Plane crash money splits village

The sum of FCFA 2.3 million from the Kupe Muanenguba administration related to a plane carrying an American, Bill Fitzpatrick, that went missing on June 23, 2014, is still tearing the village of Eboko Bajaw, Tombel Subdivision apart, The Post has learnt.

Since the discovery of the wreckage of the plane on April 10, 2015, by a hunter, prospects of imminent compensation from either the Government or the relatives of Bill Fitzpatrick have left the village in suspicion.

It is emerging that some FCFA 2.3 million, channeled through the administration of Kupe Muaenenguba Division, to handle issues related to the wreckage of the plane, is the bone of contention. Speaking in an interview granted a Doula-based TV station, recently, the hunter, who claimed to have discovered the wreckage, said he is yet to benefit anything since the discovery.

The man, who survives on his vocation of hunting, is still living in a mat house. But at the bottom of his mind, expectations for some positive developments in the form of compensation could pop up one day. The hunter said he has only been privy to unofficial information that some money had been released pertaining to the issue but he cannot really tell what is happening.

Meantime, the Chief of Eboko Bajaw, Donatus Enone, in another interview granted the same TV station, admitted that some FCFA 2.3 million came in related to the plane crash issue.

Enone said he only signed for FCFA 1.3 million from the Kupe Muanenguba administration. He, however, hinted that there were certain comments he could not make to the press on the issue. A close aid to the Chief told The Post that the part of the money the Chief received was meant for some traditional rites and not to compensate any particular person.

Some of the inhabitants of Eboko Bajaw are reportedly bitter over the way the Government and those concerned with the money have managed the issue.

At the time of the discovery, the villagers had rejoiced that the tragedy of the American had exposed their challenges to Government. Their hopes were that the road network was going to be improved upon and other social amenities were going to follow. Yet, nothing has happened.

The Post gathered that youngsters stumbled on the wreckage some 10 hours into the heart of the forest from the village of Bajaw.

They reportedly used their phone cameras to film the skeleton and the wreckage. Bill’s wife, Paula, visited Cameroon in 2014 in the wake of the news of the disappearance of her husband and his plane. She spent many days searching in vain.

Suggestions that she made a promise to compensate anyone who finds the remains of her husband’s are at the heart of persistent expectations of a financial fallout since the discovery.

Bill Fitzpatrick, 59, was flying from Kano, Nigeria, to Douala, Cameroon. Despite the mystery surrounding his demise, some expert observations suggest that Bill’s aircraft might have had difficulty in the thick clouds over the Bakossi woodland.