Serious tension is reportedly brewing inside the Court of First Instance in Victoria, Fako County, after a group of magistrates and court registrars accused top judicial authorities of allegedly masterminding illegal cuts on their output allowances.
According to complaints submitted to BaretaNews, several judicial workers serving in Victoria say they are being forced to sign official output documents listing higher amounts, only to later receive far smaller sums stuffed into cash envelopes. The alleged deductions, according to insiders, sometimes climb as high as 50,000 FCFA.
The disgruntled court workers claim the practice has created fear and frustration within the courthouse, with many allegedly scared to question the unexplained cuts for fear of victimisation or administrative retaliation from the hierarchy.
Sources within the Victoria Court reportedly pointed fingers at some senior judicial authorities, including the Registrar-in-Chief, the President of the Court and the State Counsel, whom many staff allegedly suspect of supervising or tolerating the controversial deductions. However, no direct documentary evidence has yet surfaced publicly to firmly establish the allegations.
Judicial staff further lamented that such alleged practices are reportedly absent in neighbouring jurisdictions such as Buea and Tiko, raising fresh questions about transparency and accountability within the Victoria judicial circuit.
In strong terms in their complaint, the workers declared that “justice should begin in the house of justice,” stressing that many magistrates, registrars, and lower-court employees without influential positions are aware of the alleged scheme but remain too frightened to speak openly.
The matter is now rapidly escalating into a potential institutional crisis, as the complainants warned that if competent authorities fail to urgently investigate and stop the alleged deductions, judicial workers in Victoria may resort to strike action in the days ahead.
At press time, the officials accused in the complaint had not publicly responded to the allegations.
The revelations come at a time when many Southern Cameroonians continue to question the integrity and credibility of La République’s judicial institutions operating across Ambazonia.
By Lucas Muma | BaretaNews
