Mbengwi Lads & Lasses Enjoy Belated Christmas in the Palace

Mbengwi Lads & Lasses Enjoy Belated Christmas Party in the Palace

For the first time ever, over 100 young boys and girls spent an exceptional belated Christmas day this year in the palace hall of Mbengwi village. Sunday December 27 2020 shall forever be remembered by the kids as the day they ate jollof rice and chicken, popcorn, biscuits, drank juices and danced together with their friends before later returning home, each with a cube of soap in hand.

An Exceptional Day

Partial View of the Mbengwi Palace Hall on the Day of the Party

Revealing the origin of the initiative to Mbengwi Online, Njoh Blanche Maureen Njweng that coordinated the kid's Christmas party said "A group of Mbengwi sons and daughters in the U.S.A known as Wumtaw headed by Afor Festia Tembeng contacted me that they want to put smiles on the faces of their younger ones back home that have been suffering from the ongoing Anglophone Crisis. As such they sent me some money to cook food and invite all the children for a common meal."

Though being in its first edition, her expectations are high that the initiative will continue annually and subsequently bigger. As to her driving force in happily coordinating the children, Madam Blanche said "I work for a charity N.G.O and coordinating kids as such is just part of me, it's my hobby.  I like being with children, spending my time sacrificing for them." She ended by wishing long life to the group known as Wumtaw while encouraging other young diasporans from Mbengwi village that haven't yet joint the group to do so immediately for unity. 

L: Prince Njokem Omri Forkeh (Rapper & Guest at the Party) 
R: Madam Njoh Blanche Maureen Njweng (Coordinator of the Party)

Food, Drinks, Snack & Soap for the Kids

Njokem Omri Forkeh is a prince of the Mbengwi palace. The budding Meta artist (rapper) had travelled home from Douala to spend Christmas and coincidentally had to witness the program. Reminiscing of his own childhood days in the village, he said "It's really a nice December because it's one in union after a long time though most of them (the kids) aren't dressed like we were in those our own days when everyone made sure he/she wore  "ne-nes" (eyeglasses) with "compleh-compleh" (matched) Christmas dresses. For us we just knew that Christmas means you need to eat rice, chicken and drink"

The maiden belated Christmas party was highly cherished by the kids. It was a day they spent eating, drinking and dancing though unfortunately, we noticed a very high influence of the Nigerian culture on the children. From their dancing styles and the songs they enjoyed, obviously, one could tell how repeatedly they've been listening and watching Nigerian musics radio, phones, MP3 players and on TV, loving them and retaining the lyrics plus dancing steps, this at the detriment of Cameroonian songs in general and Meta songs in particular. Our culture risks being completely extinct if these young ones continue embracing, learning and loving more of "Nija"

Eating Time

Dancing Time

To a majority, all they knew was that it's been announced to come attend a Christmas party in the palace but a few of them had an idea about the party organisers. Tebi Precious said "We are here to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ which is called Christmas, organised by our big brothers that are overseas. We thank them for giving us the opportunity to celebrate and pray that God should continue guiding them and giving them more"

With a successful holding of this first edition, expectations are high that the 2021 edition will bring together more kids and sponsors considering the dire need to rebuild the psychology of these kids that have undergone trauma in one way or the other because of the crisis and be deprived of their basic right to education for years now