion), who leaned into a COO position at Facebook and 12 million or so shares in the company. With the social networking firm’s share price up more than 130% in the past 12 months, she is now one of the world’s youngest self-made women billionaires.

The other newcomer self-made billionaire women include Folorunsho Alakija($2.5 billion), Nigeria’s first female billionaire, whose Famfa Oil owns a prolific oil bloc. There’s UK’s Denise Coates ($1.6 billion), the co-CEO and largest shareholder of online gambling site Bet365; Liu Xiaomeng ($1 billion), who holds a stake in the Suning Appliance Group, which in turn owns 14% of Suning Commerce Group, China’s largest appliance retailer; and Wang Laichun ($1 billion) Chairman of Shenzhen Luxshare Precision Industry Co., Ltd.

Newcomers that came to their fortunes through an inheritance include Sandra Mera Ortega, daughter of the late billionaire Rosalia Mera. Mera, along with then husband and now third-richest person in the world, founded clothing giant Inditex (best known for its Zara brand).

Finally, in a case involving a very loyal daughter, this year’s youngest billionaire is a woman. Perenna Kei, at only 24 years old, is the controlling owner of Chinese real estate giant Logan Properties. Kei is the daughter of Logan’s chairman and CEO, Ji Haipeng. Company documents indicate that she is the majority shareholder, the settler of the trust and acts “in accordance with Mr. Ji’s directions.” The company went public in December 2013 and its stock rose 2.4% on the first day of trading, making Kei a billionaire.

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Women in Action: Meet Colonel Nga Rose Angeline; First Female Military Colonel

By Fai Cassian Ndi

Colonel Nga Rose Angeline

Colonel Nga Rose Angeline is the deputy Director at the military in Younde and the first woman in the military to attain the rank of Colonel in the Cameroon army. It was in January 2001 that Nga Rose Angeline entered the book of honours as a military officer thanks to her hard work and strength of mind. Though trained as a medical Doctor at CUSS, Nga Rose Angeline against all the odd, decided to jump above the masculine artificial barriers to make a jumpstart career in the military. She was one of the two first female candidates who in 1985 passed the entrance into the Military Academy-EMIA. Apparently, she entered EMIA with the mission to make the difference and to stand out when even most people (women) seem to blend in. While at EMIA, she proved to be an all weather woman given that upon graduation she was among the first three. From all indications, Colonel Nga Rose Angeline is the rare breed that if you teach her how to fly a plane today and the next day she will make a round trip around the world. Obviously, it is her multi-talented of always making the difference that makes her a role model in the military.

As pediatric in the military, Colonel Nga Rose Angeline has proven beyond reasonable doubts that her success story, hard work, and attachment to do just what is right is linked to her humble up bringing and her unshakable belief in the Words of God. From Garoua to Yaounde where she served in various capacities, she had always tell her patients, friends and colleagues that come for the treatment of their kids that, man, no matter how rich or poor, big or small is the same in the eyes of God. Based on this physically powerful and entrenched belief of hers, she has been nick named “Iron Lady”. Yet, coming closer to Colonel Nga Rose is to make a new discovery of an army officer who is humble, down to earth and accommodative. In the opinion of a wider public, she is level-headed and a soft spoken God fearing woman. What has made her to emerge from the madding crowd is her ability to resist to enticement and her humanitarian but austere application of chain of command. Conversely, Colonel Nga Rose is the major source of hope to hundreds irrespective of tribe and region of origin. In the Northern Region where she was covering three regions, she left an indelible mark of greatness. It makes sense to indicate that beside offering unmatched selfless service to her dear fatherland, Colonel Nga Rose may not know the high esteem in which the underprivileged and the younger generation hold her. Young girls continue to look at her with a lot of admiration and many have often expressed the desire to be like her in the future.  

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

FBI Begins Probe into Money Laundary, Cameroon Embassy, UN Mission Implicated

 Courtesy cameroonjournal.com

In an investigation that may implicate the Cameroon Embassy in Washington DC, and most certainly the Cameroon Mission at the UN in New York, it is aired that the FBI is currently investigating some two bank accounts which until recently, were operated by the Cameroon Diplomatic Mission in New York city.

Our informant said the investigation may not be unconnected to the DC healthcare fraud that was recently uncovered by the FBI. If it is the case, the last may not have been heard yet about the ring of facilitators at the center of the fraud.

On February 24th, the FBI, shutdown two bank accounts used for money laundering in the city of NewYork.

The accounts belonged to the Cameroon UN Diplomatic Mission, and the kingpins behind them are allegedly Francois Ngoudene and Kinge Monono.

Both Ngoudene and Monono happen to be the Finance Comptrollers at the Cameroon Embassy in DC, and the Cameroon UN Mission in NY, respectively.

In a phone interview with an FBI official in NY, he will not deny nor confirm that bank accounts were closed and an investigation going on. “How did you hear about it?” The FBI official asked. Given the answer, we pressed on him as to whether some bank accounts belonging to the Cameroon Mission were shutdown.

He answered; “We’re not commenting on any case that is not yet in the public domain by means of a press release.” He said.  Did your office make such closings? The reporter asked. “I will not say yes or no.” He said.

The accounts were closed, we learned, as the FBI continues investigations into the whereabouts of the looted money that the fraudsters stole from the DC healthcare system. The accounts were being used for money laundering. We gathered equally that a Cameroon Embassy bank account in Washington DC was recently shutdown by the FBI in connection with questionable financial transactions.

Unconfirmed sources say the DC healthcare fraudsters were conniving with the diplomatic mission to use its immunity status to hide their loot. However, the investigating office of the healthcare fraud in DC, told the Cameroon Journal that they’re not aware of any connection between the events in NY with the arrests in DC. Andrew Ames, FBI agent, told the Journal that NY and DC offices carry out separate investigations and would not confirm if the developments in NY had anything to do with the arrests in DC.

It will be recalled that a few years ago in a report published by Ndongo Efemba Carlson, who was former chief of Embassy Security in DC, he implicated former ambassador, Jerome Mendouga, and it earned the ambassador a ten-year jail sentence in Cameroon. Ngoudene was mentioned in the report as a money-laundering  kingpin in the US. However, while the ambassador serves jail, nothing happened to Ngoudene because of his alleged connections in the presidency( for complete story go to : www.cameroonjournal.com )

In an investigation that may implicate the Cameroon Embassy in Washington DC, and most certainly the Cameroon Mission at the UN in New York, the Cameroon Journal has reliably gathered that the FBI is currently investigating some two bank accounts which until recently, were operated by the Cameroon Diplomatic Mission in New York city.

Our informant said the investigation may not be unconnected to the DC healthcare fraud that was recently uncovered by the FBI. If it is the case, the last may not have been heard yet about the ring of facilitators at the center of the fraud.

On February 24th, the FBI, the Journal has learned, shutdown two bank accounts used for money laundering in the city of NewYork.

The accounts belonged to the Cameroon UN Diplomatic Mission, and the kingpins behind them are one Francois Ngoudene and Kinge Monono.

Both Ngoudene and Monono happen to be the Finance Comptrollers at the Cameroon Embassy in DC, and the Cameroon UN Mission in NY, respectively.

In a phone interview with an FBI official in NY, he will not deny nor confirm that bank accounts were closed and an investigation going on. “How did you hear about it?” The FBI official asked. Given the answer, we pressed on him as to whether some bank accounts belonging to the Cameroon Mission were shutdown.

He answered; “We’re not commenting on any case that is not yet in the public domain by means of a press release.” He said.  Did your office make such closings? The reporter asked. “I will not say yes or no.” He said.

The accounts were closed, we learned, as the FBI continues investigations into the whereabouts of the looted money that the fraudsters stole from the DC healthcare system. The accounts were being used for money laundering. We gathered equally that a Cameroon Embassy bank account in Washington DC was recently shutdown by the FBI in connection with questionable financial transactions.

Unconfirmed sources say the DC healthcare fraudsters were conniving with the diplomatic mission to use its immunity status to hide their loot. However, the investigating office of the healthcare fraud in DC, told the Cameroon Journal that they’re not aware of any connection between the events in NY with the arrests in DC. Andrew Ames, FBI agent, told the Journal that NY and DC offices carry out separate investigations and would not confirm if the developments in NY had anything to do with the arrests in DC.

It will be recalled that a few years ago in a report published by Ndongo Efemba Carlson, who was former chief of Embassy Security in DC, he implicated former ambassador, Jerome Mendouga, and it earned the ambassador a ten-year jail sentence in Cameroon. Ngoudene was mentioned in the report as a money-laundering  kingpin in the US. However, while the ambassador serves jail, nothing happened to Ngoudene because of his alleged connections in the presidency, particularly to the first lady, Chantal Biya.

Ngoudene is said to own three story buildings in Yaoounde in his wife’s name. His wife lives in the US and doesn’t work, and her sources of income for the buildings remain questionable. Ngoudene is also alleged to have once forgotten a $50,000 Rolex watch in a plane until a hostess had to come from behind to return it to him.

In  a related story, the CJ has also gathered, though unconfirmed, that some Cameroonians in the DC metro area who were not arrested but feel that they’re under investigation are escaping across the borders into Canada. 

This is coming under the hills of a bail refusal last Friday to Kinsley Banyi, indicted for defrauding the DC healthcare system through his employment agency with close to $500,000.00.

The bail hearing came up in the DC district court.  His bail was  set at $50,000,00.

The Journal gathered that his family, both in the US and abroad did raise the amount. However, a female family representative who was in court to bail him was turned down upon discovery of a criminal history in her background.

It was discovered that she had committed a felony after she gave her papers to somebody else to use for employment.

- See more at: http://cameroonjournal.com/page511.html#sthash.m9NECId1.UNExRPkN.dpuf

In an investigation that may implicate the Cameroon Embassy in Washington DC, and most certainly the Cameroon Mission at the UN in New York, the Cameroon Journal has reliably gathered that the FBI is currently investigating some two bank accounts which until recently, were operated by the Cameroon Diplomatic Mission in New York city.

Our informant said the investigation may not be unconnected to the DC healthcare fraud that was recently uncovered by the FBI. If it is the case, the last may not have been heard yet about the ring of facilitators at the center of the fraud.

On February 24th, the FBI, the Journal has learned, shutdown two bank accounts used for money laundering in the city of NewYork.

The accounts belonged to the Cameroon UN Diplomatic Mission, and the kingpins behind them are one Francois Ngoudene and Kinge Monono.

Both Ngoudene and Monono happen to be the Finance Comptrollers at the Cameroon Embassy in DC, and the Cameroon UN Mission in NY, respectively.

In a phone interview with an FBI official in NY, he will not deny nor confirm that bank accounts were closed and an investigation going on. “How did you hear about it?” The FBI official asked. Given the answer, we pressed on him as to whether some bank accounts belonging to the Cameroon Mission were shutdown.

He answered; “We’re not commenting on any case that is not yet in the public domain by means of a press release.” He said.  Did your office make such closings? The reporter asked. “I will not say yes or no.” He said.

The accounts were closed, we learned, as the FBI continues investigations into the whereabouts of the looted money that the fraudsters stole from the DC healthcare system. The accounts were being used for money laundering. We gathered equally that a Cameroon Embassy bank account in Washington DC was recently shutdown by the FBI in connection with questionable financial transactions.

Unconfirmed sources say the DC healthcare fraudsters were conniving with the diplomatic mission to use its immunity status to hide their loot. However, the investigating office of the healthcare fraud in DC, told the Cameroon Journal that they’re not aware of any connection between the events in NY with the arrests in DC. Andrew Ames, FBI agent, told the Journal that NY and DC offices carry out separate investigations and would not confirm if the developments in NY had anything to do with the arrests in DC.

It will be recalled that a few years ago in a report published by Ndongo Efemba Carlson, who was former chief of Embassy Security in DC, he implicated former ambassador, Jerome Mendouga, and it earned the ambassador a ten-year jail sentence in Cameroon. Ngoudene was mentioned in the report as a money-laundering  kingpin in the US. However, while the ambassador serves jail, nothing happened to Ngoudene because of his alleged connections in the presidency, particularly to the first lady, Chantal Biya.

Ngoudene is said to own three story buildings in Yaoounde in his wife’s name. His wife lives in the US and doesn’t work, and her sources of income for the buildings remain questionable. Ngoudene is also alleged to have once forgotten a $50,000 Rolex watch in a plane until a hostess had to come from behind to return it to him.

In  a related story, the CJ has also gathered, though unconfirmed, that some Cameroonians in the DC metro area who were not arrested but feel that they’re under investigation are escaping across the borders into Canada. 

This is coming under the hills of a bail refusal last Friday to Kinsley Banyi, indicted for defrauding the DC healthcare system through his employment agency with close to $500,000.00.

The bail hearing came up in the DC district court.  His bail was  set at $50,000,00.

The Journal gathered that his family, both in the US and abroad did raise the amount. However, a female family representative who was in court to bail him was turned down upon discovery of a criminal history in her background.

It was discovered that she had committed a felony after she gave her papers to somebody else to use for employment.

- See more at: http://cameroonjournal.com/page511.html#sthash.m9NECId1.UNExRPkN.dpuf

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Women in Action: Meet Florence Njimptoh; The Astute Rural Woman

By Fai Cassian Ndi

Florence Njimptoh

Florence Njimptoh is a farmer based in Binka village in Donga Mantung Division of the North West Region of Cameroon. What makes Florence Njimptoh to stand out of the madding crowd of rural women is her philosophy to life and work. At her young age, she grows up with the notion that stumbling blocks in life are stepping stones to go to higher heights. And when she finally engaged in farming as a fervent profession, her thoughts were govern by the notion that anything that is worth doing should be done well or not done at all. As a crop farmer, suddenly became a perfectionist that set standards even for herself. In fact she is a farmer that has proven her worth in piloting many innovative programmes. Apparently, Florence Njimptoh has the ardor of a bee and the power of a stallion when it comes to accomplishing a job. It is not for nothing that in the year 2000, she was recognized as the Millennium Farmer of Donga Mantung Division. From 2000 to 2013, Madame Florence Njimptoh won 8 different prizes both at the Regional, Divisional and Sub Divisional levels thanks to her farm produce. Part from cultivating 7ha of beans every year, she also does market gardening. In 2011, she was the only farmer in the Division who was chosen to produce new variety of beans. She emerged first in the North West Region in the best farm competition and in 2013 she was voted by readers of The Eye Newspaper as Donga Mantung Best Crop Farmer.

Give some people a tree to plant and it will never grow, but with Florence Njimptoh the story is always different. The truism in her success is first the passion for farming and secondly she of that group that could easily grow maize on sand. “Farming is my only source of income and from my harvest I have been able to send my kids to the best schools” she says. Although not born in misery, Florence Njimptoh was not born in wealth. What she has today is the result of hard work and determination.

To her, farming is a worthwhile business that never fails. “I have gone places because of my farm and I think those who say that farming is a profession for the poor are on the wrong side of history. It is the backbone of our economy and I am happy as a farmer”.  She benefitted a lot of training from Non Governmental Organization and travelled widely too thanks to her farm work. Apart from working on her farm, she is the leader of the largest women group in Donga Mantung Division with about 2000 women. Today she is not just a farm manager but a resource person to extension services. Whatever crop she cultivates, she remains a teacher to other farmers. To know Florence Njimptoh is to have a cue of the acts of those who are propel by the passion to sustainable action. When two are gathered to talk about sustainable development in the Nkambe Central Sub Division, count her the third person.

With over 25 years receiving and attending training workshops on leadership skills, Madame Florence Njimptoh is certified as a dynamic leader with respect and confirmed assiduous in her duties. Ncham George, the Divisional Delegate for Agriculture and Rural Development described her as a “leader of leaders”. While Gregory Muluh, the Coordinator of the Grassfeild Participatory and Decentralized Rural Development Project-GP DERUDEP says Florence Njimptoh is an elite farmers and a model that would spur others to enter farming as a business. If she is a household name today, it is due to the ceaseless gusto she has for hard work, innovation and the fact that she seeks to accomplish any task to the fullest. At this time of the year that much is being said about the woman, Florence Njimptoh is one whose achievements should never be ignore. She is worth a woman to celebrate this week. 

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Women in Action: Meet Regina Mundi; The Career Politician

By FC Ndi

Regina Mundi

Regina Mundi is the lone female Member of the Politbureau of the ruling CPDM from the North West Region of Cameroon and an alternate senator. The fact that she is a Member of the Polibureau of the CPDM is a clear testimony that determination and devotion are the corner stone to success. As a matter of truth, she is a stanch militant whose continues preaching about the goodies of the CPDM and its chairman Paul Biya has changed the political landscape in the North West Region. While there are CPDM militants who are SDF lackeys at night and CPDM during the day, Ma Mundi as she is commonly known is CPDM for 24 hours on 24, 7 days of the week and 12 months in the year. Her commitment to President Biya’s political ideologies and the CPDM is not sheer fanaticism. It is for this reason that during the 50^th anniversary of the Armed Forces in Bamenda, Regina Mundi was catapulted and recognized. She was decorated by the Head of State President Paul Biya. This graduate of Trinity College-USA has entered history books in varied names, such as the first female to be appointed cultural and social affairs adviser to the then Governor of the North West Province. She was the first woman to occupy the position of secretary in the then CNU party and it was through her efforts that she created the first women group in Mezam. Politically, she has risen from a central committee member to polibureau member.  

While many CPDM militants only pay lip service to the ruling party and its national chairman, Ma Mundi has remained CPDM from the day of its insertion to date. In the early 90s when Bamenda was likened to Bagdad, Ma Mundi was the only female politician who could publicly identify herself as a militant of the CPDM. Even when her house was destroyed against the backdrop of post-electoral violence, she was still committed to the ideals of the CPDM. What is interesting about politics in the North West Region of Cameroon is the fact that there are many people with different political views; yet, Regina Mundi has stood the taste of time as the most convincing female politician. Ever since she entered into active politics, she had never told a lie. In fact she is widely appreciated as a rare specie of politician that is very hard to come-by nowadays. She has always told the population whenever she has the opportunity to make a statement that even though some people may sympathize with the opposition; they know that the opposition has nothing to offer. Being a female politician in the fief of the leading opposition in Cameroon was an uphill task that she gradually transformed into assets. If you have never met a convincing politician, meet her in the field and you will agree with me that she has the God given charm that attracts people

Like someone once said, a single vote for the CPDM in the Northwest Region is worth a thousand votes down the center region, that is why she never gave up until the CPDM was able to win some councils and Parliamentary seats. She once told this reporter that real change is coming and the moment has come for her to celebrate that transformation. Politics is a game of interest, “you scratch my back, I scratch your back, because politics na njangi” says Rt. Hon. Senator Achidi Achu former Prime Minister. This statement of Rt. Hon. Senator Achidi Achu is so realistic that nobody in his/her right senses can discard it. When the SDF was launched in 1990 nobody saw this definition and its relevance. Today, the scales have fallen off the eyes of many Northwesteners. Ma Mundi is one of those realistic individuals and a permanent pillar on which President Paul Biya and the CPDM party has continuously leaned on in the North West Region. Ma Mundi is therefore a career politician

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Women in Action: Meet Nkenda Margreta; The Award Winning Farmer

Margreta Nkenda in a pic with her husband & the Mayor of Nkambe

From a very humble start, Nkenda Margreta is today a household name when it comes to the cultivation and processing of red palm oil. Her dexterity in the sector has earned her numerous awards and recognition. In 2011, Nkenda Margreta won the first prize palm oil at the Ebolowa National Agro-pastoral show. The fact that she competed and won the prize wasn’t by error but the fruit of her hard work and determination. This distinction at the National Agro Pastoral Show also placed her on the ladder of fame as she was voted Donga Mantung Woman of the Year by readers of The Eye newspaper, Best Farmer by listeners of Savannah Radio Nkambe and again Best All Round Farmer by readers of the Watchdog Tribune. It is thanks to Nkenda Margreta that the CDC Oil Palm Expansion programme developed interest in Donga Mantung Division. By winning the national first prize in palm oil, she created the needed awareness that Donga Mantung Division has suitable climatic conditions for the cultivation of oil palms. Meet her in her plantation and you will be filled by the gulp of having met a professional farmer. To her farming is not just a profession but a calling.

However, what makes her different is that she is a very hard working woman and besides being a house wife, she moved above men established artificial barriers to create an oil palm plantation. In Misaje where she hails, women hardly own plantations but she has not only defeated that notion. She is a practical example of the long established slogan that “what a man can do, a woman can do it better”. With over 10 ha of oil palms, Nkenda Margreta says her dream is to expand her plantation to about 25 hectares. What is however very interesting is that she has a very good knowledge on local processing techniques. Anybody who has had the opportunity to come closer to Madame Nkenda Margreta would agree with me that she is a professional farmer given that she envies nothing from those who work in offices, “my office is my farm”, and she once told this reporter.  

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Women in Action: Meet Senator Eno Emma Lafon; The Symbiotic Politician

By Fai Cassian Ndi

Senator Eno Emma Lafon

Senator Eno Emma Lafon hails from Bui Division in the North West Region. Before she was elected Senator, she was the Director of Scholarization and Scholarships in the Ministry of Higher Education. Indirectly, many universities were under her. Her rise to fame in the field of politics can easily be justified by the statement that life is a journey. In fact, John Bungam’s pilgrim progress is a classical expression of this truth that clearly portrays her as a political genius. To start with, she is a multi talented woman and describing her as a genius is to use one of the weakest dictions to illustrate a genius. Ema Lafon is smart and has the political thoroughness that is hard to come by.  Anyone who comes across her for the first time is attracted by her cultured manners which have made her a career politician. 

She is always exceptional everywhere she goes. She started her political progress in the CPDM party where she is a Member of the Central Committee of the CPDM and holds the position of WCPDM national Secretary. Pregnant with political maturity and strategies, her desire to express her political ideas freely and pragmatically made her to move to senate on CPDM ticket.  It is that mastery in grassroot politics and doing little things that matter in a common way that has raised her to be cherished by all and sundry in Bui Division. The fact that she flushed the much talked about mayor of Kumbo council Njong Donatus was not by error. 

While she has been transforming lives while Director of Scholarization and Scholarships, and doing the same like Mother Teresa, Senator Ema Lafon Eno is also an advocate the girl child. She has always been apt to stand up against people in society that keep others in abject poverty for the sake of a few who have wealth and power. To her, the door of success only opens those who value hard work. Senator Ema Lafon is on record for having paid for the reinstating of public taps in Kumbo, regrettable, the SDF took it as a challenge to the point that today, Kumbo is again without public taps. And above all, she is also noted to have offered computers to the catholic church. To sum it all, there is no village in Bui that can raise a finger that the villagers have not benefited from her largess. With a professional career that spans over 30 years within the higher education sector, Senator Emma Lafon is accredited as a dynamic staff with respect for hierarchy and proven diligence in her duties. It was against this background that Dr. Gabsa Wilfred from the Ministry of Higher Education during her homecoming described her as “Good Substance” for the Senate. Many have found in her, a blessing to Bui Division given that her rich professional career will certainly benefit the Bui community and Cameroon in general. She is therefore a woman to celebration at this point that much is being said about women who have succeeded extraordinarily. 

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

List of Personalities Banned by Charles Ateba Eyene at his Burial Out

Ateba Eyene : The man who lived to the dictates of his conscience

According to a French newspaper "Le Soir" Pr Messanga Nyamding who promised to publish the list of personalities that Charles Ateba Eyene declared non-grata at his burial knew too much of the life of Charles Ateba Eyene, which would have almost said all current and futuristic misfortunes. Charles Ateba Eyene of regretted memory it should be noted had accustomed Cameroonians to prophetic visions. In this respect, allegations abound that he did not want his nuclear family to organize his funeral reasons why Charles Ateba Eyene has left his home and funeral to Professor Messanga Nyamding. A week ago, Prof. Massanga threatened that he was going to make public the list of personalities Ateba Eyene before passing on told him that they should participate in his funeral from far or near. According to "Le Soir" the personalities are:-

an Fabien Monkam 

- Jean Nkuété 

- Grégoire Owona 

- Moukoko Mbonjo 

- Madeleine Tchuinté 

- Elise Mballa 

- Ama Tutu Muna 

- Simon Meyanga 

- Laurent Esso 

- Odile Ngaska 

- Thierry Ngongang

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Extraordinary Woman: Meet Ama Tutu Muna; Minister with Extra Abilities

The Ministry of Arts and Culture headed by Mafor Ama Tutu Muna is one of the ministries in Cameroon

Mafor Ama Tutu Muna

where women have been given the opportunity to put into practice their contribution to nation building. As Minister, Ama Tutu Muna has shown that women also have the knack to innovative ideas. Ever since this daughter of the great statesman, late Solomon Tandeng Muna became the Minister of Arts and Culture, the ever first woman to lead that Ministry, she has become a symbol of the Anglophone woman in Cameroon. Upon her appointment Ama Tutu has not only dismantled the male barriers constructed round that Ministry but has more importantly handed some key positions to women. Another key innovation has been the transfer of authority from the tortuous and rugged CMC to SOCAM. Since her appointment, Ama Tutu Muna had helped a great deal in transforming President Biya’s policy of greater ambitions to greater achievements and now realizations. Even though a cabinet minister, Ama Tutu remains approachable. She talks and acts with untiring sociability with the staff of the ministry.

Yet, it is this quality which immensely complements her multifarious roles. That she now occupies that seat of culture Minister is not fortuitous. Before her appointment as Minister of  Arts and Culture, she had already learned to cope with the cultural demands of such positions. Hard work and efficiency have continued to be the qualities that define her. When you call at her office, you are taken to a waiting room where you need to be patient as she is on an important or some of those critical files that demands a lot of concentration. Take it as arrogance and you are right for this is positive arrogance that enables that job for which she was appointed to be done effectively. It is this positive arrogance that always determines the quality of ideas and projects that comes out of that ministry and which tells you that she is not a woman who takes task lightly.

Notwithstanding, she has the drive and dedication that defies any facile explanations. Born into a politician’s family, Mafor Ama Tutu Muna was brought up in close knit family where as the only girl she was never allowed to idle while others work. In later life she could not escape to be a workaholic or become a politician par excellence reasons why she formed the Abi Fall Sub Section of the CPDM and is continuing from where the father left with a lot of dexterity. Mafor Ama Tutu is also on record to have initiated the Mbengwi Women Cooperative to combat the plight of the rural woman and besides, she is also the brain behind the creation North West Women’s Forum-NOWEF. Seemingly she has just started her career as a politician. 

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Extraordinary Woman: Meet Juliette Schlegl Fotsing; A Mark Departure from the Madding Crowd

Juliette Schlegl Fotsing

At this point in time that women are celebrating, the history of women that have done and continue to do extraordinary things would remain uncompleted if the name Juliette Schegl Fotsing is not written in gold. Like Rudyard Kipling, who once said that “if you can keep your head when all around you are losing theirs and if you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat the two the same, yours is earth and everything that is in it”, Juliette is a mark of deparure from the madding crowd. In fact there is no doubt that Rudyard Kipling had this inspiration from the obstacles and barriers we often crush to get to prominence especially in a masculine dominated world. In our contemporary society this statement could only be referred to one person, Juliette Schlegl Fotsing.

What is important about this young and talented female writer is that she is innovative, down to earth and fertile in expedients. She falls within the ranks of the new breed of young women born with extra abilities to surmount all sorts of barrier to emerge successful. If we go by Albert Einstein who declared that genius is 1/10 inspiration and 9/10 perspiration, Juliette Schlegl Fotsing is a genius. This means that for somebody to be termed a genius that person must be a workaholic. In this light, Juliette Schlegl Fotsing merits to be mentioned first among women celebrities if not the story of women who young girl look up to as role models will remain unfinished. What is so interesting about Juliette Schlegl Fotsing is that she has extraordinary things in a very common way.  

Yet, it is this quality which immensely complements her multifarious roles as a writer, journalist and marketer. This ex-student of Government Bilingual High School Bamenda marked her departure from the madding crowd with her Novel “Timshall”.  As a woman she has shown proof of being a systematically thought out of the box.

Worthy to note that apart from the fact that she distinguishes herself through hard work, she is also blended with the God-given knack that she speaks fluently several languages: French, Spanish, French and German. Her intellectual background is an asset. Knowing that everything in the world is purchased by labour, Fotsing put herself to education and learning that would make her useful in the field of work. And being a God fearing person, her inspiration has often come from Genesis 1:28 which states that: “replenish and subdue it”.  It is therefore a noble sentiment that she has not only replenished the earth but has been subduing it through her work.

Her Book “Timshall”

“Timshall” is written in the most refined style and tells the story of a young woman in search of “greener pastures”. In “Timshall” she portrays her language power. In fact she writes with superb descriptive power, especially in the scenes where her character’s aloneness and the world’s indifference come together to create the most reflective passages.  In her early life, her education, her search for a job, and on to her career, there runs the psychological scar that seems to her more birth right than accidental set of circumstances – made by the serrations of history and destiny. 

“Thus, her career or path in life is described in the subtitle A Saw-Toothed Career.  Readers, though, can readily accept what the author says – it is truthful, a very intelligent and moving reading of a problematic world – and it is said in the spirit of a life-giver successfully transmuting the base elements into spiritual fullness.”

On her website, she states that “If she had chosen any other path in her pain filled life, would she have demons running after her in the process of surviving and making a life?”  What is very plain to see despite the fact of the character’s inherited problems as a Cameroonian and later issues of assimilation in Europe, is that her life has been based upon a moral foundation, a remarkably, even stunningly strong one. Thus, the Steinbeck imperative works as a perfect influence, the philosophical vehicle running throughout this book.

If you have never had the opportunity to read an inspirational work that tells the inside story of the life outside your four walls of the house, “Timshall” would not only be motivational but instrumental for your understanding of life. Through this book, Fotsing believes like Immanuel Kant that “the more we are busy, the more we feel we are alive and contributing to the welfare of others”. Her educational background coupled with her devotion to be perfect has made her to transform the principle of education for work into the principle of education through work. This is one of the key notes that make “Timshall” a great work of art. As a Christian, she believes like Martin Luther King that “working is praying”. One prelate once said that every human natured person is made up of the human and the divine and that when the divine overrides, the human one becomes closer to God. Yet, Fotsing goes beyond that by making work the divine with the human as a pairs. Juliette Schlegl Fotsing’s book goes deep into the life of a young girl born to a poor family given that she was barely six months when she was separated from her mother due to a familial traditional conflict. Her paternal grandmother who believed in Jesus Christ wanted her to grow up far away from her maternal family and their paganism. Was it a good thing?  She describes not only her youth in Africa in the context of such a very poor family and typically widened which colonialism has marked and modified the quintessense even of their daily natural existence but always tells us how she deals with her life in terms of her search for stability since she arrived in Europe.  The imperative “may you” is a golden rule of her book.

A Must Read Book…..

An autobiographical novel by Juliette Schlegl Fotsing, Timshall follows a problem-filled, often lonely life of a strong woman from Cameroon to Europe.  It is narrated by the author’s alter ego, marked by a depth of experience and insight cast in the brilliant forges of creative inspiration. The cover artwork design done by Fotsing herself for the book derives from a monument called “Woman Water Carrier” located at Rostock Zoo in Germany that shows a West African woman symbolising the river of life, the joy and gladness for the entire world. She has the power to tackle any difficulties by struggling daily in body and soul for the survival of the family and bringing them life even though she is isolated from the rest of the world.

For more info http://www.julietteschleglfotsing.com

\When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa

Extraordinary Woman: Sally Gentry; The Emblematic Philanthropist

By Ndi Cherrylane M
In live, there are two categories of people, those who think about themselves and their families and those who will have sleepless nights thinking only on how to impact the livelihood in the entire community and beyond. Sally Gentry falls in the second category.

Sally Gentry flanked by Dr. Fuh Calistus during distribution of scholarship

If the Fuh Calistus Scholarship fund is breaking grounds in Donga Mantung Division, it is thanks to Sally Gentry. This is so because she has never failed to make an emblematic gesture every time she meets those in need. In 2012, she started by mobilizing Misaje women based in Yaounde and raised funds to acquire benches, textbooks, and other didactic materials which were donated to schools. Breed in a purely Christian political background, Sally Gentry sees philanthropy as the art of being serviceable to the community as virtue that should be passed on to generations to come. Early in 2013, Sally Gentry took the Christian Community of Misaje sub Division aback when she donated tons of religious books including Bibles to all the denominations. Like Mother Teresa, she looks beyond the common boundaries to make a significant contribution towards changing lives. Her devotion to support the promotion of the education of the girl child is being applauded. This is also where she has proven her dexterousness. Time and again, she makes significant contributions to the Ako Misaje Scholarship Fund which is promoted by Minister Fuh Calistus. She makes sure that she personally present to encourage beneficiaries of the scheme especially girls.
And being a God fearing person, her inspiration has often come from Genesis 1:28 which states that: “replenish and subdue it”.  It is therefore a noble sentiment that she has not only replenished the earth but has been subduing it.
While others in her position will certainly wear arrogance and snobbishness, she remains down to earth and accommodative. And shel goes beyond what she does for others  to make work the divine with humanity as she believes God makes Himself in all the things. Her successful departure from the madding crowd is what has earned her an award as Donga Mantung Women of the Year. She is therefore one of those celebrity wives of the Division that everyone young girl continue to admire as a role model. If all the women were doing same, life would have been different in rural areas reasons why she deserves to be congratulated.  In life there are three categories of people, those who make things happen, those who observe things happen and those who comment on the way things are happening. However, a right person falls within the rank of those who make things happen, this is where Sally Gentry finds herself. Beyond donating fertilizers and other farm inputs which has become a tradition at every farming season, she also last November distributed water drinking basins to every household in Misaje town. 

There is a common saying that beside successful man is a found a  powerful woman. Sally Gentry is more compounded by the fact that her desire to extend a hand of fellowship to the needy goes beyond the kitchen. Reasons being that she has a soft-spot for development.  She is the kind of woman that thinks globally and acts globally. Welcome Sally Gentry who is a mark departure from the madding crowd because she thinks globally and act locally. As a woman she has shown proof of being an out of box systematic thinker.

When News Breaks Out, We Break In. Minute by Minute Report on Cameroon and Africa