After months of inactivity due to the current Anglophone crisis plaguing the South West Region, Mekanya has vowed to imminently restart operations to bring the estates back on their feet.

Although challenged by the loss of FCFA 40 billion since the crisis began and the fact that a whopping FCFA 1.3 billion is needed to restart activities, General Manager Chief Mekanya remains positive that Pamol will soon spring back to life.

“There are fresh hopes for the company, there is no way Pamol can collapse,” the GM has stated. Chief Mekanya and his team have just rounded- up a two-week campaign in the Lobe Estate, where they continuously preached the gospel of hope to workers, stakeholders and collaborators.

“We will take off very soon; though each time we have tried to go out for work, there has been a lot of hostility from these armed groups who do not want us to start. Why? Because they are benefitting from our palms,” regrets but remains positive.

Activities at Pamol have been paralysed; plantations have withered plantations and factory operations grounded due to insecurity in the North West and South West Regions. Unidentified armed men are said to have caused a lot of destruction on Pamol’s assets. The plantations are all overgrown and have developed into secondary forests. For the company to effectively resume her operations, the plantations and installations need to be rehabilitated.

Mekanya says workers are tired of waiting. “Everybody wants to go back to work,” he said, regretting that, “invaders are harassing workers and chasing them away from their residences and work places.”

“The workers are being threatened with kidnappings and death. I have lost about five workers who were slain by unidentified armed men,” he tearfully says.

According to the GM, the government is taking measures to make sure that sooner than later, the roads will be passable and they will be able to get their products out and start business again. He is optimistic that with the recent meeting with an army general in Lobe, there are brighter days ahead.

“He is going to put things in place so we will be able to carry our activity in total security; that is what we have been promised and we count so much on that because each time we are in difficulty they have been prompt to act, so we thank them so much for their presence,” said Mekanya.

The Lobe Estate is gradually taking shape for take-off. For the last two weeks, engineers could be seen servicing company’s generator, caterpillars cleaning the roads, head office, and its environs.