The Chieftaincy Stool Criteria in Eyumojock Ethnic Clan in Manyu Division: The Rotatory and Hereditary Chieftaincy Stools of Kembong Village as Actors in the Implementation of Decentralization Policy
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Abstract
Chieftaincy succession battles are old time stories in many African countries like Cameroon. Eyumojock, also spelled Eyumojok or Eyumodjock is a town, a commune in the Manyu Division in Cameroon. It’s remarkable that most of the causes of chieftaincy disputes as in Kembong village in Eyumojock sub division are said to have been caused by a multiplicity of factors e.g. colonialism brought independent people into common political or administrative unit as in Kembong; arbitrary borders created by the colonial powers now create division of same family members, hereditary issues, lack of clear unambiguous rules of succession, legibility to contest as a chief or the traditional ruler who are responsible for the implementation of decentralization policy are frequently judged matters in court. The paper reviewed literature, policy documents analysis, statistics, reports and archival records that offered useful information about the chieftaincy institutions criteria of transfer of power in the 66 villages in Eyumojock sub division are grouped up into 3 clans including the Ejagham Njemaya, Central Ejagham and Obang ethnic group. Further questions that are addressed in the study are the views of local villagers in Kembong about the ancient rotatory chieftaincy leadership are generously self-governing. The dominant hereditary form of governance has brought division among kembong people and a few other villages causing the implementation of the decentralization policy seems difficult. The case study drew upon several months of reviewing archival materials about Eyumojock Clan and Kembong chieftaincy stool in order to understand how chiefs in the division can be developed as actors for the implementation of decentralization plan. The findings of this study reveal three central issues: Firstly, the Criteria of transfer of the Chieftaincy Stool is under two headings: Social and Cultural Criteria of Transfer of the Chieftaincy Stool and the Economic and Political Criteria of Transfer of the Chieftaincy Stool. Secondly, the chieftaincy institution among the Eyumojook Clan in Manyu ethnic group was rotatory and not hereditary in nature as documented in a few literatures and explained by traditional rulers. The change of power from rotatory to hereditary mode of power had had considerable negative peaceful co-existence and instability in Kembong village and has made chieftaincy disputes obvious. Above all, the literature and archival records revealed that decentralization policy in Cameroon that has been operationalized since 1961 after independence can’t be totally effective at grassroots level were chiefs are the major actors in the implementation of the policy in Kembong and other villages in Eyumojock Sub Division.
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