Lapiro de Mbanga has died

Cameroon’s famous protest singer and songwriter Pierre-Roger Lambo Sandjo aka Lapiro de Mbanga died Sunday morning at his asylum residence in Bufallo, New York, after a long battle with cancer.

He was 57. Lapiro and his family were granted asylum in the United States shortly after serving a three-year prison term at the New Bell prison in Douala for masterminding protests in 2008. He denied the charges and his supporters said he had been targeted for his anti-government lyrics. His asylum was seen as a validation of that thesis.

Lapiro, also fondly known as Ndinga Man, became popular with his songs that denounced societal ills, injustice, and corruption among other issues. Known as the voice of the voiceless, he made his voice heard by even the common man by using Pidgin English and French jargon.