Ambasssador Lawal Bappah, mni, the Nigerian Consul-General to the North-west and South-west regions of Cameroon with residence in Buea, is an embodiment of diplomatic experience, having served in different capacities and in different countries as a trusted and dedicated diplomat of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for many years. Apart from being a diplomat, Bappah has demonstrated the worth of experience in his capacity at every duty.
His appointment as Consul General has been a blessing to Nigerians under his consular jurisdiction as he has facilitated lots of well-being acts, from both the Cameroon government and the Nigerian government; as he serves to ensure every Nigerian in his jurisdiction lives under the stipulated laws and orders.
Before his current appointment in Cameroon, this distinguished career diplomat had served in different countries, including Kuwait with concurrent accreditation to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar, Ghana, Morocco and China.
The Nigerian Consul General has been honoured in different capacities for his relentless efforts and magnanimous attitude in carrying out his duties diligently. He was recently honoured by the Coalition of Willing Lawyers (CoW) and All Africans for Africa in Cameroon for enhancing a peaceful relationship between the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the people of the Republic of Cameroon living in the North-west and South-west regions of Cameroon. The laudable activities of the Consul-General had also led to his being conferred with a chieftaincy title of “Èyólé of Buea” (Peacemaker) by His Royal Highness Chief Etina Monono of Great Soppo, Buea in the South-west of Cameroon.
Setting the record straight, the CoW applauded the Consul General for constantly educating Nigerian nationals in Cameroon about their civic responsibilities to the country they reside in; to be law-abiding, and also for his laudable role in the repatriation to Nigeria of aged, sick and stranded Nigerians as well as ex Nigerian prisoners in Cameroon. These gestures have distinguished the class of His Excellency Bappah who always preaches and duly operates on the rule of law.
As an experienced diplomat who has had opportunities to ensure sanity and peace in different countries, he deemed it fit as part of his duties in Cameroon to extend his Consular tour to communities in Bakassi.
Communities like Kombo Itindi, Idabato and Bekumu where there are over 100,000 Nigerians came out to cheer the Nigerian diplomat with celebrations in the communities, seeking opportunities to express their joy and good feelings. The intention of the Consul General was to extend hands of friendship and brotherhood to every Nigerian in the communities. During the visit, he urged Cameroonian authorities to offer more social amenities and adequate security protection to both Cameroonian and Nigerian communities in Bakassi.
The Nigerians in Cameroon have seen Ambassador Bappah as a reputable and reliable diplomat with maximum experience and the ability to do more. He is undoubtedly a trustworthy person with self-respect and an exemplary leader with a large heart.
Ambassador Bappah’s technicality played out again when the Federal Government, through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), donated relief materials to over 5,000 Nigerian refugees in Bakinjaw, Messanga Ekol and environs in Akwaya Sub-division, Manyu Division of South-West Region of the Republic of Cameroon in May 2023.
In 2022, the Chief of Bakinjaw, H.R.H Linus Ukpam Agwa reported to the Consulate-General of Nigeria about the influx of over 7,000 Nigerians who fled inter-tribal conflicts between Fulani herdsmen and Tiv farmers from Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State, Nigeria, into Bakinjaw, Messanga Ekol and environs.
As a team player, the Ambassador sponsored a team, comprising the President of Nigerian Union in Ekok, Cameroon, Chief Kalu Itam and the Union’s Secretary to Bakinjaw for on the spot assessment of the situation. The team successfully undertook the assignment and confirmed the presence of about 6,811 Nigerian refugees in Bakinjaw, Messanga Ekol and environs.
His Excellency Bappah’s formidable team in Buea expeditiously forwarded its report to relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in Nigeria and requested immediate relief materials for the displaced Nigerians in Bakinjaw, Messanga Ekol and environs.
As a result, the NEMA dispatched a two-man team, led by its Director of Relief and Rehabilitation to the Consul-General, to reassess the requirements of the Nigerian refugees and to ascertain the best route to deliver the relief materials to them.
To whom much is given, much is expected; Ambassador Bappah ensured that people’s will was done. NEMA dispatched three-trailer loads of relief materials from NEMA depot in Jos, Plateau State to Bakinjaw. The relief materials included food items such as thousands of bags of rice, beans, cartons of indomie noodles, sugar, milk, salt and non-food items like floor mats, clothing for women, men and children as well as first aid and basic medications.
Jubilation and celebration erupted in the villages. Kings and leaders were delighted with Bappah’s level of capacity. The distribution of the relief materials was a huge success. Majority of the refugees expressed their gratitude for the support received as could be seen in the attached letter addressed to the Consul-General.
The seasoned diplomat took over as Consul-General to the North-west and South-west from Honourable Ibrahim Mohammed Bashir in 2021 after the latter’s completion of his three-year tour of duties.
Ambassador Bappah had also visited several other countries on official engagements. These countries included the United States of America, Brazil, Japan, United Kingdom, France, Saudi Arabia, China, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.
He had dutifully served at different divisions of Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He had been Director of Programmes at the Directorate of Technical Aid Corps (DTAC); and served as Director, Asia and Far East, Europe, and America.
Bappah obtained his primary and secondary certificates from Darazo Central Primary School and Government Secondary School, respectively, in Bauchi State, Nigeria. He later obtained a Bachelor’s degree in History and International Relations from the University of Maiduguri before joining Nigeria’s Foreign Service. This patriotic Nigerian attended several top management courses, including the Nigerian Foreign Service Academy (FSA).
He also attended Nigeria’s apex policy institute, the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), in Kuru, Jos, Plateau State of Nigeria and bagged the coveted title of Member of the National Institute (mni) in 2017.
