The case has been adjourned to May 24, 2013 for the defence to present its response.

Gradually but steadily, the embezzlement case pitting the State of Cameroon against the former Minister of Public Health, Urbain Olanguena Awono, is coming to an end. The audience that thronged the court room yesterday May 6, 2013 was surprised as the hearing lasted for only two hours.

The college of judges led by the Vice President of the Court, Francis Moukoury, accompanied by Yvette Siewe and Mamar Paba Sale, made their entry into the court room at 10:20 a.m. The session began immediately with the reading of the different counts of the accusation by the Court Registrar and verification of the presence of the members of defence and the prosecution counsels. It all started with the submissions of the Advocate General and the civil claimant as concluded in the last session. The audience listened attentively as Advocate General Jean-Claude Tagim presented the submissions.

Jean-Claude Tagim recalled the mismanagement of funds allocated to the Cameroon Association of Social Marketing (ACMS). He said contracts were given out fraudulently to the tune of FCFA 200 million and Olanguena also fraudulently obtained the sum of FCFA 60 million. The former Minister of Public health October 23, 2003 signed a protocol agreement with ACMS to develop and put at the disposal of Cameroonians quality condoms and also a campaign to fight HIV/AIDS. The amount was FCFA 200 million and was financed by the HIPIC funds. According to the Advocate General, Olanguena Awono was not supposed to give out contracts to NGOs and associations.

On the attempted fraud of FCFA 60 million, the accused signed a decision on July 5, 2004 authorising the contract for FCFA 260 million whereas the contract was supposed to be FCFA 60 million. The decision was signed in violation of the decree of January 14, 2004 fixing the law on public contracts. As for the FCFA 60 million which was supposed to be for bonuses for workers of the Ministry of Public Health, Jean-Claude Tagim said Olanguena attempted on several occasions to use the money for the financing of contracts for NGOs and associations. Barrister Augustin Ngeufack who stood as civil claimant said Olanguena Awono signed a contract of FCFA 200 million and later it was noticed that he asked the State to pay FCFA 260 million whereas the activities did not increase. He continued that there was no evidence to show where the FCFA 260 million was paid. He argued that in the Ministry of Public Health, duplicates of the document had disappeared. They were only discovered in the Ministry of Finance in a file that has nothing to do with case.

On the production of flyers, he said Olanguena Olanguena was aware of everything that was going on. Barrister Augustin Nguefack said Olanguena Awono told the court that associations and NGOs were humanitarian associations and non-profit making but there is proof that these associations pay taxes and function as commercial enterprises.

In reply, defence lawyer, Barrister Marcel Antoine Mong asked the court to give them some time to prepare their defence. The case was adjourned to May 24, 2013 for the defence lawyers to present their response.

Olanguena Awono is accused of embezzling FCFA 287 million sometime between 2002 and 2006 in connivance with five others. The sum was meant for various programmes sponsored by the World Bank, the Global Fund and the State of Cameroon to combat AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis.