Olive Ejang Tebug Ngoh
18 April 2008
Clashes between Meme Senior Divisional Officer, SDO, Magloire Abath Zangbwala, and the Government Delegate to the defunct Kumba Urban Council, Caven Nnoko Mbele, have intensified.
The relationship between the two turned sour when the SDO criticised the Delegate's condemnation of excessive bills from the National Water Corporation, SNEC. Besides this, The Post was told that trouble between the two started after they disagreed over financial deals.
Recently, the SDO reportedly ordered Nnoko to surrender the keys of his office and car since, according to him, the Urban Council was transformed into a City Council.
But Nnoko allegedly refused to obey, insisting that he was appointed by a presidential decree and only another decree would compel him to surrender the keys.
Zangbwala later announced over local radio stations that Nnoko is ex-Government Delegate and has no right to sign administrative documents because he has not yet been appointed.
The height of the dispute came to the fore when the SDO refused to use microphones at the Kumba City Council hall on April 10, during an administrative meeting. He ordered the removal of the microphones, insisting that he would struggle to be audible.
"I cannot be refused food yesterday and today they want me to eat. Take away the microphones from my presence," Zangbwala said in the presence of Nnoko and the crowd.
The Post learned that during a meeting at the City Hall in February this year, microphones were not available. When the SDO ordered for them, he was told that Nnoko had taken them to his house, claiming that they were his personal property.
Zangbwala said since he was not respected as an administrator, it was needless to use the microphones again. Even in subsequent meetings convened by administrators in the hall recently, microphones were not used.
But Nnoko told the press shortly after that the SDO's anger against him was unfounded.
According to him, during the February strike, a council technician dismantled the microphones and hid them from being destroyed. He disclosed that the technician took the microphones for repairs but failed to install them on time before the SDO's meeting.
"Well, I don't have anything against the SDO. If he is witch-hunting me, it is his personal problem. My hands are clean," Nnoko said.
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