Lapiro's Appeal Suffers Yet Another Adjournment

By Joe Dinga Pefok

The appeal case of Cameroon's ace musician, Pierre Roger Lambo Sandjo aka Lapiro de Mbanga, suffered yet another adjournment on February 24 by the Littoral Appeal Court.

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The case that was adjourned to March 11, has witnessed the appearance of the Ministry of Finance, MINEFI, as a civil party. The appearance of MINFEFI that had hitherto be absent from the matter sparked a heated debate in court, which dragged on for two sessions - February 20 and 24.

In a judgement on September 24, 2008, the Mungo High Court had declared Lapiro guilty of instigating the destruction of public and private property in Mbanga during the February 2008 unrest.He was given a three-year-jail term and fined FCFA 280 million of which FCFA 200 million was to go to SPM, the Taxation Department and Les Brasseries du Cameroun Mbanga.

At that level, the Taxation Department did not actively appear as a civil party in the case.
But Lapiro and his defence team, that had filed an appeal against the ruling, were surprised on January 27, when a Yaounde-based lawyer, Faustin Ntede, was presented in court as the representative of the Ministry of Finance as a civil party in the case.

Meantime, Barrister Ntede, on his part, had requested that the case be adjourned to give him time to study the matter, which was granted and the matter adjourned to February 20 for hearing.

But, on February 20, Lapiro's lawyers protested against the appearance of MINEFI as a civil party in the appeal.The argument was based on the fact that MINEFI was never part of the civil party or part of the case at the Mungo High Court and, thus, could not suddenly appear in the case at the Appeal Court. They insisted that the appearance of MINEFI at the Appeal Court was inadmissible.

Case Should Be Thrown Out

The defence team, through Barrister Rene Manfo, also prayed the court to throw out the case against Lapiro, saying the whole thing from the very beginning was flawed by irregularities. They urged the court not to give the MINEFI lawyer the floor to speak.
Hence, following the heated debate, the jury adjourned the matter to February 24.

However, when the court session opened on February 24, the Chief Judge granted the MINEFI lawyer permission to speak. Barrister Ntede, first, tried to justify the presence of MINEFI in the case. He insisted that the Taxation Department in Mbanga is not an entity, but part of the ministry.

He noted that MINEFI constructed the building housing the Department of Taxation which was razed during the February 2008 unrest, and that it was the Minister of Finance who appointed the Chief of the Taxation Centre.He said MINEFI lost FCFA 90 million and equipment in the destruction of the structure.

Even though his presence in the case was being contested, the MINEFI lawyer assumed the role of the State Prosecutor in the matter, leaving the State Prosecutor in the matter with little to say throughout the three-hour session.

While adjourning the matter, the Chief Judge said both parties should each submit the names of their witnesses to the other, at least five days before the next court session.
He, however, said if a party does not feel comfortable forwarding its list of witnesses directly to the opposing camp, the party could transmit it through his office.

Meanwhile, Lapiro, who arrived at the court at 10.50 am by taxi, accompanied by his wife and prison guard, was welcomed by a large crowd of supporters, fans and sympathisers.
After the court session, the crowd accompanied him to a taxi which took him back to the New Bell Prison.

Comments

[britishman]

Let the said minefi know that his own turn will one day come. When Biya will take him to kondequi.The truth with detentions in cameroon is not to trial detanees but rather to make them suffer and die in jail. Lapiro's case is a typical example. I urge that international human rights organizations should get involve in this case. However, there are plans to kill Lapiro in New bell prison before he gets out of jail. But Ndingaman, God dey for your back, we dey for your back. The world should know that the life of the cameroonian musical hero, lapiro is in the hands of the government of cameroon and that of minefi.Biya can change his constitutions but will never change his time of passing out.