Ahead of the much awaited Bar Council election slated for January 31, there appears to be a new twist in the ongoing campaign. There has been a massive mobilization of lawyers from all over the North West Region and Kumba to ensure that Barrister Sama Francis Asanga is given a second mandate as Bar Council President.

On Tuesday January 20, Barrister Sama organized a campaign meeting to address some of the worries of the lawyers in the region. The meeting which was held at a popular Bamenda restaurant which has also held campaign meetings for other candidates for the Bar elections was attended by close to 200 lawyers with several of the top brass of the Cameroon Bar Association in Bamenda in attendance.

Campaigning to win over his colleagues, Sama enumerated his achievements, stating that his tenure has effected more reforms than previous leaderships. He pointed to the organization of the Bar examinations, the swearing in of hundreds of young lawyers, with a good number of them, he said, being of common law extraction. The purchase of a piece of land in Yaoundé on which he explained they want to erect a permanent secretariat will also host a 100 room hotel. He also reminded them of the efforts being made to create a law school in Cameroon.

As per the law school, Sama further explained that though it will not be set up in a purely Anglo-Saxon style, it will have its Cameroonian peculiarities and will go a long way to address many of the worries of layers. One of these peculiarities, he said, is that the students may no longer have to write Bar exams, but may still have to do ‘pupillage’. He said this will be a reality in the days ahead.

On the issue of the “new generation” lawyers, a grouping of lawyers who recently challenged his candidature, Sama said he was begging for forgiveness from anyone he has wronged in the exercise of his duties. He pleaded that if given another chance he would do better especially for the young lawyers.

Dressed elegantly in sky blue suit, Sama almost lay prostrate on the floor of the restaurant to make his appeal before the crowd of lawyers who said no, – and that they will go ahead and re-elect him, and that his action could constitute an abomination for the younger generation.

Enter Ngnie Kamga No sooner had Sama finished his campaigned than another candidate, Ngnie Kamga accompanied by the immediate past Bar Council President, Eta Besong Jr., stormed the same Bamenda Restaurant on Thursday January 22.

Though they were faced with a less impressive crowd of less than 50 lawyers, their message was that six lawyers of Common Law extraction have been Bar Council president as against five for those of the civil law extraction.

According to them, it was only logical for Ngnie Kamga to be voted to strike the balance. Also spotted at this meeting were adherent of the “new generation” lawyers camp like the hitherto Batonnier’s representative for the North West, Barrister Kenmende Henry Gamsey, who appeared to be campaigning more for himself than for Ngnie Kamga.

Kumba rallies Lawyers in Kumba are also mobilising to renew Sama’s mandate. Benjamin Suh Fuh, a member of the “New Generation Lawyers Association” and Vice President of the North West Lawyers Association while in Kumba at the close of the weekend told his peers in Kumba that the right thing to do at the imminent elections will be to re-elect Sama Francis.

He regretted that there were about five factions this far in the bar, but promised that if given a chance, Sama will unite the Bar. This far, over 60 candidates are vying for positions into the Bar Council, out of which only the first 15 will be eligible to stand for Bar Council President in the election.