REDHAC, CEO, Maximilienne Ngo Mbe
By Ahone Heidi in Douala
Civil societies in Cameroon have condemned the decision of the ban and office sealing of some NGOs in Cameroon by the Minister of Territorial Administration, Paul Atanga Nji.
They have since reacted to the banning orders of 6th December 2024, with outright rejections and public condemnation.
One of the suspended civil society Redhac, a human rights organization says it is determined not to let the suspension orders effective, describing it as illegal.
In an outing in riposte to the suspension decision and office sealing, REDHAC Board Chair Maitre Alice Kom said.
“ This is madness. President Paul Biya is advised to call his Minister to order because his actions may trigger unrest and disaster ahead of major elections in the country,” Maitre Kom told the Press.
She went ahead to unseal the REDHAC office in Douala.
It should be recalled in an order of Friday 6th December, the Ministry of Territorial Administration declared null and void all activities of the Network of Human Rights Defenders in Central Africa (REDHAC) accusing them of benefitting from illegal financing.
But REDHAC,a renowned human rights defense organisation, reacted firmly to this decision. The organization affirmed its determination to continue its mission of defending human rights.
In a message posted on social networks, THE CEO of REDHAC, Maximilienne Ngo Mbe , expressed her determination not to give in to the order. “We are not giving in,” she wrote, emphasizing the massive support she has received since the announcement of this suspension. “Since yesterday, my phone has not stopped. Thank you for your messages and support,” wrote the Executive Director of Redhac.
These suspensions are part of a broader context of restrictions targeting civil society organizations in Cameroon. In recent years, several associations have been suspended or dissolved by the authorities, raising serious concerns about the state of democracy and human rights in the country.
Other NGO’s suspended include L.M Nanje foundation INC represented by Forteh Ngochi Wase Usan, Reach out Cameroon (ROC) based in Buea, as well as to the Association charitable socio-culturelle du Cameroun (Acscc).
These civil society associations were suspended for a period of three months, for “illicit and exorbitant financing inconsistent with the profile of the activities likely to undermine the integrity of the national financial system, non-compliance with the legal provisions relating to the operation of a non-profit organization, lack of justification for the destination of the funding received”.
Minat said it used correspondence from the National Agency for Financial Investigations between 2021 and 2024, the files of the national station of Crtv, the national public radio, which shows that these NGOs received in two years, approximately 16 billion CFA francs, without demonstrating transparency with the state authorities. The Minat has been on the heels of these NGOs for several years, demanding their activity reports.
According to the Minat, “the NGO sector has been identified as presenting vulnerabilities to money laundering, but especially to the financing of terrorism.
