Inter Comprehensive High School Buea: Minister certifies Enni Philomena owner.

The minister’s position is the content of a letter, dated September 11, 2024. In the letter addressed to Enni, a copy of which The Guardian Post has seen, the minister indicated that her authentication is in line with a request which Enni made to set the records straight. 

The no-nonsense Prof Nalova Lyonga declares in the letter that: “I attest upon verification of the authenticity of documents provided that ‘Inter Comprehensive High School Great Suppo Buea’ belongs to you solely as per our records”.

Minister Nalova Lyonga wrote that her conclusion is based on established documents at the Ministry of Secondary Education. The member of government cited decision No. JI/27/MINEDUC/DEP/SCAFES/BGS of 15th January 1991 “setting up Inter Vocational Institute of Stenography Buea”; Order No.224/J2/3580/MINEDUC/SG/DEP/SECP/SCAFES/SCAFEP to “open the second cycle of Inter Comprehensive College”, “attestation of registration No.181/13/MINESEC/SG/DESTP/SDSGEPESTP/SFS of November 6, 2013” and land certificate No.014682 “entered in the Land Registry of Fako Division”.

The Guardian Post gleaned that the decision of Minister Nalova Lyonga has been copied the Governor of the South West Region, Bernard Okalia Bilai, and the South West Regional Delegate of Secondary Education.

Context of minister’s authentication

The letter of Minister Prof Nalova Lyonga comes in a context of agitations from some group of persons who had showed up, claiming ownership of the investment and the land upon which it is found. 

The attempts to seize the school from Enni Philomena Mayah, The Guardian Post gathered, went wild after her beloved husband, George Fongoh Mayah, died.

Faced with the situation, Enni who has been consistent about her ownership of the land on which Inter Comprehensive High School is found and the institution itself, opted to get clarification from the Minister of Secondary Education.

It is reported that she opted for the highest authority in secondary education in Cameroon to give a final say on the matter, after she suspected foul play in several corridors of power in the South West Region.

Accounts hold that, in 1997, Enni, proprietor of Inter Comprehensive High School, granted an authorisation to her husband, George Fongoh Mayah, to run and manage the institution. 

The authorisation then had to do with; the deceased husband operating school with its name as name as registered, opening bank accounts on behalf of the school, paying in and carrying out withdrawals from the bank, carry out financial transactions on behalf of the institution and to employ and terminate teachers of the school.

With her husband now of blessed memory, Enni, authoritative sources hold, the powers of such authorisation no longer have any meaning.

Legal experts have been quoted severally as arguing that the authorisation Enni granted to her husband was nontransferable and died with him. 

Accounts hold that Enni established Inter Vocational Institute of Stenography Buea as part of her vision to contribute to the education of young Cameroonians especially of English expression.

On November 6, 2013, she upgraded the school to Inter Comprehensive High School Great Soppo. This was due to the growing dynamics in the education sector.

Before her husband died, Enni was said to be working to further upgrade the school to Inter University Institute of Buea. 

In the meantime, many with an understanding of the issue at hand have saluted the Minister of Secondary Education for coming out clear to end squabbles over the renowned institution.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post issue N0:3231 of Monday September 16, 2024