St Joseph Metropolitan Cathedral facelift: Bamenda II Mayor, Chenwi Peter, donates consignment of cement.

Located in the Bamenda II Subdivision, the mayor accompanied by his Deputies, handed over 100 bags of cement as support to the renovation of the Cathedral, which will see the church take a facelift.

The donation was made Wednesday August 7. It was during a visit during which Mayor Chenwi was received by the Archbishop of Bamenda, Andrew Nkea Fuanya.

Recently awarded by the Cameroon English Language Newspaper Publishers Association as the Most Resilient, Innovative and Development-Oriented Mayor, Chenwi Peter said the council will mobilise to come back with another giant support.

"We must invest in the house of God. We are grateful for what the Archbishop is doing because this is one of the first giant structures. It is time for us to go back and mobilise resources with our partners and support this vision. This is just to give a push...," Mayor Chenwi said.

Mayor hails Archbishop for peace initiatives 

Away from the donation, Mayor Chenwi also used the opportunity to congratulate Archbishop Nkea for changing minds in the region, since he came in.

"He has fought a lot to bring peace, change mindsets and stability in this region…,” Mayor Chenwi added 

Amongst those named by the Mayor were commercial motorbike riders, who according to him, have been totally transformed by the Archbishop, as most of them have abandoned violent activities and become faithful Christians.

Enter Archbishop Nkea 

According to the Archbishop, the support will go a long way to contribute to the construction works and will be greatly appreciated by God.

"It is a surprise that the Mayor came to visit and support the renovation works we are doing. This is going to be a big monument for all visitors who come into this municipality. I wasn't expecting this. I must express my gratitude to the Mayor for visiting and contributing to this great project," Archbishop Nkea said.

The renovation works at the Cathedral started in February 2024. According to the Archbishop, works are expected to the completed by April 2025. 

Dedicated in 1975, the Bamenda Archdiocese will be celebrating 50 years of existence in 2025 and will use the renovated metropolitan Cathedral for the celebration.

This story was first published in The Guardian Post issue N0:3197 of Monday August 12, 2024