Prof. Martin Zachary Njeuma

 

Re: Have a blessed Birthday From: Zac Njeuma (zacfako@yahoo.com)

To: Christine Njeuma (njeumac@hotmail.com)

RECORD CLUB (THE RECORD CLASS, SASSE COLLEGE)

 

         

Permit me, first of all, on behalf of the Record Club, to address to Mrs. Dorothy NJEUMA and the family, our heartfelt condolences and the expression of our profound compassion.

 

            We have come to mourn another distinguished Recorder in the person of Professor Martin Zachary NJEUMA. The wicked hand of death has once more struck our rank and file.

 

            You know we share your grief, much more so that if the physics of sentiment were weighted in terms of duration of friendships, we can assert with reasonable justification that the balance of grief will tip more in favour of Record Club.

 

            Martin Zacharia NJEUMA joined the 1953 class in 1955 to which he was promoted following streamlining of Sasse College from a six to a five year course. He was a brilliant and astute student and had all the ingredients to qualify and merit membership of our class. It was a revolutionary class. The most famous and the most notorious students were found in this class. We were stigmatized by the college authorities, and were regarded and treated as one of the worst bunch of students the college had ever known. But, we ended up with unbroken academic records which brought great honour and pride to Sasse College, and have continued setting more records beyond the college; the appointment of His Lordship Bishop Francis Lysinge being the most astonishing of these records. Martin NJEUMA was one of those in the forefront of our strife for justice, human dignity and excellence in Sasse.

 

He was one of the moving figures who founded the Record Club in Buea on 15^th August 1970. He was elected to the pioneer six man executive as Assistant Secretary. Although his academy career kept him on the move most of the time, he remained a committed member of the peer group. He initiated and wrote the History of the Record Class on the Silver Jubilee of our graduation from Sasse College. Until his death, he was the national treasurer of the Record Club.

 

Martin was known and recognised as an intelligent, honest, hardworking, and likeable fellow. He was easy going, but firm. He contributed in no small measure to the excellence in society of which the Record Club prides itself. He was an eminent scholar. From our research, he was the first Cameroonian to acquire PhD in history; one of the earliest professors of the then only Cameroon university; pioneer Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Buea.

 

Martin, counting our losses, we can briefly say by your death, we have come to an abrupt end of 56 years of sustained friendship. We have lost the class only historian; our dwindling numbers have shrunk even further. You have left a vacuum for the Record Club in the academic field. We miss you and will continue to do so. We know you have just gone the way of all of us. There is a sizeable colony of Recorders waiting to welcome you.

 

            Go in peace and may you find eternal rest and happiness in God’s celestial Kingdom.

 

To conclude, like Brutus to Julius Caesar his friend, we say, “now that we’ve come to the parting of ways, may this parting be well made”

 

REQUIESCAT IN PACEM.

 

John Shonga Welashey /EM                                                   Record Club

  

Uncle Zac and I go back a long way: in the early 1970's, he used to come to visit Daddy in London. Invariably, he'd join me in watching wrestling. We had the same favourite wrestler: an African called Honey Boy Zimba. Uncle Zac actually took the time to listen to a "trong-head pikin", which went a long way toward resolving nascent self-esteem issues.
 
When I was in From IV in Sasse, Uncle Zac and Aunty made an official visit. Unfortunately, I was asleep at the back of the class when the delegation came in. Uncle Zac instantly proclaimed that he used to sit and sleep in the exact same chair when HE was in Sasse!
 
Uncle drove me to the airport in 1980 when I left for university. I can still remember that we were so deep in conversation that we almost didn't notice how his Hyundai Pony was struggling to  climb the hill after Brasseries.
 
Over the years, as the irrationalities of weddings and funerals took their toll, the one constant father figure was Uncle. Whether he was letting me rant, and then cautioning me to be more diplomatic with everyone else, or endorsing some of my unconventional positions (which he usually laughingly agreed with), he made the loads bearable.
 
Uncle Zac was very, very good to me. It's almost as if the men of his generation gave so much to those on the outside that there was often not enough left for those on the inside. 
 
JJ

Ottawa, Canada

Zachary was a good husband and father and a delightful friend! We have known him since 1968 when he came to visit us in the States. He and his wife, Dorothy, (who has been a close friend since our College days) later brought Embelle and Christine to visit. However, our fondest memories of him are from our year-long stay in Buea in 2001-2002. His wit and his curiosity about everything were contagious! We admired his scholarship, his intelligence, and his loyalty, and we will miss him. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.