Mebeng’o, Marafa H.Yaya named as suspected Boko Haram militants

The minister of Defence, Edgar Aalin Mebengo’o and the former minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralization, Marafa Hamidou Yaya who is now in prison have been accused of being undercover supporters and promoters of Boko Haram which is wrecking havoc in Nigeria and Cameroon.

Accusations on the duo were heaped by the Minister Delegate and the presidency in charge of relations with the assembly and former minister of Justice Ahmadou Ali during a sensitization campaign against Boko Haram in the Far North Region.

During the sensitization meeting for the Mayo Sava division in the Far North, the head of the divisional sensitization commission, Ahmadou Ali said on 1 June 2010, he handed a six page document titled “On the tracks of Boko Haram in the Far North” with a list of its members who had escaped from Nigeria to the minister of Defence, Edgard Alain Mebengo’o and the then minister of territorial administration, Marafa Hamidou Yaya.

Interestingly, Ahmadou Ali said both ministers did not do anything to stop the Nigerian insurgence from continuing with their activities. He further recalled that on 30 July 2009 Nigerian security forces waged a serious attack on Boko Haram militants and this led to more than 700 deaths in five days, amongst whom were about 300 militants. It is during this attack that Mohamed Yusuf ,the man who founded Boko Haram in 2002 was killed. Between August 2009 and August 2010 many Boko Haram militants sought refuge in Cameroon, Niger and Chad. He thus said Cameroonians need to know why Mebeng’o and Marafa did not act on the information he provided to them.

Ahmadou Ali further pointed out that Boko Haram resurfaced in September 2010 in a more sophisticated and deadly manner with one Sanni Umaru presenting himself as the successor of Mohamed Yusuf who had been killed a year earlier.

Meanwhile, it has further been disclosed that the cabinet shake up on Friday 7 September 2007 which flushed out Jean Marie Atangana Mebara, Polycarp Abah Abah, Urbain Olanguena Awono believed to be the ring leaders of the G11 group rather gave an opportunity for the group to better implant itself because Marafa Hamidou Yaya and Edgard Alain Mebengo’o galvanized their strategy because they saw in the Boko Haram presence in Cameroon a leverage for the destabilization of Cameroon,in the hope that Biya would leave in 2011.

The big question that has been asked is why Ahmadou Ali who is believed to be Biya’s right hand man did not reveal this information when all these things happened. Some observers have been quick to point out that as part of the conspiracy, he could not reveal the information. Tongues are therefore wagging as to what might have happened within the past four years that these underground activities have been going on.

There are also suspicions that Ahmadou Ali, the man who told Biya that Polycarp Abah Abah had 500 billion francs in his accounts might have been eyeing the post of defense minister. Ahamadou Ali has therefore implicated Edgard Alain Mebengo'o at a time when his native Kolofata has become a veritable bastion for Boko Haram militants .It is also said that during the death of a northern billionaire Ali Kotoko, Boko Haram met in his house and took some decisions which have not yet been made public.