Activist granted FCFA 1.2-million bail over Herakles case

Environmental activist, Nasako Besingi, has been granted FCFA 1.2million bail. Nasako was slammed a jail sentence following a Mundemba Magistrate Court ruling, November 3, 2015.

The Court had condemned him to either pay fines which he aggregated at close to FCFA 15 million or serve a prison term of between one to three years.

According to the Court ruling, the activist published false reports on the Herakles Farms project in Ndian and Kupe-Muanenguba Divisions, Southwest Region.

Nasako told The Post recently that his position on the environment remains unchanged. He said he was going to appeal the Court ruling. Days after the bail, Nasako again appeared before the Magistrate Court in yet another case involving him and five others against Herakles Farms.

Nasako and the co-accused were charged with circulating anti-Herakles tracts in Mundemba. Following the postponement of the second case, the activist said he was considering seeking an audience with the Minister of Justice, Lauren Esso.

He said the multiple Court cases between him and the New York-based company was taking longer than expected. Nasako was, however, cautious, stating that the consent of his counsel on the way forward concerning the legal battles was still to be made public.

Nasako’s NGO, Struggle to Economise Future Environment, SEFE, carried out mass campaigns against Herakles, claiming that it was going to affect biodiversity.

Despite his arguments, others had expressed joy that the Herakles palm project was going to deliver thousands of families in Ndian and Kupe-Muanenguba Divisions from misery.

From February 3 to 7, 2015, an inter-ministerial committee from Yaounde inspected the palm nurseries and other investment sites of the Sithe Global Sustainable Oils Cameroon Limited, SC-SOC.

The committee comprising representatives from six ministerial departments led by Janvier Oum Eloma, Director General of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development at the Ministry of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, MINEPAT, had disclosed that their mission was to evaluate the project.

The committee visited the SG-SOC palm nurseries at Talangaye in Nguti Sub-division (Kupe-Muanenguba Division) and Fabe in Mundemba, Ndian Division.

At the end of that visit, the committee had observed that Government wanted to help the company to solve the hurdles it had met on the field.

They had equally announced another ministerial visit to the field soon.