Jacques François Mbei, a nurse specialising in childcare at the Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (FMSB) in Yaoundé, Cameroon, committed suicide by setting himself on fire.
The shocking incident happened on September 5, 2023.
According to Mbei’s family and friends, the alleged psychological abuse that his thesis supervisor committed drove him to commit suicide. MMI learned the programme is called the Centre de l’Enseignement Supérieur en Soins Infirmiers (CESSI), under the faculty of the FMSB, where nurses are admitted to specialise.
Mbei had told his friends his thesis director constantly “berated him, made him feel worthless, and threatened to fail him if he did not meet his demands. He also said that the director refused to guide him and that he was made to feel like an outsider.”
Devastated family and friends
The loss of Mbei has understandably devastated his friends. Responding to MMI on Facebook Messenger, one of his friends, Perez Mboulla, said he was devastated by the news of the death.
“I just confirmed that he died of suicide and that is the most hurtful part of it all. I don’t understand what drove him to take such drastic action,” Mboulla said.
Other friends and family have been commenting on what a wonderful person and father Mbei was.
Calls for justice
Now that Mbei is no more, they are calling for justice. They have called for an investigation into the death of their brother and for the lecturer, who they say could be treating other students in a similar manner, to be investigated.
His family has urged the Minister of Higher Education, Professor Jacques Fame Ndongo, to step in.
“The Ministry has covered the sector to organise the entrance exam without the agreement of the FMSB. Consequentially, admitted students suffer negligence, refusal to teach, and psychological torture,” noted Mbei’s friend.
Friends and family have described the passing of Mbei as “a tragic death that should have been avoided. He was a talented nurse with a bright future ahead of him.”
Jacques François Mbei, will be buried on Saturday.
