By Yerima Kini Nsom
The Yaounde Court of First Instance has ordered businessman, Jean-Pierre Folefack, to pay FCFA 37 million to Veteran Journalist cum President of the National Communication Council, NCC, Joe Chebonkeng Kalabubsu, for illegally demolishing his house at the Emana neighbourhood in Yaounde 14 years ago.
This is the substance of the verdict of the protracted legal saga the court delivered on Friday July 19.
Besides slamming the man a one-year suspended sentence, the court also ordered Folefack to pay over FCFA 21 million compensation to the family of one Tsanga Ebode for destroying their residence in the same neighbourhood on the same day Chebonkeng’s house was destroyed.
The court found the defendant guilty of complicity to destruction after the matter had suffered several adjournment in 14 years.
On the contrary, the court found Folefack not guilty of destroying houses on a disputed piece of land, which he is claiming ownership.
He was guilty of destroying the houses of Joe Chebonkeng Kalabubsu and Tsanga Ebode, which were not on the disputed piece of land.
The case dates back to February 12, 2010, when Mr. Folefack brought in caterpillars and destroyed several houses, rendering over 14 families homeless under the supervision of a bailiff, Maitre Evariste Tchoung, and law enforcement officers.
He claimed that he was the owner of the large piece of land on which houses of the victims were found.
Many people who had gone out of their homes that ill-fated day returned only to discover that their houses had been destroyed with everything in them, including documents like birth certificates, academic certificates among others.
According to the facts of the case, Folefack brandished an Appeal Court decision that ordered for the demolition of the houses on claims that the piece of land belonged to him.
The land title Folefack reportedly brandished indicated that he was the owner of a piece of land that had no buildings on it, a description that starkly contrasted the parcel of land that he was claiming ownership of.
The Post learnt that the people had won the case of the land against Folefack at the Yaounde Court of First Instance. But their lawyers said none of them was aware that Folefack had appealed against the decision of the lower court.
None of them was served a notification letter to appear at the Appeal Court. Observers hold that it was curious that the Appeal Court ruled on the matter without as much as hearing the 14 respondents that had won the case in the lower court.
in the demolition exercise, Folefack went overboard and destroyed houses that were not on the disputed parcel of land.
According to the French Language daily, Mutations, which published an article on the case in one of its editions of February 2010, one of such houses belonged to veteran journalist, Joe Chebonkeng Kalabubsu.
- The journalist was presenting news on national television, CRTV, when he learned that his house was being destroyed with everything in it.
He then quickly enlisted the services of a bailiff who took note of the demolition of the house. Another victim, Tsanga Ebode, whose house was not on the disputed land, was an indigene of the area.
He watched helplessly as his modest house, which was home and haven to his entire family, was brutally demolished. Members of the homeless families had to seek shelter in the houses of friends and relatives.
They later took the matter to court and Jean Pierre Folefack was arrested, charged with destruction, violation of residence and other related offences and shoved into pre-trial detention at the Kondengui prison in Yaounde.
The complainants said they were surprised to discover that the defendant was released on bail after a short while.
However, investigations continued and experts did an evaluation of the houses destroyed. The case progressed at a very slow pace, thereby suffering several adjournments.
The Post learnt that, in 14 years, six judges have handled the matter. The lawyers of the victims cried out against such delay of justice, which was fuelled by the fact that each time a new judge was appointed he or she started the hearing of the case afresh. The lawyers of the victims would then be forced to submit documents anew.
Five Judges who started hearing the case in succession did not get to the level of passing judgment. It is the sixth judge, Justice Ekoman, who delivered the verdict. She started the case afresh four years ago and steered it right to the end.
In the submission of the State Counsel, the court was called upon to slam a six-month prison term on Folefack for illegally destroying the houses and rendering many people homeless.
Apparently due to the frustrations generated by their homelessness and the snail pace of the case, some victims have died without having justice on the matter. Anaba Mvongo and Tsanga Ebode died homeless.
The original proprietor of the disputed land, Mme Biloa Agnes, who had given out the land certificate as collateral for loan in a bank and constructed her residence somewhere at the Nkozoa neighborhood, has also died. One other person reportedly died recently.