JOURNALIST FRANKLIN BAYERN RELEASED , NKEMANYANG ‘EXPLAINS’ SELF…PLUS A POST SCRIPT!

Members of the Cameroon Association of English Speaking Journalists, Camasej, and other reporters stormed  the Limbe police station early March 10 only to be informed that their colleague, publisher of Media People newspaper, Franklin Sone Bayern had been released.

The circumstances around Bayern’s release remain unclear,with the libel case still coming up in court on March 30 2016.

“In an out. I was in detention, I was not abusively detained,” Bayern posted on social media, confirming his release.

BAYERN :  KEEP THE FLAME

PAUL NKEMANYANG “EXPLAINS”

Hours after the release of Franklin Sone Bayern, Paul Nkemanyang  who dragged him and another Yaounde-based journalist to court, Eugene Ndi, for reporting that funds raised for the 2014 World Press Freedom Day, WPFD, were not properly accounted for, is quoted as saying his hands are clean…

“No franc had entered my hand… all (I) he got from Supermont were 30 packs of water and 30 packs of sweet drinks,” adding that he “received insults from everywhere,” and it “hurt me,(him) hurt my (his)  family, and hurt the newspaper (STAR NEWPAPER) that I run.”

Paul Nkemanyang told the Standard Tribune Newspaper that he wants an apology from his two junior colleagues for the matter to be brought to an end.

POST SCRIPT

There are clear indications that without the watchful eyes of Cameroonians especially of the press, Franklin Sone Bayern and Eugene Ndi and would have certainly been dumped somewhere in a Cameroonian.

PAUL N : ADVISED TO DROP THE CASE

What beats imagination is the fact that, despite appeals for an out of court settlement, it is taking two years…2014 to 2016 for Paul Nkemanyang to explain to the journalists and the public he got only 30 packs of water and 30 packs of sweet drinks. The figure thirty is quite symbolic here.

Again, Paul Nkemanyang who is President of the Commonwealth Journalist Association, CJA never explained which other organizations or individuals donated towards the occasion. 

 In short, journalists during the event consumed ‘only’ 30 parks of water and 30 parks of sweet drinks and since he was so kind provided them with the rest of the refreshment!

Curiously, Stephen Ojong who is SG of the Cameroon Anglophone Newspaper Publishers’ Association (CANPA), which joined the CJA(with Paul Nkemanyang as President) to organize the WPFD celebrations, is also quoted as saying he never knows who donated what and how it was spent.

“I don’t know who received appeal letters and who gave what. No accounts have till date (March 10, 2016-two years after) been given of the fundraising effort,” Ojong told the Standard Tribune.

This is a Senior Publisher who has been demanding accountability from President Biya and  all his Ministers and everyone not willing to be accountable to his own people.

And after the matter was thrown out of court it remains unclear what could push a colleague to start a case afresh. Worst of all after detaining Ndi and then Bayern, causing them to travel along the cut-through Douala-Yaounde highway for more than 18 months, he demands and apology. Whats about the huge amounts of money they have dumped into state treasury in the name of bail? Our Gods are really not to blame!

We are made to understand that another Buea based journalist is reportedly in court with Paul Nkemanyang in another lawsuit. It did not start today, some colleagues are insisting.

The most disturbing is that he is using some junior colleagues in Limbe as witnesses. Let them be aware that their own turn will come someday.

LIMBE JOURNALISTS WANT TRUTH insert (NDI)

We appealed for this matter to be brought to an end amicably, once it started, to no avail.

My stance is that no apologies should be tendered. We want to see the list of all those who contributed towards the event of 2014. If you demand accounts you too must be accountable.  

The whole world is watching what will befall Bayern and Ndi in this most disgraceful case of our times. It is a duty to ensure they and others are free men, bearing in mind all the stories of purported pending law suits against those who don’t maintain silence on this matter.

Let us not make life uncomfortable for ourselves and for others. We too have families. We too have press organs that we run. One man cannot be above Cameroon journalists and journalists of the world. We are documenting and notifying the world about  every bit of what happens to any of our colleagues on this particular matter.

PAUL NKEMANYANG ,IS ADVISED WITHDRAW THIS COURT CASE AND ALLOW OUR COLLEAGUES IN PEACE, AS THEY CONTINUE  TO IMPROVE THE PROFESSION!