Conflicting accounts have emerged over funds given to South West chiefs after a meeting with the Speaker of the National Assembly, Datouo Theodore, on April 30, 2026, with the House of Chiefs and a faction of Fako chiefs now trading claims.
The South West House of Chiefs says the House Speaker granted an audience to an official 22-member delegation drawn from all six divisions of the region, led by HRM Chief Etuge Augustin on behalf of the House President, HRM Chief Kombe Ndike Richard, who could not travel to Yaounde.
“At the close of the audience, the House Speaker gave 2 million FCFA, not 3 million, to the head of delegation for transport for the 22 chiefs,” a senior member of the official team told The Ultimate.
After the meeting, questions were raised over who invited the parallel Fako delegation when the official list already represented all six divisions.
The House President reportedly ruled that only the 22 chiefs on the official list should benefit, calling a parallel Fako delegation’s presence “a breach of protocol.”
But a complaint letter dated May 4, 2026, from the Buea Sub Divisional Conference of Traditional Rulers to the Legion Commander of the National Gendarmerie in Buea tells a different story.
Signed by its President, HRH Chief Ikome Philip Mokube, the letter states: “We were a delegation of Chiefs from the South West Region who went to visit the Speaker of the National Assembly to congratulate him for his new office. During the visit, he generously gave us three millions for our transport.”
The Fako chiefs claim they agreed to share the money at a hotel, but “Chief Etuge Augustin did not show-up in the hotel.” When contacted, he allegedly said “we can’t do him anything he has taken all the money,” leaving them stranded in Yaounde without money for hotel rooms or transport back to Buea.
“We pray you please use your good office to see that the above mentioned Chief brings the three million in your office and share it to all of us,” the complaint reads.
It bears a Gendarmerie reception stamp of May 4, 2026.
However, a chief from the official delegation who asked not to be named insisted: “There was no 3M and no theft. The money was 2M for transport. The noise started because some chiefs were sanctioned for breaking protocol.”
By press time, the amount given, the number of beneficiaries, and whether protocol was breached remain in dispute.
By Ahone Jessy
