Mayor, gov't delegate beg colonel to clear public space

The Mayor to the Kumba I Council, Abel EbakoNdoh, and the Government Delegate to the Kumba City Council,Victor Nkelle Ngoh, have both opted for a soft approach to execute the request of Councillors for them to cause retired Colonel Mbongo, to remove some mobile metal pillars placed on the tarmac along Mukete road in Kumba.

According to Councillor Gabriel AkamaNnoko, who tabled the request on December 18, in the course of the 2015 budgetary session of the Kumba I Council, the Municipal authorities ought to have evacuated the barricades put along that stretch of road, given that it is a public road and not somebody's private property.

The Councillor further observed that the situation remains even deplorable, considering the level at which abandoned vehicles are allowed to rust on the sides of major roads in town, whereas there are people who have been given powers to manage the municipality.

According to the Government Delegate NkelleNgoh, he had sent words to the said individual some time ago requesting that the metal bars be cleared off the streets, but that is yet to be done.

Ngoh assured the Councillors that he was going to explain to the retired Colonel again about the need to remove the pillars from the road.

Commenting on the worry, the Senior Divisional Officer for Meme, David Koulbout Aman, reminded the Mayor and Government Delegate emphasizing that they are the ones in charge of hygiene and sanitation in the municipality. He tasked them to do their job and not allow some other person to work on their behalf.

This made Councillors and Service Heads at the meeting murmur that the situation appears as if the municipal authorities are afraid of confronting the retired Colonel.

One of the Councillors who refused to be named told The Post that if it were a common man or a non-native who occupied public space, it would have been very easy for the Mayor or Government Delegate to act.

SDO Bars Benefits To Ex Mayors, Councillors

During theCouncil session, the SDO who is the rejected a motion raised by the Social Democratic Front, SDF Councillors calling for benefits; particularly funeral expenses for former Councillors and Mayors.

Turning down the request, the SDO said what the Councillors termed in their respective committee reports as "ex immediate Councillor and Mayor” means nothing.

"I cannot approve such a request because once you have gone, you have gone; there is nothing like ex-immediate. You only enjoy the advantages when you are in office," Koulbout stated.