CI-NEWS

"Entrance into ENAM will be based on meritocracy"..Minister Joseph LE assures NW candidates.

2019-07-23

No: 437

"Entrance into ENAM will be based on meritocracy"..Minister Joseph LE assures NW candidates.

By Etoh Anzah George in Bamenda

Following worries raised by some Anglophone lawyers at the start of the 2016 strike action, high instructions were given by the head of state for the set-up of an adhoc commission whose role was to champion the special recruitment of Anglophone legal personnel for the North West and South West regional jurisdictions.

In compliance with the reforms within the Supreme Court and National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM), the creation of today’s Common Law section was placed under the minister of public service and administrative reforms with the charge of designing, coordinating and evaluating the operations that will lead to the recruitment of special pupil magistrates and student court registrars of English expression into ENAM within a 4-year period 2017-2020. In view of the above the commission’s role amongst which was to adopt timetable for execution of recruitment, supervise the selection of the written and oral tests, draw up a provisional list of selected candidates, supervise the communications strategy, Minister Joseph Le of the Public Service and Administrative Reforms visited the examination centre for these candidates in a bid to ascertain the effective writing phase in the North West.

In a bid to see the implementation of the decision to recruit 120 student court registrars within the 4-year period and 200 pupil magistrates under the same time span, the minister was on his feet to see this happen. The 2019 phase which will see 50 pupil magistrates and 30 student court registrars join the public service, to him, will be a game changer. The commission which is made up of representatives from the General Secretariat of the Presidency, General Secretariat of the Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Public Service and Administrative Reforms, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Higher Education, the Ministry of Finance and the National School of Administration and Magistracy are therefore vested with the powers to see the instruction executed. The recruitment which without distinction concerns Cameroonians fulfilling the conditions required will in a nutshell harness and answer the plight of the marginalization-stricken Common Law System. It should be noted 100 pupil magistrates and 60 student court registrars are part of the training at ENAM for the 2017 / 2018 session.

Against allegations of influence peddling, corruption and complaints that previous sessions of the examination still gave room for more Francophone candidates to get places reserved to those from the North West and South West regions, Minister Joseph Le promised transparency and meritocracy would guide the selection process.

“My visit therefore gives me joy to note that despite the security concerns, they are taking these examinations with relative ease and tranquility and all I can say is wish them good luck while hoping they emerge successful.”

He promised “entrance will be based on meritocracy".

“We have about 40 candidates in Bamenda with other centres in Buea, Garoua, and Yaounde and after this phase the correction will be in Yaounde but be rest assured only the best will be admitted. There is no other way. There is nothing to pay anywhere or to anybody," he added.

Escalating concerns over the establishment and follow-up of files at the public service had led to the creation of the SIGIPES service in the regional delegation of public service and administrative reforms of the NW region for purposes of de-congestion. To the question whether civil servants can rely on the service for a quick follow-up of their files, Minister Le said he is a bearer of a message of encouragement from the head of state and despite the challenging nature they have put in their best."SIGIPES is an instrument to manage state employees, meaning a state employee in Batibo or Nwa or Njikwa or Ikweri only has to come to the regional delegation and state the problem to the competent administrative authority who will look into a possible solution or call us in Yaounde and this will be solved and the solution sent to them. Thus they no longer need to take the risk to Yaounde. We are trying to solve the problem and we know progressively we will attain our objectives but certainly there is no need to take a venture to Yaounde for issues of documents.”

To this effect, Mrs Tiah Antoinette attests to have benefitted from the rich services of the ministry which she says is a plus and a booster to the procedures.

On the sidelines of the event, the regional delegation of public service offered a traditional seat to their national boss as a sign of welcome and a need to come again. The gesture was further saluted by a donation of 250,000 frs to the workers of the regional delegation.

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"Entrance into ENAM will be based on meritocracy"..Minister Joseph LE assures NW candidates.