Anglophone lawyers enroute to Bamenda to save Common Law

In the wake of incessant attempts by the Cameroon gov’t to surreptitiously annihilate common law practice in the Northwest and Southwest regions of the country in favour of civil law practice, Anglophone lawyers, the Cameroon Journal has learnt are scheduled to gather in an All Anglophone Lawyers Conference AALC, on a yet to be announced date in Bamenda.

The Journal gathered that preparations are far advanced for the conference in Bamenda and date should be announced pretty soon. The conference will serve as forum for Anglophone lawyers in the two regions to brainstorm on ways of saving the Common Law practice in Cameroon.

Lawyers behind the initiative are currently crisscrossing the breadth and width of the national triangle to drum up support from all practitioners of Common Law so that government can be forced to respect the bi-jural heritage of Cameroon.

In a meeting at the precincts of Kumba Court of First Instance April 10, Barristers Eta Bissong Jr. – former President of the Cameroon Bar Association and Harmony Bobga Mbuton, challenged their peers to the emerging realities of gov’t intentions towards Common Law and braved them for the need for a common front.

The history making event in Bamenda, the Lawyers agreed, will culminate with the putting in place of an executive that has equal representation of all the Anglophone Regions and they will be enjoined to meet frequently.

Eta Bissong Jr who is National Coordinator for the Training of Advocates-In- Training of the Cameroon Bar Association, elaborating on the urgency of the gathering, said anything that touches the foundation of Common law touches his soul so deeply.

He described recent appointments of Francophone magistrates in Common Law courts in the two English speaking regions as severe slap on the face of Common law Lawyers. He added that what is even more vexing is the fact that they deliver judgments in French.

Bissong said he almost ‘collapsed’ when he saw a judgment delivered in one of the courts in Buea in French and then signed by two common law magistrates so to speak.

Emphasizing the fact that nobody will fight the Anglophone cause but Anglophones themselves, he advocated that all common law lawyers should take it as a duty to converge on Bamenda when the date is announced so that like “Opopo” (one man, one power), they can stand against all intention by the government to cheat the common law values just like they stood against the appointment of Notaries in Cameroon west of the Moungo.

The choice of Bamenda to host the maiden conference according to Bissong, is the best. He said Bamenda remains historic and has to birth organizations that have created waves in the country. He cited the case of the formation and creation of the CPDM, and the SDF parties.

Besong was corroborated by Barrister Nzoh Divine Mbokeh, Spokesman of the Cameroon Bar Council, Barristers Yong Patrick, and Barrister Ekosse Daniel who all agreed that time for action is now and the protection of the common law system in Anglophone Cameroon should be of paramount importance.

Reasons why they called on their colleagues from FAKLA, MELA, NOWELA and those who are residing and practicing in Douala and Yaoundé to all come on board for a just cause – the posterity of Common Law.

Senior Barrister Bobga Harmony, who led the delegation of North West Lawyers to the Kumba meeting, said enough is enough and time for action has come for Anglophone lawyers to act.

Bobga said government is succeeding in dividing and ruling West Cameroonians, reasons why when they touched the area of Law, after due reflection and consultations Lawyers have decided to carry out efforts to ensure that the government recognizes, respects and gives protection to Common Law values and tradition.

He berated the fact that Anglophones are being inundated with civil law trained magistrates whom he described as judicial administrators. He disclosed that 65% of all support staff in the courts in Southern Cameroons are all Francophones.

Without being too sentimental, Bobga said France is a conspirator in the whole take-over thing, intimating that the French have succeeded in closing up the office of the Prime Minister West of Cameroon, the West Cameroon Parliament and the last bus stop now is the Justice system.

He castigated the deceptive propaganda that the Cameroon Criminal Procedure Code is essentially Anglo-Saxon. Advancing for the necessity of the AALC, he said that if it was just to make money, Lawyers can make money and go away.

But “as Lawyers we have a duty to protect the rights of the common man in the society.” He said. Lawyers, he said are living a situation where ’’we risk our bones being exhumed from our graves and roasted for not standing up for Anglophones through protecting a valuable legal system like the Common Law which we inherited and nobody in government should come and tell us that we want to have something Cameroonian when something Cameroonian is what is detected from France.”

The conference is tipped to hold between April 29 and May 2, 2015.