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Showing posts with the label ANGLOPHONE CRISIS

My Journey On Foot To Bali And Back

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By Raymond Dingana The reason for this journey was to have a first hand experience on how trekking on the 19km road from Bamenda to Bali looks like.  This is how many have been trekking for two weeks now following the ban on commercial bikes and vehicles by the North West Administration and Separatiat fighters respectively. When it first came to our notice that, people were covering the 19km road on foot, we thought it was fake news reason why we decided to go see things for ourselves. Our 19Km journey to Bali that started at about 8:30am, Tuesday August 3rd, 2021 began like a joke. The first one hour was cool making us feel like extending the trip to Batibo and beyond.  The fresh breeze from the hills of Naaka energized us as we embarked on the 19km journey. The road was void of vehicles and motor bikes. Just after the Naaka bridge, we met people of different ages trekking to Bali and others coming back, a clear indication that, they left very early. Men, women and children could be

Armed Conflict In NW/SW: Improvised Explosive Hits Police Van In Bali

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Suspected Separatist fighters in Bali Nyonga have hit a police anti terrorist van at mile 84 on the Banenda- Bali highway.  The vehicle was hit by an improvised explosives device,IED planted by the fighters in the early hours of Tuesday April 27,2021. It is not clear if there were casualties or not. Those who used that stretch of the road Tuesday morning said ,they saw the damaged police vehicle after the incident. The use of IEDs is gradually gaining grounds in the ongoing armed conflict rocking the restive north west and south west regions of Cameroon. Many have raised concerns that, civilains who are non combattants may also b affected by these explosives as it has been the case on many occasions, reason why the strategy has always come under fire from the population. Bali is one of the hot spots in the current armed conflict. The village has suffered greatly as a result of the crisis.  Many military raids have been carried out to dislodge the non state armed groups but the desired

Men In Military Fatigues Kill Four In Bamenda

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The boys were killed by those eye witnesses say were men dressed in military fatigues similar to that of the Cameroon army Saturday January 23,2021. They were killed barely a day after the president of the North West Regional Council,Prof.Fru Angwafor said,they shall be no waste of lives and property in the region anymore. A Bird View Of Bamenda Town From Up Station Nadine Lum, a trader at the Bamenda food market said, it all started when some men she could not identify on-board a hilux vehicle drove passed T-Junction shooting in the air. "After the shootings, the men in military uniforms arrived the scene,went towards meta quarters owhere they met these four friends in an abandoned building.They boys were called and the came not knowing that was going to be their end as they were all shot dead. I hear they were consuming marijwana reason why they were killed." she said. We are also gathering on the ground that,the four were gunned down in an abandoned building and the bodi

Atanga Nji Says Calls For Separatists To Drop Weapons Bearing Fruits

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 By Raymond Dingana The minister of Territorial Administration has saluted the fruitfulness of what he describes as  President Paul Biya's call for separatist fighters to drop their weapons and abandon the bushes. He pointed out that,many separatist fighters have continued to lay down their weapons and are having a new life at the Centre for Disarmament,Dimobilization and Reintegration-DDR. He also indicated that, five separatist fighters handed their weapons to a village head at about 10:30pm on monday. The identity and  name of the village were never disclosed.  " The fighters handed their weapons to their fon at about 10:30 Pm on the night of Monday after the security meeting we had. The weapons are very dangerous and have been used to terrorise the villagers. They will be taking to the DDR Centre where they will be taken care of."  MINAT boss said. Weapons Handed Over By Separatist Fighters As Indicated By Minister Atanga Nji Paul Handing over the five old dane guns t

Insecurity: Youths Continue To Perish As Politicians Kick Against Genuine Dialogue

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 By Raymond Dingana The Divisional Delegate of Communication for Momo and four soldiers are the latest youths to have been sent to early graves by what many have described as a senseless war raging on in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon. Madam Rebecca  Jeme Liwusi and the four soldiers met their demise when suspected separatist fighters in Njikwa hit the  vehicle they were on board with Improvised Explosive Device IEDs returning from Ngie, Tuesday night. those that were wounded when about three of the vehicles were torched include, the former Divisional Officer for Andek, the chief protocol officer at the Momo SDO's office and an undisclosed number of soldiers. Becky,When She Was Still Alive. According to Reports, the convoy was that of the Senior Divisional Officer for Momo on its way back from  installing the newly appointed Divisional Officers for Ngie and Njikwa, Harra Amatangana Maxim and Benjamin Belinga respectively. This latest and painful deaths as indicat

Hit With Tough Questions,Bamenda City Mayor Takes On Journalist

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By Raymond Dingana The Mayor of the Bamenda City Council, Paul Achobang has described a journalist working for Abakwa FM Radio as not being  normal  when he sought to know from him why Mayors, Members of parliament and others find it difficult to press for another dialogue to end the war in the two restive regions of the country. This was during one of his campaigns to end ghost town operations in Bamenda that took place recently at the Commercial Avenue Grandstand which he said was also in solidarity with those that have suffered losses as a result of the Anglophone Crisis.  The question came when the mayor said from 2021,ghost town operations will be history and that those that will continue to heed to calls from separatists to respect ghost towns will have themselves to blame. The Journalist who was driving the worries of The population as to what they think should be the best way out asked the Mayor. "Mr City Mayor,the population thinks that,the best way out of this is through

Armed Men Seize Church Bell In Sop

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By Raymond Dingana The Presbyterian Church Sop in Jakiri ,Bui Division of the North West Region has lost its aged old Church bell to those eye withesses say were pro independence fighters. Acording to Wirgo Godblesss,the boys came saying they needed the bell to produce war weapons and face those they called their enemy: "There were five of them claiming to be seperatist fighters stormed Presbyterian Church Sop and collected the church bell in broad day. They said the bell was raw material for the production of bullets," Wirngo said. For Illustration. He added that,they were at the same church sometimes last year.Thanks to pleas from the church pastor, they left without the church bell. He furtherd that this time around,they came when the pastor was out for out station duties.

Bamenda: Women Protest Against Kumba Killings, But D.O. Calls Them Pretenders

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  By Raymond Dingana Women drawn from different walks of life have taken to the streets of Bamenda denouncing the killing of students at the Mother Francisca International Bilingual Academy in Kumba, Tuesday October 27,2020 . They carried  placards bearing  messages like, ''Education is a must for our children,'' ''Education is not negotiable,'' ''End the war in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon,'' ''We need peace'' among others, the women accompanied by their male counterparts marched through the major streets of Bamenda and made a stop at the office of Mr. Nicolas Nkongho Manchang, Divisional Officer, D.O. for Bamenda II Subdivision. The D.O.'s remarks were  not well received by the women. While addressing the women, the D.O. said, many of them were pretending and that, they know where the boys are: “ Most of them who are out here today know where the boys killing are children are hiding, but th

Kumba School Massacre: Government/Separatists Romance Reduce Youths To Corpses.

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By Raymond Dingana Both the government of Cameroon and leaders of the separatist movement have on several occasions mounted roof tops telling those that care to listen that,they are out to protect their people .The irony here is that,those they say they are protecting are the same people dying in their hands. The recent case is what many have described as a macabre act on children whom to them were only out to gain education for a better future. Victims Being Taken To The Mortuary According to a list said to have been published on line from an unknown source, six students, five girls and one boy lost their lives while and thirteen wounded when gun men attacked Mother Francisca International Academy in Fiango, Kumba II, Saturday October 24,2020.The document also indicated that,the list was drawn in a hurry and that, it was not exact. List Of Those That Died And Those That Were Wounded In The Shootings In Kumba The incident was that of shock and consternation as many could not believe

Insecurity: Night Life Shrinks As beer Parlours Become Targets.

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  By Raymond Dingana Night life around the mobile  neighbourhood, a popular vicinity in Nkwen Bamenda, highly concentrated with drinking parlours have seen night life activities greatly reduced recently. Reports say; many fear going out to catch fun now and take a drink after two explosive devices went off in two different bars Tuesday;06 October at about 8pm  .One other  was discovered in another bar still in Nkwen on Thursday 08 October 2020. The explosion left customers affected with wounds and some have been hospitalized though other sources say, no one was wounded and that, it would appear the perpetrators were just firing a warning shot. According to Chia Walters, a client to one of the bars that was targeted on  Tuesday, going out to have fun will have to wait for a while. "Going out these days especially at night is risky and has to wait after an explosion occurred in my favourite drinking spot. I was there when it went off and i felt like the world was coming to an end.

Reconstruction Of NW/SW: Religious Authorities Didn't Speak For Us-Bamenda Population

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  By  Raymond Dingana Many in Bamenda have been reacting to the recent outing by religious authorities in the North West Region of Cameroon accusing them of taking sides with government and not the suffering masses in the two restive regions of the country. This came days after news went wild that, religious leaders from Anglophone Cameroon have met in Douala and backed government's reconstruction and development plan for the regions. According to Mr. Nkwenti, a Catholic Christian, he has had enough from the church because the church has been playing politics pretending to care about the masses though not speaking for them. "The church is selfish, the reason behind their latest outing is because church offerings are not coming the way it use to be. They think only about themselves, did never represented us in that meeting. Again, their schools have suffered a lot reasons why all they want to see is an end to the crisis even if it has little to do with the wellbeing of th

UNESCO Heritage Sites: Anger In Bafut As Palace Is Touched.

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By Raymond Dingana The Bafut community at home and abroad is reacting with anger following the recent happenings at the Palace, in the North West Region of Cameroon. According to a source in Bafut who opted for anonymity, on Thursday August 06, 2020, men in military Uniforms stormed the palace and occupied the Bujong Cultural Hall which is part of the Royal Bafut Palace, included on a Tentative List Of World Heritage Site since 2006 by   UNESCO . “ On Saturday August 08, armed men in military attires have been moving in and out of the Palace saying, they are looking Fon Abumbi III of Bafut for what I don’t know. The Bujong Cultural Hall which is part of the Bafut Palace, added on a Tentative List of World Heritage Sites since 2006 by   UNESCO   was  occupied to the discontentment of the Bafut Community . The palace did not sleep breaking Saturday because of heavy gun shots. The home of Pa Asanji of blessed memory and the campus of GS Bujong were also occupied by the men in unifo

Reconstruction Of NW/SW: Stake Holders Disagree With National Coordinator.

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By Raymond Dingana Some stake holders in the plan to reconstruct and development the embittered North West and South West Regions of Cameroon have disagreed on whether reconstruction and development should come before peace of the other way round. During his five -day visit to the NWR that was aimed at creating awareness and sensitizing the beneficiaries of the Plan, the National Coordinator of the PPRD, Minister Tasong Paul said, reconstruction and development can go on without a complete return to peace. "We are aware of the disbelief of many and the bad faith of others. A question has been address to me many times to know if we can rebuild when peace has not yet fully returned. As I said in each occasion; as I will say tomorrow; I'm saying now that, the answer is a big yes. Yes because reconstruction is a path way to peace, yes because it will be done gradually from peaceful and secured areas to the more unstable areas”. Minister Tasong said. National Coordinator Of Th

Rebuilding NW/SW: Bamenda Declaration, Return Of Peace For Meaningful Development.

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By Raymond Dingana The necessity for the return of peace for meaningful development to take place was again spotlighted in what has now come to be known as "the Bamenda Declaration of June 26,2020". According to the document that was read by Mr.Ndzerem Stephen Njodzeka of SHUMAS,   the exchanges went beyond reconstruction and development as the participants saw the need for the return of peace to the region so that meaningful development can take place, the reconciliation of all sons and daughters of the region so that they can pull all our resources together and rebuild what the declaration described as the once beautiful, prosperous North West Region. The restoration of social cohesion, the provision of livelihood for the jobless, the restoration of human dignity ,through sensitization, change of mind set, of the entire population of the region were also highlighted. This according to the declaration will enable all to embark on the peace building process and pave the