Some 17 delegations are in Buea to add to host UB to cement students’ camaraderie.
Under the slogan, “Together, let’s build the Cameroon of excellence”, the 2012 edition of all Cameroon’s Universities and Higher Institutions Games kicked off in the afternoon of 5 May in the campus of the host University of Buea. Professor Jacques Fame Ndongo, flanked by his colleague of Sports and Physical Education, Adoum Garoua chaired the opening ceremony. The host Vice Chancellor of the University of Buea, Vincent Titanji, his peers of other State-owned Institutions, host South West Regional Governor, Bernard Okalia, amid the various delegations of over 3000 athletes and officials, all lent their hands to a smooth start of the one-week annual sporting rendez-vous. The first game that triggered the event was football pitting the University of Dschang, pioneer in the games, against the host University of Buea. The match that wore a high intensity and suspense ended in a one-all-tie with the visitors opening scores in the first minute of the games. To confirm the suspense the host team’s equalizer came at the last minute, both goals on penalties.
In his speech launching the games, Professor Fame Ndongo called for fair play, exhibition of talents and a participation in the spirit of Olympics. Professor Bruno Bekolo Ebe, president of the National Federation of University Games (FENASU), created in 2001, spoke of discipline and stressed against nomadic practices. He had signed a communiqué warning that students who participated last year would not be alloyed this year if they have changed their Institution.Today’s schedule features athletics, basketball, football, handball, lawn tennis, wrestling, and table tennis. Some nine committees are at work to ensure hitch-free participation. Already, the games logo, a gigantic elephant monument, planted at the entrance to the UB’s administrative building is attracting a lot of attention to admirers. Both the designers and the artists seem to have burnt their mid night candles to give the monument the arousing taste. The host city of Buea is in a heightened mood with economic activities booming especially in the Molyko vicinities. Traffic congestion took its toll on indiscipline drivers during the weekend.
