Joseph F. Njoya is only in his early 40s.
But the kind of things he has achieved and keeps making an effort to achieve
are mostly identified with people who are far above his age. They are actions
and deeds that are more easily identified with people in their 50s, 60s and
70s; people who are far above that “youthful” age; people who have garnered a
wealth of experience and who have made their marks in diverse other fields.
We feel utterly inspired and proud to say it
in even louder and clearer terms, that on account of the wonders performed by
this illustrious son of Donga Mantung, he can be referred to in the same terms
as Bellario describes Balthazar in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice: “I have
never seen so young a body with so old a head.”
You will not consider this an exaggeration
if you take a look at his educational background, his professional career, his
human rights endeavours, his development efforts back in his native Ngarum
village in Donga Mantung division in the North West region as well as what
those who know him say of him.
A
well-educated man
As early as the late 1970s and early 1980s
when Joseph Njoya was in Catholic Primary School Bayelle in Nkwen – Bamenda,
his parents, teachers and mates could foresee him making great strides in
education later in life. For, the lad was the kind of pupil who personally
learned his lessons well in advance. And, in spite of his young age at the
time, he did it so effectively that he was never baffled by test or examination
questions, no matter from what topics the questions came.
In Government High School Nkambe where he
did his secondary and high school education, the situation was the same. He was
as good in the sciences as he was in the arts in secondary school. Most of the
time, he found himself explaining their lessons to his classmates and answering
all the so-called difficult questions in class. Many thought he would settle
for the sciences especially as offering science courses at the time was
considered more prestigious.
To Njoya, however, it was a matter of
choice. He loved the sciences all the same, but his heart beat more for the
arts. He had been a fine public speaker ever since, but he knew for sure that
if he did the arts, his oratory skills would be greatly enhanced. So when they
were called upon to choose, he went in for the arts subjects.
As expected, he passed both the GCE
Ordinary and Advanced Levels in flying colours and proceeded to the then single
University of Yaounde where he read Law. The French language that was an
impediment to many English-speaking students of that university was not much of
a problem to Joseph Njoya. And so after three years, he took a first degree
with honours.
Thirsty for knowledge as he has always
been, the young “licencié” went
knocking on the doors of the newly-opened University of Dschang which readily
admitted him for the post-graduate diploma (“Maîtrise”) program. A course he did successfully for one year.
Upon graduation, Njoya took professional
exams, succeeded in them and actually went professional. But his thirst for
academic knowledge was unquenchable; it is eternal, so to speak. That is why he
enrolled for the “Diplôme d’Etudes Supérieures Spécialisées (D.E.S.S.) which the University of Evry Val d’Essone in France
offers in partnership with the University of Dschang. That was in 2005. He
obtained the diploma after defending a thesis on the topic “Widening Access to
Justice: The Experiences of the Human Rights Clinic and Education (HURCLED)
Centre – Bamenda, Cameroon. Those who were present at the event said Joe Njoya
made an ex-cathedra presentation!
Awe-inspiring
professional qualifications
In 2000, Njoya passed the aptitude test for
sheriff-bailiffs in Cameroon and was appointed sheriff-bailiff before the North
West court of appeal three years later. Even after succeeding in the said
aptitude test, he was not satisfied. 1n 2001, he took the Bar examination of
Cameroon – an exam that has remained a nightmare to many a young Cameroonian
Law degree holder – and made it. He was then called to the Cameroon Bar.
But again, Joe Njoya was faced with a
problem of choice. Should he continue working as a sheriff-bailiff or take up
practice as a Barrister-at-Law? The man of sound judgment preferred the former
and works in that capacity to this day.
Enviable
positions held as an experienced professional
It is common knowledge that not all
professionals are given positions of responsibility at their work places. To be
given it, you must not only be experienced but also highly efficient. These are
characteristics that the sheriff-bailiff of great repute embodies. Reason why
his collaborators have seen the need for him to hold different high-profile
positions within the sheriff-bailiff corps in particular and the human rights
circle as a whole.
These are: deputy executive secretary of
the Human Rights Clinic and Education (HURCLED) Centre – Bamenda, Cameroon;
human rights consultant for HURCLED Centre; vice president of the North West
Association of Sheriff-Bailiffs; chairman of Cameroon Lawyers for Human Rights;
as well as an OHADA certified trainer for the Regional School of Magistracy
(ERSUMA) Benin for the period 2012 to 2014. If you do not call these feathers
on Joe Njoya’s cap enviable, how else would you call it?
Admirable
extra-academic knowledge
If this legal expert manifests such
efficiency and proficiency, it is not only on account of the knowledge he
acquired in school. The practical realities on the field and national and
international seminars, symposiums and workshops have also helped to sharpen
his savoir faire.
Some of them include: the “Séminaire en restitution en Droit OHADA” jointly organized by
Cameroon’s ministry of justice and ERSUMA Porto Novo with the financial support
of the European Union in Yaounde (from August 9 to 13 2004); the “Séminaire de vulgarisation du Droit OHADA” organized by the National
Good Governance Project with the support of the African Development Bank (ADB)
and Cameroon’s ministry of justice in Buea (from January 21 to 23 2009); a
training workshop on the practice and ligitation under the simplified recovery
procedures and enforcement measures organized by the Cameroon-European Union
Cooperation (PAJ) Project in Kribi (from May 23 to 26, 2011); and a training of
trainers session of ERSUMA – Porto Novo, Benin.
Working
actively for the betterment of his people
Being a human rights activist and a
thoroughly outgoing and affable personality, Joe Njoya is tenacious of the
opinion that having abundant knowledge and skills as he does without using them
to better the lot of one’s kith and kin is of no use. To him, it is tantamount
to depriving one’s brethren of their much-deserved human rights.
For this reason, he is working tooth and
nail to improve on the well-being of the people of his native Ngarum village
whose development association (the Ngarum Development Association) he is the
legal adviser of. His financial and material support for development projects
there such as the electrification of the village is enormous. Amongst the elite
of Ngarum, Njoya, as a matter of fact, is one of the highest financial
contributors when it comes to development projects.
What is indeed interesting about this legal
luminary is that he does not choose those to whom he offers assistance. He
might not be the wealthiest North Westerner, but whether you are from the same
ethnic group as he or from elsewhere, he lavishes you with what he can provide
to make you comfortable. Which is why non-natives of Donga Mantung hold him in
very high esteem.
Njoya has also been very supportive to
Prison Fellowship Cameroon, a non-governmental organization based in the North
West region. Not only does he counsel prisoners, thereby making them less
despondent than they were originally, he also provides them with gifts of
various kinds to help alleviate their plight.
Testimony
from an honest mind
In recognition of the selfless efforts the
sheriff-bailiff makes to lift people from socio-economic quagmire, an indigene
of Kumbo living in Bamenda enthused: “Ah, Mr. Journalist, I have always been
looking for an opportunity like this to publicly express my gratitude to ‘Maître’ Joseph Njoya. I want to thank him immensely for his
humanitarianism, his kind heartedness and his efforts to indiscriminately make
people get the best out of life. I live in Bamenda but I am a native of Kumbo.
I don’t see myself going to settle in Kumbo again because of all the advantages
I enjoy here; thanks to a great extent to the largesse of ‘Maître’. He has touched my life and washed tears off my eyes. He is
such a nice person whose heart bleeds when people around him suffer. If it were
possible for some people to live forever, I would pray for such a thing to
happen to ‘Maître’. Thank you
indeed, elder brother.”
Lovely
and exemplary husband, father
Even
before he takes sunshine into the lives of others, Joe Njoya brings abundant
joy into the collective heart of his loving and lovely family. He is a caring
father and very devoted husband. The sound education of his family and the
general welfare of his family are his utmost priority. And so whenever he has
the means and opportunity, he does not hesitate to take his better half and
children to trips abroad for sight-seeing and pleasant distraction. Things that
only conscientious modern men do. What a husband and father!
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