For those who have been following up the sociopolitical events in
the
Bakossiland and Tombel in particular during the days of the very fierce
H.R.H Nhon Mbwog R.M. Ntoko, they would bear testimony to the fact that nothing
has been normal since his disappearance on June 23rd, 2001. A lot of strange
occurrences such as kidnappings, deaths, etc. have been taking place especially
in Tombel which is reminiscence of the atmosphere in Shakespeare’s Macbeth
after the brutal assassination of King Duncan. It’s like the passing on of
Chief Ntoko has created a leadership vacuum in the Bakossi Community. This
writer believes that if Chief Ntoko were alive today, then all the calamities
befalling the Tombel populace wouldn’t have happened in the first place or he
would have known how to bring solutions to them. Chief R.M. Ntoko just as his
father Chief Fritz Ntoko Epie had built a personality cult that made it too
difficult for his detractors to challenge him. He was a quintessence of
the Bakossi clan and most especially to the people of Tombel. Some historians
hold it that the Bakossi crisis of 1966 had as its immediate cause the murder
of Mr. Emmanuel Ebong ‘Etane Kode who was mistaken for Chief Mambo Ntoko at the
Nken village by those who were terrorizing the Bakossi clan at the time. As
S.N.Ejedepang-Koge puts it in his book entitled Tombel Sub-Division and
Council: Administrative and Municipal Evolution, “Following the incessant
attacks of terrorism, the assassination of four prominent Bakossi at the
village of Nken was the immediate cause of the explosion, particularly because
of one of those murdered, a retired Custom and Excise Officer Mr. Emmanuel
Ebong ‘Etane Kode, was erroneously reported to be Nhon’ Mbwog Chief Richard
Mambo Ntoko.”
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| ByRandolph Nkwelle |
The terrorists who commonly known as maquisards, believed that by getting
hold of Chief Ntoko, they could have gotten an easy walkover in the Bakossi
community. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Due to the incredible services
that Chief Ntoko rendered to the Bakossi community during the crisis, the
Bakossi Chiefs together with the Behons decided to confer the title of
Paramount Chief on him in 1968. Chief Ntoko did not only merit the title but he
used to it to settle disputes and other things that he thought could hinder
development in his community. Despite his prowess, Ntoko did not go without
having detractors but he always made sure that he used his iron fist to hit
hard on those who wanted to bring him down. His greatest challengers were
mostly other Second Class Chiefs especially those from Bangem sub-division, who
would often question the legitimacy of his Paramount Chief title. As a result
of these distractions, Chief Ntoko until his death in 2001 was never promoted
to a First Class Chief like his other contemporaries especially in the South
West Region. The simple reason was that those Bakossi elite who willed power at
the time, despite being in positions where they could influence by lobbying his
case, decided to be nonchalant.
As a true genuine custodian of culture and one who understood the benefits of
coming together for a common goal, the no-nonsense chief was quick to notice
the aggressive atmosphere that reigned with the appointment of Prof Ngole
Ngolle Elvis as Minister in charge of Special duties at the Presidency of the
Republic in December, 1997. Most top Bakossi elite especially those who were
vying for ministerial positions, argued that Prof Elvis Ngole Ngole, a
political scientist was too young and was not abreast with the Bakossi
sociocultural realities. As a result of these hostilities, fear had been imbed
in him to the point where he refused to be ushered into the ceremonial grounds
by the Behons as it has often been the tradition with such visits, during his
homecoming in Bangem in 1998. His fears were not only imaginary but they were
real especially as S.N.Ejedepang-Koge had written in his book “Myth or
Reality? The Life of the late Hon Thomas Ebongalame: 1934-1989” where it
was alleged that the honorable man was poisoned in Bangem in the course of a
traditional libation during the Bangem Cultural Development Association’s
(BACUDA) tenth anniversary. When Chief Ntoko noticed this, he decided to step
in to revamp the situation. As Livinus Esambe puts it his book entitled The
Biography of S.N.Ejedepang-Koge: Teacher, Writer, Man of Culture, “Concerned
by the persistence that friction provoked at various instances by the
Minister’s actions, Nhon Mbwog Richard Mambo stepped in to calm the situation.
He used the Kupe-Mwanenguba Chiefs’ Conference as a pretext, to organize a
grand meeting of Chiefs and Elites in his Tombel Palace.” That was indeed the
fixer and the leader. He never waited to be told what to do because he knew
exactly what needed to be done at the appropriate time. This is exactly what is
lacking in our today so-called leaders. Nowadays, situations are left to
deteriorate with no one showing any concern to fix them. Worse still, some of
our chiefs actively take part in things that only help to debase their people.
These are things that would never have happened in the days of Chief
Ntoko.
Lots of stories have been told concerning Chief Ntoko with some being true or
imaginary. This was all due to his charismatic nature. His presence alone
created fear and cared less if you were a super elite or not. He was fun of
sleeping in ceremonies especially at the ground stand. Stories have it that he
would often use the shoulders of those sitting next to him as his pillow and
wore betide you if you attempted to get him up. If luck wasn’t on your side
that day, you would be welcomed with a slap or he would simply scold at you.
Due to his actions, people always found it very uncomfortable each time they
were to sit next to him at any given occasion. During political campaign
rallies, Ntoko would opt to go to those very hot zones like Bouba, Etam and Ebonji
where opposition is still waxing very strong due to the influx of settlers. He
would wheel the people to respect the rights of the minority by voting for the
party in which he militates else, they would face the consequences. Chief Ntoko
was a man of strong convictions, a man who went unopposed.
The reign of Nhon Mbwog Ntoko marked the end of an era especially when we try
to make a comparison with what is actually happening in the Bakossi community
today especially with regards to leadership. Political appointees and elected
officials have now taken over the leadership baton from the custodians of
culture to the point where the respect for traditional institutions has been
relegated to the background. It’s not uncommon today to find some of these
position leaders pouring down insults on our chiefs with some being nicknamed
as “langa chief.” This is simply because chiefs are seen these days moving
around begging, something which the self-sufficient Chief Ntoko would never do.
He would rather prefer to stay and those very same things would meet him in his
palace. Even when young visionaries like the current National President of the
Tombel Cultural Development Association (TACUDA) endeavor to come up with plans
on how to solve some of the burning issues affecting the Tombel populace, he is
always often considered as an intruder hence, killing his well-planned
intentions. The case in point are the persistent cries of the people with the
ways the Tombel council is being managed, the Tombel water crisis, the Cameroon
Development Cooperation (CDC) land distribution, etc.
The ongoing sociopolitical upheaval plaguing Cameroon today has not left the
Bakossi and Tombel people indifferent. But what is even more surprising is that
Nyasoso which happens to be the home town of Chief Ntoko, is like the
headquarters of those bringing terror in Bakossi. These are things that
wouldn’t have happened in the days of Chief Ntoko. The situation seemed to have
deteriorated resulting in the burning down of houses and the killing of
innocent citizen, all because there’s no one who can standup and make his voice
heard. For those who are well versed with the history of Nyasoso and the
throne, they can bear testimony. The traditional belief when a chief dies is
that, the throne can never remain vacant hence the saying, “The King is dead,
long live the King.” In this case, we really get to see that Chief Ntoko is
gone and he is gone for real. Although the throne has an occupant, and regents
being replaced one after and other, it’s very difficult for anyone to fit in
the shoes of Nhon Mbwog Richard Mambo Ntoko. We are yet to see a leader in
Bakossi and Tombel like Chief Ntoko.
