Rev. Dr. Teke John In Yaounde : To Foster Peace, Reconciliation, Holistic Development

The Executive President of the Cameroon Baptist Convention, CBC, Rev. Dr. Teke John Ekema, is visiting the Yaounde Field Council of CBC Churches. His 15th visit to a field since his induction in January 2025. The visit began on June 27, 2025 with a tour of CBC institutions (schools and health facilities) in the capital. And on Saturday, June 28, 2025, Rev. Dr. Teke and his team were welcomed by Christians and pastors of Yaounde Field in Etoug-Ebe Baptist Church, Yaounde. Rev. Dr. Teke concludes his tour on Sunday, June 29, 2025 after worshipping in Salvation Baptist Church, Obili, Yaounde.

Appreciation 
Talking to the media afterwards, Rev. Dr. Teke John Ekema said the visit to the Yaounde Field of CBC Churches was for fellowship, to share with one another, and appreciate the Christians for participating in the Decentralized General Session elections of November 23, 2024 in various centres across the country. “I appreciated the confidence they bestowed in my team and myself as leaders of the Cameroon Baptist Convention,” he said. 

Vision For CBC 
“I also came to share with them my vision for the Cameroon Baptist Convention. I took time to remind them of the CBC motto, vision, mission and Church Covenant. As a church, we have only one Lord. And when we subscribe to the leadership of Jesus Christ, we are brothers and sisters, and should see ourselves as such – as a family. 

Peace, Reconciliation, Development  
“I also talked about peace, reconciliation and holistic development. We need peace in the Convention because we have gone through a lot. The enemy rejoices when he sees children of God in trouble, divided. I reminded Christians of Yaounde Field that we have one common enemy – the devil.

"We must all rally together and fight this enemy, and not one another. The Bible reminds us that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers which are spiritual entities working hard to divide the church of God. Therefore, we must pray hard and work together,” Rev. Dr. Teke underscored. 

Executive President’s Representative 
“I encouraged them to support their pastors, pray for them and make their work easy. I reminded them the Field Pastor is the representative of the Executive President in Yaounde Field. I commended Yaounde Field for the great work it is doing. It is one of the largest fields in the CBC, and they are doing a lot – so many preaching stations. Yaounde Field has also given birth to Mbam Field,” he noted.

CBTS Accredited 
“It is good news for the Cameroon Baptist Convention that its seminary in Ndu has now been granted full accreditation by the Accrediting Council for Theological Education in Africa, ACTEA. This is very important for us. The seminary was recognized, but didn’t have full accreditation. It now offers up to Master’s degrees. The accreditation is an inspiration for us to look forward to the possibility of offering terminal degrees in CBTS Ndu. This discussion is already on the table,” the CBC Executive President disclosed. 
 

Basis For Advancement 
“We were so glad the CBC Executive President visited Yaounde Field. He shared with us the vision he has for the church, Christians and the community at large. We also discussed with him the challenges we face in Yaounde Field. The visit was very primordial because it set the basis for the advancement of work in the next five years of Rev. Dr. Teke John Ekema’s first tenure,” Rev. Jumbuin Enoch, Pastor, Yaounde Field Council of CBC Churches, underscored.        

Baptist University 
During the meeting with Christians and pastors of Yaounde Field, Rev. Dr. Ekema requested prayers for the projects his team has in mind for the CBC. First, he said the process for the creation of a Baptist University is almost complete. Adding that at 70 years, it was time the CBC owned a university. 

CBC Microfinance 
He announced plans to create a CBC micro-finance institution to which Christians can contribute money and apply for loans to empower themselves and create employment. “This will be a great support to the existing CBC Development Fund and other development funds run by some CBC fields,” he stressed. 

Insurance Company, Children’s Hospital 
Rev. Dr. Teke also said the CBC planned to create an insurance company to insure CBC members’ and church vehicles, thereby creating employment. He said the CBC Health Services alone has more than 200 vehicles. And the CBC spends millions of FCFA each year to insure its vehicles with “outside” insurance companies. Other forthcoming projects are the creation of a CBC television channel and the construction in Mutengene in the South West Region of an 18 billion FCFA state-of-the-art children’s hospital under the CBC Health Services. 

Free Treatment For Children
For now, Rev. Dr. Teke stressed, there are only two of such hospitals in Africa – the Mandela Children’s Hospital in South Africa and one in Cote d’Ivoire. The children’s hospital to be constructed in Mutengene is a gift from a US-based Cameroonian-American medical doctor. The donor has directed that the treatment of children in the hospital be free. Meanwhile, the groundbreaking for the Mutengene Baptist Children’s Hospital will be done by the end of 2025, Rev. Dr. Teke announced. 
He rejoiced at the news that the Cameroon Baptist Theological Seminary, Ndu in Donga-Mantung Division of the North West Region has now been accredited by the Accrediting Council for Theological Education in Africa, ACTEA.

CBC’s Unique Identity 
He appealed to CBC Christians to respect Baptist beliefs and distinctives, and to be one another’s keeper. He also felicitated administrators of CBC institutions in Yaounde Field for the great work they are doing, reminding everyone that the Field Pastor is his representative in the field. 
Speaking on CBC distinctives or what makes the church unique, Rev. Dr. Teke John called for their re-examination, one after the other. These distinctives are the CBC motto, “One Lord, one faith, one baptism” from Ephesians 4:5, which clearly defines the CBC’s identity. As a result, there is no need to fight each other, the CBC Executive President pointed out. On the CBC’s mission statement, he recalled the church exists to glorify God…. And so God’s glory should not be taken by anyone; and the gospel needs to be proclaimed holistically, he noted. 
Concerning the CBC’s vision, Rev. Dr. Teke reminded Christians that the CBC is a living fellowship of churches, growing together by grace. He recited the Church Covenant, stressing each commitment and the need for pastors to organize serial lessons on the CBC Church Covenant. He announced that 2025 is a year of jubilee, during which he will pursue peace and reconciliation. He called on Christians to pray for the 11 cases against the CBC to be brought to an end. “Let us be part of the solution, not the problem. Let’s shame the devil causing disharmony,” Pastor Teke appealed.   

Beware Of Social Media Distortions! 
He instructed Christians to respect hierarchy, collaborate with the Field Pastor and not bypass their church authorities by taking their challenges straight to CBC headquarters in Bamenda. The CBC Executive President...