Bomboko Forest Reserve Falls To Encroachers

More than 500 hectares of reserve forest could have been saved if the government had not retrenched most of the workers in the 90s.
By Che Martin
Over 1000 infiltrators including farmers have practically elbowed out government from the Bomboko Forest Reserve in Mbonge Subdivision, South West Region.
The encroachers barked the trees, burnt them down, used chemicals to kill weed and planted cocoyams, plantains, cassava other cash crops.
The reserve that was created in 1939 provided employment for over 1500 workers, who were gradually laid off. 
The workers planted trees in the savannah zone that was attached to the high tropical forest as per government policy.
When the savannah area had been exhausted, the planting was extended to the high forest
Problems reportedly set in when the tropical and savannah areas were put under the control of ONAREF. 
While the forest operated like plantations, the technicians organized what was termed the “Tonja system” whereby people were given the land to underbrush, fell, cross-cut unwanted trees and plant food crops only. 
The foresters then planted in the desired trees. When the trees matured, the farmers evicted themselves as their crops could no longer thrive well under the trees.
During this exercise, farmers paid “Tonja” rents to the national treasury. When later the areas carved out for a reserve and plantation began, the forestry workers took over the Tonjia system.
Ill-fate
What sealed the fate of the reserve began in the nineties when government retrenched most of the workers and left only a few forest guards to control the forest plantation and the forest reserve. Even these were later thrown out and the forest and plantation left without guards.
The natives and the population around the reserve, who needed farm land, plunged into it and started farming.
Meanwhile, the retrenched workers have been claiming one-year benefits for what they term wrongful retrenchment. 
After some pressure, government reportedly invited the workers, September 5-29, 2013, to Yaounde and paid them 50.000 frs cfa each.
They were promised that their money would be sent to the Regions.
Genesis 
The Bomboko Forest Reserve, which hitherto served as training, research and practical ground for students from the Mbalmayo Forestry and Wildlife School, began as a forestry plantation in 1959.
The first compoundment was planted in 1961 and was taken care of by foresters for 32 years. 
The Chief of Bova Bomboko, Lisongo Sako John, recalled he grew up and met the reserve, which was a virgin forest.
He said his father introduced it to him as the “Whiteman Bush”, not meant for farming. This, he said was in the fifties, when he was about seven years old. 
Chief Lisongo Sako remembered the demarcation that seperated the reserve and the native land. 
He said before the death of Chief Francis Ewange Lioki from whom he took over, there was an immense wildlife population in the forest. He also mentioned the South Bakundu Forest Reserve that has also been plundered. 
Chief Sako recalled that in 1977 and in 1978 the chiefs of the villages, chief of post and chief of base wrote a report to the authorities and to the farmers that there was encroachment in the reserve. 
Sako told The Green Vision that they used to have lions and elephants in the forest reserve but today, the animals are no longer there. The area remains unprotected. 
The Chief suggests the bringing in an of an industrial enterprise could create employment opportunities for the encroachers and discourage them from further ravaging the reserve.
The depletion of the forest, he lamented has brought untold hardship and lack of water.