Hon Etombi Gladys takes population to parliament

For the first time in the annals of Cameroon’s National Assembly in particular and politics in general, the population of Fako East Constituency in Limbe recently were virtually taken to parliament as their Member of Parliament, Hon Etombi Ikome Gladys, presented to them her parliamentary actions for the one year since she was elected.

This was during an event which she christened “awareness talk with the population”. The participants included a cross-section of the population, journalists, mayors, the Government Delegate to the Limbe City Council, her alternate Member of Parliament, CPDM militants and those of other political parties especially SDF, UNDP and UPC.

Addressing the audience that listened with keen attention, Hon. Etombi Ikome Gladys said at the last legislative election the choice of Fako was clear as they voted overwhelmingly for the CPDM. She thus used the occasion to thank the population for the trust, confidence and across-the-board support she has received.

“This trust and confidence can only be reciprocated by my commitment and sense of direction to serve all in the community,” Hon Etombi said.

She added that the awareness talk was to institute dialogue with the population.

As to what she has done as parliamentary action for her one year at the National Assembly, Hon Etombi said it has been enriching 12 months which she has used to master the road and to fulfill her role and responsibilities as Member of Parliament.

Hon Etombi told the audience that as member of the resolution and dispute committee of the National Assembly, she has played a foremost role in voting bills that touch on all domains of national life.

She continued that so far she has been establishing networks to enable her bring to the constituency what it needs, has been in constant touch with the population with her office establishing permanent links with her constituency.

Hon Etombi’s concern for her constituency touches all aspects of life; roads, agriculture, water, electricity, health, education among others. So far her field activities are legion and have been on health, education, agriculture, business etc. In the health domain, she organised free treatment for women with vesico-vaginal fistulas in Limbe.

This was launched ahead 8 March 2014 by the MP at the Limbe Regional hospital. On 21 April she made a visit to the Limbe Regional hospital to observe the progress of the programme and meet the patients. It would be noted that by that date, out of the 10 patients that had been identified to benefit from the programme, five had undergone the operation. It costs FCFA 300,000 to operate one patient.

The Member of Parliament on 14 May 2014 also organised a capacity building workshop aimed at improving practices and farming techniques with the emphasis on cassava, plantain and maize. Farmers and groups that took part in the training workshop also received gifts of farm inputs and equipment to boost their productivity and output.

The gifts included trucks, sprayers, chemicals, machetes, hoes, gloves, cassava cuttings, plantain suckers and maize seeds.

Meanwhile, businesswomen and the physically challenged have not been left out. While the businesswomen were trained, the Member of Parliament donated cash and party materials to the handicapped in Limbe.

In the area of education she has awarded scholarships to some students and pupils, donated gifts to pupils, donated materials to schools and also donated benches to Government Secondary School, GSS, Mabeta, Limbe.

Despite all these to her credit, the Member of Parliament says there a lots of things that still need to be done in the next four years of her mandate. “We have touched many lives, but many more lives still need to be touched,” she said.

Fielding questions from journalists, Hon Etombi threw more light on her parliamentary actions. In doing this, she refuted observations that her actions have been tilted more towards women, stating without mincing words that they are all inclusive, taking into consideration women as well as men.

Those present at the event were also given the chance to make observations. Agah Henry Achobang of the UNDP party thanked the MP for the initiative, describing it as “a brilliant way to relate with the people as she is a servant and not a leader”.

Former MP and one time Mayor of the defunct Limbe Urban Council, Hon Catherine Eposi Meboka, on her part, said the initiative was commendable.

Meanwhile, former President of the Fako Chiefs Conference, Chief Epupa Samuel Ekum, said for all his life he has never seen an MP calling the population to tell them what she has done or for them to tell her what to do.

When he took the rostrum, the Government Delegate to the Limbe City Council, who also doubles as the CPDM Fako I Section President, Andrew Motanga Monjimba, said in his life he has also not seen such an initiative. He added that this is the climate needed in politics for all to put hands on deck and develop the constituency.