By Ikome Christie-Noella Eposi
Four members of the Buea council by name Monono Hans Manga, Moki Charles Toni, Mbua Elisabeth Ngowo and Njie Martin Evakise are set to embark on a ‘peaceful’ hunger protest as from Thursday May 18, 2017 in front of the Governor’s office.
The peaceful hunger strike, according to the protesters, is aimed at causing their employer, the Buea council Mayor to settle their over 44 months cumulative salaries; 22, 17, and 5 months salaries respectively for each of the striking workers.
They are equally protesting the Mayor’s refusal to receive complaints or attend summons at the regional delegation of Labour and social security to justify the wrongful suspension of their salaries.
Though the Buea council decided to keep silent to The SUN Newspaper as concerns the issue, stating that nothing can be said at this point especially when the matter at hand is already at it’s peak and the courts have equally not yet uttered a word.
One of the striking workers, Monono Hans Manga told The SUN that he is a “victim of punitive and arbitrary salary suspension by the Lord Mayor of Buea council, Mr Ekema Patrick Esunge. In total we are four in number who are victims of such punishment. We have tabled our complaints to the mayor politely on several occasions and he has vehemently and blatantly refused to give us a listening ear as well as solve our problems. He has refused to dialogue with us;in fact in the council, social dialogue has been killed and buried. I have worked for 17 years without any query but recently I have had about 15 queries in my file for something I know nothing about. We are suffering now from terrible hunger because we can not provide for our families, I personally have about 10 stomachs to feed but I am unable to do so, due to the present condition the four of us are going through.”
Monono Hans continued that they have appealed for support from higher authorities but so far, nothing has been done. “We have tabled to the courts, yet nothing has been done due to the present state of the courts which is not functioning. We all have put in a lot so far as council work is concerned but have been rewarded unfairly. We have put in so much socially, politically, economically and otherwise.”
“From January 2016, I only come and pick empty vouchers and go home without a franc given to me. So since then, we have been unable to have our salaries. We have been plunged into misery and frustration.”
On why they are calling the strike peaceful, Monono said: “We are not causing any violence. That is why we call it a peaceful strike. We hold our placards and tell the world that we are facing hunger.”
“I will conclude by referring him to Mathew 18:21, the parable of the unmerciful servant. He has not only suspended our salaries but he is equally attempting to push us out completely. There is no fault in us, which is why we are going through all of this aggression. “We are not free, our lives are threatened and so our jobs. We have received several anonymous calls of people telling us that we are going to be killed. So if we don’t spread this message to the streets, we might die of hunger”.