By Francis Tim Mbom
Villagers of Limbola in Limbe, were at the DO's office on October 25, to protest against the demolition of their houses the previous day.
The DO of Limbe, Mbiwan Nchaffu, who has been transferred to the North Province, early on Monday October 24, morning, is said to have carried out the demolition of four plank houses at the Limbola New Layout.
The new layout is the new site, adjacent to the SONARA Oil Refinery where the Limbola villagers were transferred following the expropriation of their former settlement for the shipyard project.
One of the villagers, Manfred Njie Njonga, told The Post that a caterpillar brought by the DO crushed his 12-room plank house.
He said they were contesting the DO's action because contrary to Mbiwan's claim, the piece of land where the house was built was part and parcel of his own share of land that had been issued out to him by the same DO's office.
But the DO said on Wednesday, October 26, that those whose houses were demolished had been "illegally" occupying them.
"We carried out the action to prevent people from building in other people's plots," Mbiwan said.
He cited the cases of two of the victims being women whom he said had shunned repeated orders from his office and went ahead to construct on plots that had not been allocated to them.
He also cited the case of one Njonga's daughters, Sophie Njonga, whom he said came to his office last September 13 and requested to be given a piece of land. She happened not to have been in Cameroon while the plots were earlier being shared out although she was due a plot.
The DO said without waiting to be officially allocated one, Sophie went ahead the following day to start construction. Mbiwan said when he found out later that she was already building, unauthorised, he urged her to stop but she did not comply.
Asked about Njonga's case, the DO said the destruction of his house was in the same line with those who had constructed illegally.
Njonga, in his reaction to The Post, said the plot was his. He acknowledged that there had been some illegality going on in the distribution of plots in the area.
Njonga said over a year ago, three members of the Traditional Council of Limbola, led by one Sam Williams Mafany, sold off the same piece of land to the then Commercial Manager of SONARA, Jean Eonne.
He said he filed the matter at the SDO's office and it was resolved in his favour. He added that Eonne even dragged him to court for trespass on the land and the court ruled in his favour.
Njonga told The Post that he was unable to understand how the DO, after a year, could call round again to demolish his house on grounds of illegal occupation.
"I have requested my lawyer to file a complaint against the DO in the Buea High Court," Njonga told The Post.
The demolition was backed by an October 20 order from the SDO of Fako, Bernard Okalia Bilai, which had requested the DO to proceed to the area and dislodge any illegal occupants.
Okalia had stressed the need for order to be maintained in the place.
Comments