Hand over amusement park to us - Kumba Mayors beg Govt Delegate

The Mayors of Kumba I, II and III have pleaded with the Government Delegate to the Kumba City Council, Victor Ngoh Nkele, to hand over to Kumba I Council the Kumba Amusement Park, which until now has been transformed into a crusade ground and a grazing field for cattle and goats.

The Mayors unanimously put forth this motion during the Kumba City Council 2015 Budgetary session that took place recently at the council chamber.

Before the mayors took the stand, there had been a complaint tabled to the Meme Senior Divisional Officer by the Mayors against the Government Delegate for sidelining them in the organisation of this year’s trade fair. According to the Mayors, none of them was included in the committees created to manage the trade fair.

Explaining his reasons for keeping them out of the event, the Government Delegate stated that he invited the Mayors on several occasions for planning meetings but they failed to attend. It was in this light that he said decided to single-handedly organise the trade fair as it is intended to raise revenue for the city.

But the Mayors and other senior councilors of the City Council were rather taken aback when the Government Delegate announced that the trade fair will be more of a liability to the City Council as their intentions and desires to get sponsors and artists from outside were futile. He said that the ongoing “PROMOTE show” in Yaounde has diverted most of the sponsors. He told senior councilors that the City Council is working on a deficit at the trade fair.

It was in this light that the entire house, backed by the Mayors, urged the Government Delegate to transfer ownership of the Amusement Park to the Mayor of Kumba I Council who they think could better manage it to generate revenue for the development of Kumba.

Though the Government Delegate received the plea with mixed feelings, he however, invited the Mayor of Kumba I Council for negotiations on the modalities for leasing out the Amusement Park.

It is worth noting that the said Kumba Amusement Park is the brainchild of the Former Government Delegate to the defunct Kumba City Council, Caven Nnoko Mbelle, who transformed the area known at the time as Town Green into what it is today. He is reported to have invested a lot of money for the realisation of the project, comprising a play ground, merry-go-round, restaurant and catering services, swimming pool, amongst others.

It is expected that when the Amusement Park is relinquished to Kumba I Council, all the worn-out equipment shall be repaired to seek new ways of generating revenue from it.