By Richard Nde Lajong
The social media and other social gatherings have been animating public spaces as to whether the ‘Bamenda Airport’ is located in Mankon, Bamenda II Subdivision or in Bafut, Bafut Subdivision, all in Mezam Division. This is not the first time that this controversy has been going on. It all started in 2010 during the 50th anniversary of the military that was commemorated in Bamenda.
Sources have accused a former senior and respectable journalist of the State broadcaster who in many of his reports and programmes kept referring to the airport as ‘Bafut Airport’. And since people will believe everything from the media as gospel, that is how the name went viral and had since been animated all public spaces that sometimes even create tensions among the people.
As the argument rages on, the SDO for Mezam issued a Prefectoral Order in which he neither attributed the name of the airport to Mankon or Bafut, but simply as Bamenda Airport and the sign post that earlier carried Bafut Airport during the 50th anniversary of the military quickly changed.
The Herald Tribune, though could not stumble on the Prefectoral Order even after going to the SDO’s office to obtain a copy, also got a copy of the Presidential Decree that included the land as part of National Land.
The Presidential Decree No. 86-1369 of 15/12/1986, signed on 17 November, 1986 by President Paul Biya, goes thus;
“1. Land of an Area of 480 ha needed for the construction of an airport situated in the place known as Ntambeng (MANKON), Bamenda Sub-Division, Mezam Division is hereby incorporated into the private property of the State.
The said land is bounded by the following co-ordinates…
2. Persons affected by the expropriation or whose property has been destroyed shall be compensated in accordance with the regulations in force.
3. This decree shall be registered and published in the official Gazette in English and French.”
While people still continue to animate public space as to the name of the airport, some Mankon people who spoke to The Herald Tribune feel they are being marginalised with naming certain public infrastructures located in Mankon. They cite among others, the “Mankon Municipal Stadium, the Main Market,” whose original names were changed to Bamenda for no just reasons. Even some streets that were named after some Mankon people or happenings in Mankon have never been respected.
With the ongoing rehabilitation of some major streets especially in Bamenda II Subdivision, their prayer is that new sign posts will actually reflect the original names that were attributed to rivers, quarters and streets.
