Bafia Council case submissions open

The case against the former Mayor of Bafia was again adjourned to October 6, 2014.

Hearing in the case opposing the State of Cameroon (Bafia Council in the Centre Region) against the former mayor of the Bafia Council, Issah alias Issah Ahmed took place continuously for two days, last week at the Special Criminal Court in Yaounde because the counsel of the accused was not present in court as well as a representative from the Bafia Council.

The head of the panel of judges hearing the case, Mrs Justice Yvette Siewe adjourned the case to May 14, 2014 to give time for the different actors to be present in Court. On Tuesday at the Special Criminal Court, when the case against Issah was called up, he immediately indicated his presence and moved into the defendant dock.

When the presiding judge asked him the where about of his counsel, he gave no tangible answer. Later, Mrs Justice Yvette Siewe asked the Legal Department, headed by Advocate General Jean Claude Taghim, if the representative of the civil claimant, Bafia Council was present in court. In the absence of somebody from the Bafia Council, the case was adjourned.

Information culled from the Committal Order bringing Issah in front of the Special Criminal Court indicate that he is alleged to have embezzled some FCFA 284 466 664 from the Bafia Council when he was mayor.

Statistically, it is said that Issah misused over FCFA nine million meant to pay youths who were holiday workers at the council, FCFA 32 million allocated for the payment of temporary workers in the council, FCFA six million as mission fees for missions as well as misappropriating over FCFA 86 million for the construction of a Primary School at Tamboro in Bafia.

Figures further reveal that Issah also misappropriated some FCFA 95 million for the construction of a port at Guen in Bafia, over FCFA four million as tax collected for local products as well as some FCFA 32 million as tax collected from markets.

It is also revealed that the former mayor collected council money worth over FCFA 24 million from a bank in Bafia and used for his private needs.