The President of the National Communication Council, NCC, Bishop Joseph Befe Ateba died in the morning hours of June 4 in South Africa.

The Bishop of Kribi died in a South African hospital where he had been evacuated as a result of deterioration in his health.

Bishop Ateba was appointed by President Paul Biya to head the country’s National Communication Council (NCC, administrative body regulating public discourse in the media) for a period of 3 years.

As the head of NCC, the clergyman was regularly in the heart of controversy due to certain decisions of this politico-administrative body regulating public speaking media.

Joseph Befi Ateba born on April 25, 1962, was ordained as priest on July 20, 1987 in the Archdiocese of Yaoundé, where he held many pastoral posts.

In charge of social communication of the Archdiocese of Yaoundé in 1989 ; Regional Secretary of the Committee on Means of Social Communication of the Association of Regional Episcopal Conferences of Central Africa ( ACERAC ) in 1995 ; Executive Secretary of the Episcopal Committee for Social Communications Pan and Press Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar in 1998 ; Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Yaoundé and pastor of the parish of Saint Joseph English Mvog Ada, from 2004 until his appointment as to bishop of Kribi.

In 2011, Bishop Joseph Befe Ateba born on April 25, 1962 replaces, late Felix Sabel Lecco as head of NCC. He is a professional journalist who graduated from the Yaoundé Advanced School of Mass Communication (ASMAC) in 1994 after having been ordained priest on June 20, 1987.