Imprisoned Warders Appeal Military Tribunal Judgment

Imprisoned Warders Appeal Military Tribunal Judgment
Monday, February 18, 2013

By Joe Dinga Pefok
 

CameroonPostline.com -- Three warders, who were recently slammed seven-year jail terms by the Military Tribunal at Bonanjo, Douala, have all appealed the ruling. The warders in question are Ngandue Kingue (Chief Warder), Philippe Serge Ondo, and Godfrey Ngwang (Chief Warder).
 

The three waders were dragged to the Military Tribunal for having allegedly participated in the escape of a high profile detainee, Paul Hiol, a Yaounde-based business magnate. Hiol was also the Mayor of Massot-Songloulou Municipal Council in Sanaga Maritime Division, Littoral Region.
 

He and Asian partner (a group) decided to embark on a joint business to operate a timber company. In line with the terms of their partnership agreement, the Asian partner sent heavy equipment which included caterpillars, bulldozers and trucks to Cameroon, and Hiol was supposed to pay the customs duty to clear the equipment at the Douala Port. Initially, the customs service at the Douala Port demanded that he should pay over FCFA 400 million, which he would not accept.
 

As the equipment delayed at the portsfor several months, the penalty and other charges increased, and Hiol was asked to pay over FCFA 500 million. Then Hiol came across a clearing agent, Pierre Mbanda, who proposed to remove the equipment from the Douala Port after having disbursed a far lesser amount, FCFA 100 million.
 

Mbanda was an agent in a racketeering ring headed by Mrs. Francoise Kontchou Kouemegni, wife of former Minister of Communication, Prof. Augustin Kontchou Kouemegni. Hiol accepted the deal and FCFA 100 million. The racketeering network then forged a letter of exoneration purportedly signed by the Secretary General at the Presidency of the Republic, claiming that the equipment was destined for the Presidential Guard.
 

The letter-headed paper that was used was reportedly genuine and smuggled out of the office of the Secretary General. The stamp was reportedly genuine, while the signature on the document reportedly looked exactly like that of the Secretary General at the Presidency, though it was forged.
 

The exoneration was finally granted and Hiol got out the equipment from the Douala Port without paying a franc as customs duty. But then a few months later, the racket was exposed.
The Judicial Police in Yaounde that was called in to investigate the matter, on July 23, 2012 arrested Mrs. Kontchou Kouemegni, Hiol and Mbanda. The trio were whisked off to the New Bell Prison in Douala and put on pre-trial detention. Over 10 persons were arrested along the line for their alleged involvement in the racket.
 

Hiol Hospitalised

A couple of days after arriving the New Bell Prison, Mrs. Kontchou and Hiol complained of health problems, and were granted authorisation to go to hospital.
 

Mrs. Kontchou was at a Polyclinic at Akwa, while Hiol was at Laquintinie Hospital. Then, one morning, Hiol was not found in his room. He had apparently sneaked out of the hospital at night and vamoosed. Curiously, Hiol's wife, then a senior official at the Littoral Court of Appeal in Douala, was in the team from the judicial service that visited the Laquintinie Hospital after the disappearance of the husband was reported. 
 

Meanwhile, the five prison guards, who were on duty at the Laquintinie Hospital in the night when Hiol escaped, were arrested on suspicion that they aided his escape. Three prison guards were later dragged to the Military Tribunal and were each sentenced to seven years imprisonment.
 

Interestingly, the lone lawyer defending the three warders has been raising controversies about the matter. There is, for example, the case of Godfrey Ngwang who the defence counsel claims was not on duty at Laquintinie Hospital on the night of the incident. It is alleged that some prison guards who were on duty at the Laquintinie Hospital that fateful night were covered up by the authorities after the incident. 
 

The defence counsel is also arguing that no particular prison guard was assigned to guard Hiol or any other high profile detainee who was in hospital that night. The defence counsel say there were about a dozen prisoners and detainees in different wards at the Laquintinie Hospital that night. More so, that there were also some high profile detainees at Polyclinic Akwa, some 300 metres from the Laquintinie Hospital, and had to be monitored by the same team of prison guards at Laquintinie Hospital. 
 

He says the number of prison guards at the New Bell Prison is quite inadequate, reason why a sufficient number of prison guards could not be assigned to guard the high number of detainees who were at the Laquintinie Hospital. The New Bell Prison with over 3000 inmates has barely 86 prison guards.
 

First published in The Post print edition no 01409

 

Source: http://www.cameroonpostline.com/Content.aspx?ModuleID=1&ItemID=9624

 

 
Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.
William Shakespeare.