Councillors abandon food to gov't delegate, SDO

SDF Senior Councillors to the Kumba City Council, on November 7, abandoned food and drinks to the Government Delegate of the Kumba City Council, Ngoh Nkelle and the Assistant SDOs, Veckline Epulewane, Nelson Yongkhuma, during a Council session.

The SDF Councillors left the session of the City Council and failed to show up at the Banquet Hall at 2.00pm, after lunch had been served for them.

According to one of the Councillors and Mayor of Kumba III, John Kona Makia, they boycotted the meal because the Government Delegate insulted them during the session. Makia said they had nothing to do with the food and drinks.

The Chairman of the Finance Committee, Councillor Raphael Tanyi, had raised the issue in the course of deliberations, remarking that the City Council boss made sarcastic statements about the Councillors.

Tanyi told the SDO that the SDF team was unhappy with the utterances of the Government Delegate.

Despite apologies from the Meme Senior Divisional Officer, David Koulbout Aman, on what the SDF Councillors considered sarcastic, they did not show up at the reception.

Reacting to the situation, one of the close aides of the Government Delegate told reporters that the action of the SDF Councillors smack of irresponsibility and a show of undemocratic tendencies, given that, the SDO had apologised on behalf of the Government Delegate.

The official said even if they were not satisfied, the reception ground would have been the best place for the issue to be settled.

The City Council official explained that, by law, the Government Delegate is only obliged to pay the sitting allowances of the Councillors and not give them food. To the official, if the Councillors were serious, they would have also refused collecting their session allowances.

Earlier, Ngoh Nkelle had observed; “A close look at your service in Kumba portrays that Senior Councillors are not working in the interest of the entire Kumba municipality, but for their respective Subdivisional councils at the detriment of the Kumba City Council.

Senior Councillors arrogate to themselves the liberty of assuming that their recommendations have the force of deliberations and therefore fit for execution," Ngoh stated.

This situation, the Government Delegate stressed, has resulted in "a plethora of seemingly baseless and biased instructions that stifle projects for the Kumba City Council."

Ngoh reminded the Councillors that they are agents of development with a duty to improve on the living standards of the people of Kumba.

Revenue Collection On The Rise The Government Delegate announced during the session that revenue collection has recorded a comfortable rise, especially from the markets. He stated that, as at August 31, 2014, the City Council had collected FCFA 719,811,718 with the markets contributing over FCFA 121million.

This increase, it should be noted, comes after the SDF Councillors pressed for an inventory of stalls at the Kumba Main Market.

During the third ordinary session, the Councillors adopted a new parking tax rates and authorised the City Council to procure a FEICOM loan of FCFA 400 million for the construction of market stalls at the Buea Raod Motor Park.