The long standing land
dispute pitting the people of Esu, a locality in Menchum division and giant
business magnet, EL Aladji Baba Danpullo is taking a new twist as end time signals for the long
-drawn battle niches.
The Cameroon Watch recalls
that North West Governor, Adolf Lele L’Afrique while chairing a crisis meeting
that came at the end of a fact-finding mission to the land under dispute last December
had ordered the putting in place of a
commission by Menchum senior Divisional officer to probe into the land palaver.
Since then, a lot of water has gone under the bridge with little or no results to
put an end to the crisis.
Danpullo’s Elba ranch currently
occupies over 10.000 hectares, official statistics indicate and the people of Esu
are demanding he relocates his ranch as demand for land increases due to an ever
rising Esu population. Danpullo has occupied the land for several years and it seems the solution
to the crisis is at the corners.
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| Fon of Esu: ever inspiring |
In a rare media outing recently,
the traditional ruler of Esu, Fon Kum
Achuo Ii, Kawzu Albert talks of the crux of the land dispute as well as the way
forward. Mua Patrick Mughe compiled the package
Below is a full text of his press statement…read on….
Press Statement By His Royal Highness, Fon Kum Achuo
Ii, Kawzu Albert, The Traditional Ruler Of The Esu People In Menchum
Division, Concerning The Land Dispute Between The Esu Community And Alhadji
Baba Ahmadou Danpullo, The Proprietor Of Elba Ranch In Esu.
Distinguished members of
the press,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is my singular
pleasure to address the press for the first time concerning the protracted land
dispute between the Esu community and Alhadji Baba Ahmadou Danpullo, the
proprietor of Elba Ranch in Esu, which started as a disagreement between
brothers and it is now like wild fire which
if not carefully handled can destroy the entire community. Many press organs
have published various articles on the issue which may have reflected the true
situation or not. I thought it proper to give to the press the true story from
the Esu Fundom.
I inherited the throne
as the traditional ruler of the Esu people in the year 2008. I inherited the
throne when Alhadji Baba Ahmadou Danpullo was already settled in Esu village.
The information I presently have with regards to Alhadji Baba’s coming to Esu
village is principally based on documents I found in my late father’s office in
Esu palace and information from some people who facilitated Alhadji’s coming to
Esu.
I have a document here
with me signed by Alhadji Baba Ahmadou Danpullo dated 2nd July 1986
and addressed to the then Fon of Esu. The subject is;
“ APPLICATION FOR AGRICULTURAL AND GRAZING LAND IN YOUR
VILLAGE”.
The letter is short and
I will reproduce it here as follows;
“I have the
honour to apply for agricultural and grazing land in your village from the big
bridge after Esu to Ewo. This is because where my ranch is situated, there is
not enough pasture for my cattle due to
ferns and adequate land for agriculture.
I shall be
most grateful if my application were granted”.
From the application for
agriculture and grazing land in Esu from Alhadji Baba Ahmadou, he specified the
area to be occupied from the big bridge after Esu to Ewo. This is an area where
one Mr.Ngwa of Bafut origin in 1986 met the late Fon Buh II Joseph Meh of Esu
and started carrying out feasibility studies for the planting of Soya beans.
I also have a document
here dated 17th July 1987 from the Esu traditional council addressed
to the then Senior Divisional Officer of Menchum with subject “Grant of land to
the Elba Ranch”. The document is signed by the late Fon Buh II Joseph Meh, the
then traditional ruler of the Esu people and three traditional council members.
For emphasis, I will reproduce the first paragraph of the letter thus;
“We have the
honour to inform you that, following an application from Elba Ranch to open up
development projects in our village, the Esu traditional council have already
indicated the requisite land for the said project at Woundele, from Alhadji
Waziri Kupa to the area near Alhadji Malo along Esu Furu-Awa road.”
From the above, a well defined piece of land
was allocated to Alhadji Baba for the Elba Ranch project in Esu village in July
1987.
Immediately Alhadji Baba
brought cattle to Esu village, the first person to be evicted was the said Mr.
Ngwa, followed by his immediate neighbours, Alhadji Waziri Kupa and Alhadji
Malo.
I have another document
here date the 10th October 1987, just three months after the
traditional council of Esu wrote to the SDO of Menchum that they had allocated
well defined land to the Elba Ranch which I also got from my late father’s
archives. The said document was written by Esu children who called themselves
“Esu conscious elements” and addressed to His Excellency, the Governor of the
North West Region with subject;”Petition with regards to the allocation of land
to Alhadji Baba.
For emphasis, I will
reproduce the 2nd paragraph of the petition thus:
“We emphatically
state that we are not against the arrival and settlement of Alhadji Baba in Esu
but against two points; (1)The way and manner he has acquired this land and (2)His
abusive use and violation of the limits shown to him.”
Immediately land was
allocated to Alhadji Baba in Esu, he embarked on an expansionist policy and he
presently occupies 75% of Esu land and the Esu population has nowhere to farm.
Despite the fact that the Esu people started complaining to the administration
since 1987 about the expansionist policies of Alhadji Baba, no positive action
has been taken to redress the situation. A majority of the Esu population drink
water from streams. The cattle of the Elba Ranch pollute these streams and
worst of it, the dips where the cattle are disinfected are emptied in these streams
and after drinking polluted water, the population gets sick on regular bases. I
have a list of 135 family heads who have been evicted from their ancestral land
with their wives, children and animals, by Alhadji Baba. More than 500 Esu
villagers therefore and 10.000 animals have been evicted in Esu by Alhadji
Baba. So many people have died as a result of frustration and many more
presently leave a frustrated life in Esu as a result of Alhadji Baba’s stay in
Esu. The prison in Wum is floaded by Esu people imprisoned by Alhadji Baba, talk
less of those detained without just cause.
The above notwithstanding,
the Esu people remained law abiding, hoping that the government will one day solve
their problem. The matter had a roundabout turn when Alhadji Baba instituted
suit No WHC/13M/2014 and obtained an order in the absence of myself
and the Esu cultural and development association and the Esu youths development
association who were respondents in the matter, restraining us from entering or
interfering with the quiet enjoyment of Alhadji Baba’s land and property
popularly known as Elba Ranch located in Esu, Fongom Sub Division. The court
order further prohibited me and my population from carrying out all acts which
may jeopardize the security and safety of the personnel and property of Elba
Ranch. The court order finally stated that failure to comply with order 1 and 2
above will tantamount to contempt to court.
The Esu population and
myself only got detail information about the court orders when four youths were
arrested from Esu and detained in Wum on the strength of the court orders.
Faced with the court orders which were too wide to be true especially as the
limits of the land occupied by Alhadji Baba in Esu are not well defined and
acts which may jeopardize the security and safety of the personnel and property
of Elba Ranch are not well defined, I on the instruction of the population had
to consults our lawyers.
Our lawyers first caused
the orders of the court to be set aside and for the matter to be heard with
respondents put on notice. Our lawyers also instituted suit No
WHC/5/2015 for the High court of Menchum to determine whether Alhadji Baba had
been issued a Temporary Ground over land in Esu village with well defined limits
and in the absence of a grant, the court should rule that Alhadji Baba’s
occupation of land in Esu is predicated on the allocation of a grazing land in
Woundele quarter to him by the late traditional ruler of Esu, late Fon Buh II
Joseph Meh.
On the 12th
day of October 2015, the High Court of Wum entertained Alhadji Baba’s
application to restrain us from entering into his land in Esu and ruling was
fixed for the 9th of November 2015. Since then, the ruling has been
adjourned three times and it is next coming up on the 27/01/2016. The matter
instituted by me has not been heard and it is also next coming up on the
27/01/2016.
The Governor of the
North West region visited Esu on the 29/12/2015 and in a working session in
Wum, advised that the matters in court should be withdrawn and the land dispute
resolved amicably. I am waiting for Alhadji Baba who first instituted a matter
in court to start withdrawing the matter from court while I follow suit.
As a result of lack of
farmland, the population of Esu is presently preparing for the next farming
season and they have started farming land also claimed by Alhadji Baba.
As the traditional ruler
of the Esu people, I want to make it very clear that the Esu population do not
want to evict Alhadji Baba from Esu land. There is enough land in Esu for
grazing and farming. It will be unacceptable by the population for Alhadji Baba
to occupy 75% of the land and 40.000 people will occupy 25% without adequate
farmland for the growing population. Cameroon is a state of law and the
administration and the justice service should help to solve the problem
according to the laws of the state and should not allow the conflicting parties
to solve the problem in their own ways.
After these
clarifications, I will be glad to answer to your questions.
Done in Bamenda this 12th
day of January 2013
________________________________
HRH
FON KUM ACHUO II, KAWZU ALBERT
Great piece
ReplyDeleteLong live the Fon of ESU