Marcus Ndumbe Mbessa spoke for over five hours yesterday at the Special Criminal Court.
Marcus Ndumbe Mbessa, first accused in the case between the State of Cameroon and Marcus Ndumbe Mbessa, Charles Etah Njoh and the enterprise “Njoh and Sons Distribution,” yesterday April 9 at the Special Criminal Court (SCC) in Yaounde, through a sworn evidence defended himself that as the vote holder and control engineer for the rehabilitation of a road network between Bechati and Wabane in Lebialem Division, he did not take interest in the project by receiving some funds from the contractor, Charles Etah Njoh (second accused) and assisting him in executing part of the project. As vote holder, Marcus Mbessa said he had as interest to make sure that the contractor carryout the work as expected.
For over five hours, Marcus Mbessa told the court the role he played as vote holder and control engineer in the contract to rehabilitate a road network between Bechati and Wabane. He said in March 2008, as the Regional Delegate of Public Works in the Lebialem Division, he received a phone call from a lady who works at the Budget and Service Department of the Ministry of Public Works in Yaounde. The lady wished to know the type of treasury which existed in Menji, Lebialem because the Minister of Public Works was about to send a FCFA 100 million special credit to the Divisional Delegation of Public Works in Menji. Marcus Mbessa told the court that in a decision, the minister named him vote holder of the credit. Surprisingly, Marcus Mbessa explained that article two of the same decision stipulated that “Njoh and Sons Distribution,” enterprise based in Yaounde was supposed to execute the contract. The first accused said he was never in position of the credit card. Instead it was the second accused that had the credit card and according to the first accused, that was not correct.
When work was launched on the road, the second accused asked for 20 per cent as start off advance from the contract amount. As vote holder, Marcus Mbessa said he represented the Ministry of Public Works as first beneficiary of the project. Thus, he had to facilitate things for the proper functioning of the contract. The first accused told his lordships that he received a phone call from the Minister of Public Works asking him to assist the second accused in carrying out the project. The Senior Divisional Officer (SDO) of Lebialem also urged Marcus Mbessa to ensure that all goes well at the work site. From time-to-time Marcus Mbessa said the second accused sent money through a money transfer agency for him to either hand to his boys working at the site or pay for machines used at the site.
By December 2008, Marcus Mbessa said the second accused had halted work at the site and nobody had traces of him. Because of the end of the budgetary year, Marcus Mbessa said the SDO sorted out ways for the credit to be preserved for the next year if the contractor will come back to complete the project. In spite of the extension of the project period Marcus Mbessa said very timid work took place at that road network. The first accused told the court that reports from various commissions in Yaounde indicated that only 36.08 per cent of work had been done on the road. Thus, the second accused had to be paid for 36.08 per cent of work done not 100 per cent.
Marcus Mbessa told the head of the college of Judges, Mr Justice Abednego Bea Kala and other members of the court that he went an extra mile to make sure that work was properly done at the road because he was trying to obey hierarchy. By press team, Marcus Mbessa was undergoing cross examination from counsels and the Legal Department.
