Fako Chiefs Conference marked by blunders

“On the 16th of July 2014 in an executive meeting of Fako Chiefs in Buea we all agreed that our Sub-Divisional Conferences of Tiko, Buea and Limbe should reorganize their executive because Muyuka had done so. The latest date for these reorganizations was 31st August, 2014.

“Thereafter, the re-organisation of the new executive for Fako can hold in Muyuka in September, 2014. “Limbe re-organised their exco on Saturday the 16th of August and Buea took their turn on the 20th of August.

“Before the re-oganisation of a group of misguided Chiefs and a Mayor in Fako organized an urgent trip to Yaounde for the 5th of August to see the prime Mnister and Minister of State property and Land Tenure.

Chief Epupa Samuel Ekum, out-going President of Fako Chiefs refused to join them to Yaounde because he was to give evidence to COAC officials on the 6th of August relative to the Fako land problem. When this clique came back from from Yaounde where they failed to achieve their aim, they decided to push the blame to the out-going President.

So they quickly manipulated you and your peers in Muyuka to call for a Fako Chiefs Conference for the 14th of August…” This is how hard certain parts of the former President of the Fako Chiefs Conference, Samuel Epupa Ekum’s letter to the Muyuka Sub-Divisional Chiefs Conference dated September 5, 2014.

Referring to himself as the outgoing President of the Fako Chiefs Conference, HRH Samuel Epupa Ekum, states in the said letter that the President and Chiefs of Muyuka Subdivision have been misled by some misguided chiefs and their Mayor to split Fako Division.

According to the letter during an enlarged executive meeting of Fako Chiefs that held in Wovia in March 2014, chifes of Muyuka were reminded to host the next Fako Chiefs Conference, “where you shall take over the battle of command (sic) from Limbe.

Ekum’s letter recalls that the reply from Muyuka was that they weren’t yet ready to host because of financial problems. That Muyuka Chiefs had not even paid in their yearly CFCA 125,000 levy for printing of the Blue Print on the Chieftaincy of Fako.

Due to the above reason, Ekum’s letter stated, the outgoing executive led the Fako Chiefs to the SWECC Conference in Kumba on May 30-31, 2014 and subsequently to the exclusive Fako Chiefs meeting in Buea, July 16, where they unanimously agreed that the Subdivisional Conferences of Tiko, Buea and Limbe should re-organise their executives, latest August 31, 2014, since Muyuka had already done so.

Limbe and Buea respected the datelines on August 16, and August 20 respectively; and the re-organisation of the new executive for Fako was therefore scheduled for September.

The Yaounde Trip Ahead of the re-organisations that had to take place within the Fako Chieftaincy, a faction of misguided Chiefs and a Mayor in Fako organised an urgent trip to Yaounde, August 5, to see the Prime Minister and Minister of State Property and Land Tenure; but the outgoing President refused to join them since he had to give evidence to CONAC Officials on August 6, relative to the Fako land crisis.

Failing to achieve their aim in Yaounde and being manipulated by their imprudent cohorts, the Muyuka Chiefs blamed their letdown on the outgoing Epupa for failing to join them and took upon themselves to organise a Fako Chiefs Conference on August 14, but were, again, met with countless errors:

According to the communiqué, the Almanac has 109 chiefdoms in Fako but not up to 40 Chiefs were in Muyuka; There are Seven Subdivisions in Fako but only a few misguided Chiefs from three Subdivisions (Muyuka, Buea and Tiko) were present; No chiefdom in Idenau Subdivision has recognised chiefs and non has a Prefectural Order, but the majority of attendee chiefs came from Idenau;

The Bonadikombo Chieftaincy is in dispute and David Esombe Nyanyowe is not from the ruling family but was imposed on the people, for the simple reason that he had given away three hectares of land to certain authorities in the Ministry of Territorial Administration, Yaounde, thus, sidelining the rightful ruling Njie family; Finally, Fako has seven Mayors, but during the Muyuka meeting there was one Mayor, prominent in all activities, making it very clear to all that he was the sponsor.

Taking into consideration the above mistakes as cited in the statement and the evident manipulation of Muyuka Chiefs by “misguided allies”, the outgoing President of the Fako Chiefs Conference, HRH Epupa Samuel Ekum, and his executive have decided that Muyuka, Buea and Tiko who formed the executive of their conference could make up the new Fako Division, while Limbe I, II, III and Idenau become another Division with a name yet to be communicated after application.

Notwithstanding, Limbe I, II, III and Idenau are still in support of “The One and Indivisible Fako Division, the letter states,” but not without the warning that :

“...you and your chiefs should take your destiny in your hands by meeting with the out-going President of Fako Chiefs Conference and agree on a date for the conference where all the Sub-Divisions that make up Fako will be invited by both of you to attend an executive that will engulf …all will be put in place in accordance with our rules and regulations.”