Since his death, morning Monday 13th April 2020 in Yaounde-Cameroon, after suffering from a malaise, personalities in and out of the country have been pouring out sad memories of the studious Legal luminary and former Momo West Parliamentarian. Amongst are his party members of the SDF, Other Political party leaders, Friends, and elites of the native Batibo village.
One of those mourners is Doctor Christopher Fomunyoh of the U.S based National Democratic Institute, a childhood friend and mate of the late Parliamentarian and energetic SDF strategist. Doctor Christopher writes;
Like most of you brothers and sisters, I woke up this morning to this sad and dreadful piece of information. Hon. Joseph Mbah Ndam (or Joe, as I fondly called him, given we were on first name basis) was a brother, friend and classmate.
Some of you may remember how close Joe and I were back in the 1970s, when we worked hard to revive what was then the all inclusive Moghamo Students & Teachers Association. We ran the Association very effectively, Joe as Secretary-General and I as President. We crisscrossed the 22 villages of Moghamo leading community cleaning and development projects such as carrying out road repairs on the Moghamo section of the Mamfe – Bamenda road which wasn’t tarred at the time, cleaning the Ashong market or the Oshum palace, etc. We even engaged in several reconciliation initiatives among some of the Moghamo elites at the time; and, of course, organized wonderful annual ‘student meetings’ and ballroom dances. We were a formidable team, thanks in large part to Joe’s hardwork, courage, trustworthiness and leadership. To Joe, leadership came naturally – after all, he had been a school prefect in his Alma mater, Government Grammar School, Mamfe!
Joe and I were classmates for four years in the Faculty of Law and Economics of the University of Yaoundé – the only two Law students from our subdivision in our batch. So we bonded as true brothers would. I still remember when we received our scholarships after many months of hardship in Yaoundé, we matched in log step to an Indian shop in downtown Yaoundé and purchased two identical transistor ‘radio cassettes’ (as they were called at the time) for ourselves! I was deeply impressed that upon graduation, Joe would seek a ‘Doctorat de 3e Cycle’ which he pursued at the same time as his pupillage for legal practice with one of the most renowned Law Firms in Yaoundé. That came as no surprise to those of us who knew Joe for his hardwork and thirst for knowledge, despite being already a ‘brain box’ by birth. Joe loved private practice, all with the wig and gown.
I was already out of the country when Joe started his political career in the SDF, but I remember meeting Joe in Douala in 1992, at the jam-packed SDF convention hall in preparation for the presidential election of that year. Seeing Joe in his traditional garb alI with bag to match, I understood Joe had put his heart and soul into that party and what it stood for.
Over the years and decades, and watching from afar, I could see Joe was giving it his best and his all. We would compare notes and exchange conversations occasionally every time I was home and our schedules allowed. Fortunately for us both, and perhaps in testament to the excellent times of our youth, our respective personal politics and aspirations never got in the way of our mutual respect and brotherly feelings. As the years went by, it began to show that the shrinking political space in Cameroon was having a toll on his physic as would happen to everyone that cared about the rule of law and the future.
Growing up, I knew that as courteous as Joe was, he also would spoil for a good political fight, confident that even if he lost a round, he would live to fight another day. Unfortunately, the cold hands of death sneaked upon us this rainy Monday morning, and our dear brother Joe is gone too soon.
Go in peace brother, and may your soul rest in perfect peace. Our thoughts and prayers are with the rest of the Mbah Ndam family at home and abroad.
Dr. Chris Fomunyoh
Dr. Christopher Fomunyoh
Others like Human Rights Lawyer, Barrister Felix Agbor Nkongho Balla, had equally written a soul breaking testimony of how the late Honorable Mbah Ndam stood firm and defended him during his rough moment at the start of the Anglophone struggle. Bar. Nkongho and others had been jailed in Kondegui Maximum security Prison for many charges including separation and rebellion against the state of Cameroon.
The late Honorable Mbah Ndam from Guzang of the Moghamo People, Batibo subdivision, Momo Division of North West Cameroon was born in 1955 and had served as member of Parliament since 1997 under his SDF party for Momo West Constituncy, Batibo, with 22 Villages.
Last Days of his Political Life.
Hon. Mbah Ndam had joined his colleagues and Party chairman, Ni John Fru Ndi in 2016 after the Teachers and Lawyers of the Anglophone Regions took to the streets in a fight against Marginalization to protest Government’s hard handedness of the protesters both in Bamenda and Buea. He will also proceed to be part of the legal team that stood for the incarcerated leaders of the then Anglophone Civil Society Consortium which later led to the release of thes leaders.
Hon. Mbah Ndam was also instrumental after the post electoral litigations petition sessions at the Constitutional council of Cameroon after the October 8th 2018 Presidential election.
He will further run for the 9th February 2020 legislative and municipal elections and the rerun in March same year after battling severely with separatists of the Anglophone Regions who asked him to abdicate. Infact, on his Campaign trail to Batibo, his convoy was attacked and shot at, injuring many, though he survived.
Mbah Ndam’s ugly moments with his Batibo Country men flared up after he made his proclaimation affirming his witdrawal from parliament as ordered by the separatists, an engagement he failed to keep. As a result, he compound was set ablazed as he resorted to refuge in the capital city of Yaounde, till his dying day.
Stakes are high now and alot of negotiations probably will need to be done if the remains of the late Statesman will reach his native Batibo. This is because, the land is still highly infested with the “Ambazonian fighters” who engage frequently in fierce battles with Cameroonian military. It is further compounded by the fact that, the Seperatist leadership in the Diaspora is calling for the total banishment of his corpse.
However, many are those who think a great “son of the soil” like Hon Mbah Ndam should be given an official burial for his efforts in the fight for justice, human rights, and development in the country. Conspicuously, the late Hon Joseph Mbah Ndam is a victim of the “Ambazonisation” of the British Southern Cameroons, ( North West and South West Regions
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