Ayah under investigation over FCFA 30m campaign funds

The erstwhile Member of Parliament and former National Chairman of the Peoples’ Action Party, PAP, Paul Ayah Abine, has been placed under investigation regarding the management of the political configuration from 2011 to January 22, 2016.

The decision to place him under investigation was taken in Kumba, Saturday May, 14, during a National Executive Committee Meeting, NEC of PAP.

Actions in this light followed several questions raised by delegates from Manyu regarding rumours that political parties are given financial grants by the State.

According to Emmanuel Egbe Ayuk, the current leadership of the party must clarify the militants concerning the management of financial grants from the State to PAP militants. Addressing Ayuk’s worry, the Vice National Chairman of PAP, Takor Apark, admitted that the Sate provides some grants to political parties, but that the former leader of PAP, Justice Paul Ayah Abine did not avail the party with any information regarding the grants. Takor said the worries of the militants were pertinent, given PAP’s performance at the 2011 Presidential election.

” We will see how we can investigate the matter. We have decided to form a commission that will follow up the matter from MINADT.

You go to Tombel, Lebialem, Nguti it is the same question. We do not want to work on rumours. So we will get the facts on the period during which the former leader was there and there after the militants will be informed,” Takor stated.

As debates heightened during the meeting, the Secretary General of PAP, Alphonse Ekambi Mukwelle declared that, Ayah’s phone lines went dead after FCFA 30million was reportedly given to him.

The acting Chairman, Albert Mukwelle Ngoh further stated that, ‘Ayah is selfish and hungry’. Quizzed if his declaration could be taken to mean that the problems plaguing PAP were triggered by money, Ngoh, said he has worked with Ayah for a while and knows him to an extent.

He admitted to reporters that he used the term selfish to describe the management of the party under Ayah in material, psychological and financial terms. Venting out their anger, other delegates at the meeting opined that they spent over FCFA 1million each from their personal pockets to run campaigns for PAP in 2011.Such were the declarations of Emmanuel Egbe and Michael Mbu.

Another official at the NEC meeting, Prince Tabe Ekangaki averred that, in 2011, Ayah came with good intentions and a few years after, PAP “discovered that, he was a wolf in sheep clothing”. The delegates at the party meeting described Ayah’s Popular Action Party that goes by the same appellation as PAP as a brief case party which exists only on Facebook.

They said Ayah is just trying to force way into the scene, but they will not allow him to cause confusion in the People’s Action Party. On whether it was Ayah’s PAP that is legal or not, the conveners of the Kumba meeting brandished and acknowledgement receipt from the administration to justify their authenticity.

Journalists Hunt Hon AyahAyah Paul Abine

Before Saturday’s NEC meeting, several journalists got information on Wednesday that the Supreme Court Judge, Ayah was in Kumba and tried to get to him to no avail. The situation left the press corps worried as they saw in Ayah’s supposed Kumba visit an opportunity for him to clear the air on the confusion raging on in PAP.