Kontriman's History of Bamenda

06/13/2026

You were a warrior. You fought till the last day....
When you got tired, opposition died a natural dead in Cameroon. No political history in cameroon without you among the finest. Father of multipartism.

As a son of Boyo, we embraced your political ideology and welcomed SDF wholeheartedly.

Rip in peace Ni John Fru Ndi.

Anyajua Kom Afumbom official

06/11/2026

Mama Grinding Machine.

O'Kelly, Elizabeth MBE was a British Colonial Officer in the British Cameroons, known for her successful promotion of intermediate technology.

Elizabeth O'Kelly was born on 19 May 1915 in Didsbury. She attended Withington Girls' School until poverty and unemployment forced the family to move to Poynton. Determined to enter the Royal Manchester College of Music, she studied on her own to compensate for her unfinished secondary school education and gained admission in 1937. She graduated in 1941 but never taught music, instead joining the Women's Royal Navy Service. She served most of the war in England, but was sent to a naval base in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka in 1945.

After the war, O'Kelly trained as a community development worker. She joined the Cameroons Development Corporation in 1950 and relocated to Buea, where she oversaw literacy classes that taught thousands of native Cameroonians. She became an education officer in the British Colonial Office in 1952, assigned to Nsaw in the remote Northwest Region. She again oversaw literacy classes and forged good relationships with the Fon of the Nso tribe.

Anthropologist Phyllis Kaberry suggested local women would benefit from grinding mills to alleviate the manual toil of corn grinding. O'Kelly arranged for the purchase of hand-powered mills and organized women's cooperatives to operate them called Corn Mill Societies By 1958, sixty-nine Corn Mill Societies were operating successfully. The Societies also improved women's lives in other ways, becoming a vehicle for education including soap making and sewing classes. O'Kelly also arranged to train local blacksmiths to make hand tools that improved productivity and durability.

O'Kelly also intervened in difficult social conflicts, between Fulani herdsmen and female farmers and between Kom secret societies and the budding Corn Mill Societies. O'Kelly retired after the 1961 British Cameroons referendum but the Corn Mill Societies continued to thrive.

Elizabeth O'Kelly was awarded the Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1959 and the Most Exalted Order of the Star of Sarawak in 1964. The Fon of the Nso awarded her the title of ya (queen mother).

Elizabeth O'Kelly died in 2012 in St Leonards-on-Sea.

06/10/2026

A lot of consternation has been displayed by various social media platforms in the Northwest of Tikar origin. Most believe females should not be Fons or Chiefs.

I am going back to history to point out that Tikar tribal groups such as the Fondom of Bum, and Wimbum Fondoms, some have had female leaders who ruled for years.

I hereby draw the attention of others to the regency under Njang-a-Yiwi who "held the throne as a woman", a "daughter of Fon Yundi, a niafon.

Why was she a regent in the first place? The reason Njang-a-Yiwi was put on the throne was that Tam(later Fon Tam) was a "child" - he had been living at Nggunabum. Njang-a-Yiwi had been niafon to Fon Yundi before he died. When she died her daughter succeeded with the title of Njang.

So yes, in Tikar customs - Such as Bum and Wimbum, even before some fons are enthroned, a female(usually a virgin) is put on the throne to keep the throne warm so that matters of succession can be arranged if the successor is not ready(ie if he is a child or has absconded.

Source - Prof Sally Chilver's interview with Fon Yai Kwanga of Bum, dated June 9th 1960 at Fonfuka, Bum.

06/04/2026

Winners of the L'Oréal-UNESCO Young Talent Prize for Women in Science Sabine Adeline Fanta Yadang, 32, (R) and Hadidjatou Daïrou, 33, (C) work in a research laboratory at the Institute of Medical Research and Medicinal Plant Studies in Yaounde on November 23, 2023.

Fanta Yadang is working on tiger nut milk, which is widely consumed in central Africa. It is extracted from a plant that has for centuries been reputed for its medicinal powers.
Courtesy of VOA.

05/30/2026

05/29/2026

Over 10 years ago in an interview, the Fon of Bafut( HRH Fon Abumbi II) pointed out in an interview that the one of the greatest challenges and tasks of a fon is maintaining peace amongst his subjects.

His brother, HRH the Fon of Nso (HRH Fon Sehm Mbinglo) has taken that task one step further in a very positive direction by penning down his own reflections on peace and conflict in his magnus opus entitled: "Truth in Memory, Peace in Dialogue, Hope in Reconciliation".

Often times in the modern world, we forget that Fons and Ntohs are dispute resolution centers. This is a wonderful reflective practice work for anyone interested in conflict resolution.

The Book launch is on:
25th June 2026
🕞 3:30 PM
📍 Hotel de Ville, Yaoundé( Yaounde City Hall).

We are waiting for details from the publisher.

05/06/2026

Bassa Chiefs have banned the eating of "Achu" on Sunday on their territories. No more "Dimanche Taro". Very soon, it would be no more Togho on Bassa territory.

Question: Does a traditional chief have the right to prescribe what families eat?