The death of the now ex Mayor of Buea, Patrick Ekema Esunge was confirmed on Sunday October 27 after he passed away in a clinic in Douala.

His death has left many in shock and consternation given that he was still at his prime and still had many political battles ahead of him that he has left to journey to the world bayond.

However, a look back at his life shows he has fought and won several political battles of his own though shrouded in a lot of controversy. So, what does Patrick Ekema Esunge leave behind as a legacy?

The firebrand Mayor will be remembered as a mascot in the fight against ghost towns imposed by separatist activists in Buea and the entire South West and North West Regions.

In a bid to frustrate the ghost town actions, he frequently provided fuel to taxi drivers to work on ghost town days while he put business persons under pressure to open their shops.

In fighting against the ghost towns, he raised eyebrows with some of his actions like sealing shops or breaking shops that respected the ghost towns. However, his continuous fight paid off as part of Buea defied the ghost towns and was regularly active on Mondays.

His Political Legacy

His political legacy is as controversial as the figure as Patrick Ekema fell out with almost all the CPDM bigwigs in the Fako Division. Ironically, he had a strong political romance with the CPDM elite in the South region where he frequently visited. Despised by his own ‘political comrades’ in the Fako Division, credit must be given to him for weathering the storm and continue to survive in such a toxic atmosphere. He had a firm grip on the Buea municipality and was a front runner to maintain his position as Mayor in the upcoming Municipal elections. However, death had other plans and Patrick Ekema will not stay on to finish some of the projects he started for the municipality. But his legacy lives on.