Colbert Gwain in Douala
The eyes of the twinning community turned to Lendi, Douala 5, in the Wouri Division of the Littoral Region of Cameroon, when the newly enthroned paramount traditional ruler of the people of Nyos village in the Menchum Division of the North West Region of Cameroon, HRH Fon Kimbi Richard Nchoh I, concluded a historic South-South twinning agreement with the Muslim community King of Lendi, His Majesty Kimbi Kah Abdulrahman Imran.
The occasion was the first-ever visit to Douala of the newly enthroned Nyos paramount traditional ruler, where besides chairing a fundraiser for the supply of potable water back in his community that was since devastated by the famous August 21, 1986, he took time off to pay a courtesy visit the King of the Hausa community in Linda, Douala 5, His Majesty Kimbi Elvis kah Abdulrahman, himself a blood brother to Fon Kimbi Richard Nchoh I.
Accompanied by his key notables and some executive members of the Nyos Development Association, Fon Kimbi presented to King Kimbi Kah Abdulrahman a litany of problems and challenges faced by his Nyos community, ranging from the lack of potable water, a motorable road, electricity, and more importantly, a secondary school. He recalled that during commemorative activities to mark the anniversary of the Lake Nyos natural gas disaster in his fondom last August 21, 2023, the Muslim community in his fondom resolved to mobilize resources and construct a mosque, a guest house and provide solar energy to the Nyos Fondom that has been abandoned to itself by the government.
While praising the frank and fruitful collaboration that exists between the natives and the Muslim community in Nyos, Fon Kimbi Richard prayed to the Muslim community of Lendi in Douala, under the leadership of King Kimbi Elvis Abdulrahman, to bond with the Nyos community in the Menchum Division of the North West Region, to foster the development and progress of that long deprived community. He urged King Kimbi Abdulrahman Imran and his council of elders to embrace and work to fortify the newfound partnership between the two communities and leaders that seemed to have been destined by history.
In response, and after the warm and hilarious welcome, King Kimbi Elvis Abdulrahman revealed that he was the most blessed to be receiving his brother, HRH Fon Kimbi Richard in his palace, especially as Mr. Kimbi Richard was not only his Primary School teacher but more importantly, his mentor. He was elated by how his brother and former teacher have also answered the people’s call to lead his community. In his usual characteristic manner, he pledged his support to the development of the Nyos palace and all community projects, given that the government had since abandoned the Nyos community to itself years after the Lake Nyos disaster. Abdulrahman Imran held that it would be a crime against humanity for him and society to continue to look elsewhere while the vulnerable Lake Nyos population suffered.
To match words with action, King Kimbi Kah Abdulrahman donated seven cartons of books to the Fon to prepare children in Nyos village to go back to school this academic year. As if that was not enough, he offered the sum of 1m to the Nyos Development Association as part of his contribution to the water project whose fundraising is currently going on. While wishing the new fon of Nyos well, King Abdulrahman promised total support and collaboration of the good and hard-working people of Lendi to all developmental projects in the Nyos community.
It should be noted that HRH Kimbi Kah Abdulrahman’s philanthropy knows no boundaries as he does not discriminate against tribe, race, or religions. Over the years, he has supported developmental, educational, and health projects across all regions of Cameroon with little or no noise made about it. Even though he is a Muslim community leader, he has not only been supporting the construction of mosques but also churches.
What a great event. Nyos will grow again