"Noni Must Stick Together To Assert itself On Cameroon's Political Landscape”

  -Mathias Ndikintum

Mr. Mathias Ndikintum has declared that Noni must stick together in order to assert itself on the political landscape of Cameroon. He insists that Noni will remain an obscure entity if Noni people don’t rethink their modus operandi.  He is a Noni son from Nkor-Noni and a seasoned English Language and Literature teacher with many years of experience. He has taught in a cross section of Secondary Schools in Cameroon, prominent among which is the Our Lady of Lourdes College Mankon in Bamenda. 

In an elaborate interview with Savannah Herald, Mr. Mathias Ndikintum unequivocally identified the main things that have been holding the Nkor-Noni Subdivision behind.                                        Classifying the Subdivision as the least developed in Bui Division and among the least developed in the North West Region, Mathias Ndikintum said the existence of too many traditional rulers was a reflection of how divided the Noni people were.

The Noni Subdivision he said was made up of Djottin, Nkor, Tfuh (Mbinon), Laan(Lasn), Bvugoi, Din, and Dom. He said In most of these villages there exist at least two Traditional Rulers or Nfons. The incapacity for them to stay together is directly reflected in the number of Nfons that each Noni village has. Mathias Ndikintum said this situation was as a result of the tendency for Noni Elites to focus more on personal interests than on collective interests. People whom you expected to take the lead in assembling people ended up most of the time in fruitless self aggrandisement and show of ego.

Recounting the story of the Noni Subdivision from its creation, Mathias Ndikintum said there was also this dichotomy between Djottin and Nkor. With the creation of the Noni Subdivision, there was the general feeling among Djottin people that considering the infrastructural superiority of Djottin at the time, the head quarter of the Subdivision was supposed to be in Djottin. This, Mr. Ndikintum said, created a divide in the land.

This son of Noni from Nkor pointed to the fact that the Government is guided by completely other considerations when choosing the head quarters of a Subdivision. Noni people he said should go above petit competitions and act as one in development issues. “Noni is Noni and it doesn’t really matter where you find yourself or where something is done” he said.

Mr. Ndikintum also called upon Noni people to focus on things that assemble them rather than on things that have adverse effects on their unity. One of such things he said was the complete absence of a Cultural Festival that assembled all of them. “The Nso people have the Ngonso Festival which assembles every Nso person in the land irrespective of the village that they come from” he said adding that the unity  of the Nso people is further cemented by the demonstrated love that they have for their culture. This love for their culture and land he said is demonstrated in the pump and pageantry that characterizes these annual festivals. “Noni needs such annual cultural festivals to bring them together as a people” he said adding that their incapability to stick together on important issues makes it completely impossible to do things that all the other tribes or ethnic groups were doing with ease.

He further attributed the fragmented nature of the Noni society to the way the various groups of Noni people came in to settle on the land. Studies reveal that the people who presently occupy Noni came in different groups and at different times.

In Djottin, in Nkor like in Tfuh or Mbinon amongst others, people came in droves and the populations that they met welcomed them with open arms. The spiritually fragmented nature of the people equally has an effect on the way they gel together.

Administrative decisions Mathias Ndikintum intimated have also greatly affected the unity of the Noni people. Firstly, Noni people due to administrative decisions have been seriously dispersed. While only some of them are found in Bui Division, Noni people especially those who are referred to as Lower Noni are scattered all over Donga Mantung Division.

Mathias Ndikintum further said that in Bui Division, Noni people have lost a lot of land to bigger neighbouring tribes mostly due to destructive administrative decisions. He recalls that the only time he actually saw people of the Nkor-Noni Subdivision working together was when they were clamouring for the status of a Subdivision. After the Subdivision, was acquired, every body returned to their old selves and Noni has continued to suffer from division and instability.

Their lands are being lost. In Djottin, Buh, Mbiim, Tardu amongst other lands have been or are being lost or occupied by encroaching populations from bigger neighbouring tribes.

According to Mathias Ndikintum, it was time Noni people went above petit dramas and stuck together like all the other surrounding tribes were doing. “Noni should stick together in its Political Aspirations for development of any sort to follow. It’s now or never. Noni must insert itself in the mainstream of National life. To do this, they must stick together to assert themselves as a people in the absence of which they will remain the laughing stock of Bui Division and possibly of the North West Region” Ndikintum tailed off.

Francis E Nzante

 

Savannah Herald

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