Radicalized by the government’s
use of death squads and arsonists to intimidate Southern Cameroonian fighters,
a senior government official on Monday, January 20, 2020, clearly expressed his
frustration with the government’s strategy to end the rebellion in the two
English-speaking regions of the country.
Speaking to the Cameroon Concord News Group Chairman,
Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai, over the phone, the senior official who elected
anonymity said he was really frustrated with the manner in which the Yaounde government
had mismanaged the Southern Cameroons crisis which started as simple protests
by teachers, lawyers and students.
He said his anger boiled over
because of the speech delivered by the country’s president, Paul Biya, on
December 31, 2019, wherein he promised more violence to Southern Cameroonians
if the fighters did not down their weapons.
“I am still at a loss for words. After three good years, we still
believe that only military violence and atrocities can help restore peace in
the two English-speaking regions of the country,” he said.
“We cannot continue treading the same path and be hoping for different
results. Let the government understand that it was its violence that caused
things to spiral out of control,” he said, adding that “won’t it be
wise for the president and his tribesmen who are committing these atrocities to
embrace a different approach? Why are they destroying homes and killing the
innocent when the fighters live in the jungles?”
“It is too disheartening to
see a man many thought he wanted to become a priest conduct such a nasty war
against his own people. What type of country is he bequeathing to the next
generation? Today, the country is much divided and there are many Anglophones
who hold that they are being killed by a Beti death squad set up by Joseph Beti
Assomo, the country’s defense minister. Does this create room for national
reconciliation and unity, or does it pit Anglophones against Betis?,” he
questioned.
“Many Anglophones in Yaoundé
are really upset with the war strategy adopted by the government and the
bitterness generated by government atrocities will linger for a long
time,” he pointed out.
“Only very few Anglophones
in Yaoundé are in favour of what is happening in our two English-speaking
regions. Many are angry, but cannot talk. Some like the puffy jaw former Prime
Minister, Mafany Musonge, are indifferent to the people’s plight because they
are enriching themselves as things deteriorate in the two regions of the
country. The world is really surprised at such display of greed. How are these
people living with themselves?” he quipped.
He also took aim at Anglophones,
stressing that the unity that characterized the revolution in the early days
could have brought the government to its knees if the Diaspora had not resorted
to shooting itself in the foot.
“Those of us who really feel for our people, but cannot talk, were
counting on the Diaspora for salvation. We saw the Southern Cameroonian
Diaspora as a silent liberating force. The huge amounts that were being raised
in the United States and Canada to finance the war effort gave us hope. But our
hope was dashed when the leaders started fighting each other and vital
resources were allegedly embezzled by
some Interim Government officials,” the disappointed official said.
“Many of us were quietly happy when arms started getting to our fighters
who before that could only lay their hands on machetes and hunting
rifles,” he said.
“If Anglophones have to make more progress, the different factions must
stop fighting each other. In moments like this, everybody should be your ally
regardless of the individual goal. We
know some factions are for independence, others for federalism, while others
are gradually settling for autonomy within Cameroon, but regardless of the philosophy
of each group, our goal should be to mount pressure on the French-supported
government so that it should embrace the Canadian-supported Swiss initiative
that is popular with many Western countries,” he stressed.
Once the government buckles under
the pressure and decides to embrace the Swiss initiative, then each faction can
use the opportunity to present its case. Fighting and killing other fighters
only weakens the struggle and the government is watching gleefully as we shoot
ourselves in the foot,” the official said.
“We cannot keep on slinging mud at each other. We are splitting our
ranks and this is diminishing our capacity to achieve anything
meaningful,” he pointed out.
“Mistakes will be made along the way, but instead of focusing on
those mistakes, we should be focusing on the solutions and methods that can
enable all the factions to work together,” he stressed.
“From every indication, the government is desperate. The crisis has
robbed the government of vital revenue streams and this is hurting so badly.
The current burning of homes is designed to force the fighters to down their
weapons, but from every indication, things will not work the way the government
has planned,” he said.
He added that “the burning of homes in villages is
not playing in the government’s favor. The Diaspora should use this reckless
approach by the government to close ranks. A strong diplomatic initiative
should be launched by all the factions and a huge delegation sent to the UN and
other organizations to ensure that the Southern Cameroons crisis is not pushed
to the back burner,” he stressed.
“Suppress your egos and let unity prevail. As Anglophones, we can
achieve a lot if we close ranks, rob ourselves of our egos and consider that
the real enemy is the Yaoundé government that is killing our people just for
complaining,” he underscored.
“The government is hurting. It is running out of cash. Its coffers are
drying up. Those of us within are aware of the state of the country’s finances.
If this crisis continues for two more years, the government will shut down many
operations. Things are not looking up for this government that thought it could
restore order in one week, but it has failed woefully” he said.
He urged Anglophones to
contribute money to any faction of their choice, adding that the ultimate goal
should the improvement our fate. We have gone through a lot as a minority and
if the Diaspora does not bail us out, then we are stuck with a government whose
secret agenda is to assimilate us at all cost.
He concluded that he could have
loved to express his views openly, but said it would be like committing
suicide.
“This government is devilish. It never hesitates to kill those who
challenge it. If Wirba had stayed in Cameroon, he would have been history
today. He was smart to have left,” he pointed out.
The burning of homes cannot be
part of the special status the fake major national dialogue came up with, he
said.
“This government cannot be trusted. We must fight to attain our goals.
There is no turning back. This government says one thing and does the opposite.
Does special status mean burning homes and killing innocent people?”
he questioned.
Since the conflict started in
2016, some 5,000 civilians have lost their lives, while sources close to the
ministry of defense say some 2,018 soldiers have died and this figure does not
include police officers and prison guards who have also been attacked by
Southern Cameroonian fighters.
By Kingsley Betek in Yaounde and Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai in the United
kingdom
21, January 2020
Southern Cameroons Crisis: Senior government official bares his mind 0
by soter • Editorial, Headline News
Radicalized by the government’s use of death squads and arsonists to intimidate Southern Cameroonian fighters, a senior government official on Monday, January 20, 2020, clearly expressed his frustration with the government’s strategy to end the rebellion in the two English-speaking regions of the country.
Speaking to the Cameroon Concord News Group Chairman, Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai, over the phone, the senior official who elected anonymity said he was really frustrated with the manner in which the Yaounde government had mismanaged the Southern Cameroons crisis which started as simple protests by teachers, lawyers and students.
He said his anger boiled over because of the speech delivered by the country’s president, Paul Biya, on December 31, 2019, wherein he promised more violence to Southern Cameroonians if the fighters did not down their weapons.
“I am still at a loss for words. After three good years, we still believe that only military violence and atrocities can help restore peace in the two English-speaking regions of the country,” he said.
“We cannot continue treading the same path and be hoping for different results. Let the government understand that it was its violence that caused things to spiral out of control,” he said, adding that “won’t it be wise for the president and his tribesmen who are committing these atrocities to embrace a different approach? Why are they destroying homes and killing the innocent when the fighters live in the jungles?”
“It is too disheartening to see a man many thought he wanted to become a priest conduct such a nasty war against his own people. What type of country is he bequeathing to the next generation? Today, the country is much divided and there are many Anglophones who hold that they are being killed by a Beti death squad set up by Joseph Beti Assomo, the country’s defense minister. Does this create room for national reconciliation and unity, or does it pit Anglophones against Betis?,” he questioned.
“Many Anglophones in Yaoundé are really upset with the war strategy adopted by the government and the bitterness generated by government atrocities will linger for a long time,” he pointed out.
“Only very few Anglophones in Yaoundé are in favour of what is happening in our two English-speaking regions. Many are angry, but cannot talk. Some like the puffy jaw former Prime Minister, Mafany Musonge, are indifferent to the people’s plight because they are enriching themselves as things deteriorate in the two regions of the country. The world is really surprised at such display of greed. How are these people living with themselves?” he quipped.
He also took aim at Anglophones, stressing that the unity that characterized the revolution in the early days could have brought the government to its knees if the Diaspora had not resorted to shooting itself in the foot.
“Those of us who really feel for our people, but cannot talk, were counting on the Diaspora for salvation. We saw the Southern Cameroonian Diaspora as a silent liberating force. The huge amounts that were being raised in the United States and Canada to finance the war effort gave us hope. But our hope was dashed when the leaders started fighting each other and vital resources were allegedly embezzled by some Interim Government officials,” the disappointed official said.
“Many of us were quietly happy when arms started getting to our fighters who before that could only lay their hands on machetes and hunting rifles,” he said.
“If Anglophones have to make more progress, the different factions must stop fighting each other. In moments like this, everybody should be your ally regardless of the individual goal. We know some factions are for independence, others for federalism, while others are gradually settling for autonomy within Cameroon, but regardless of the philosophy of each group, our goal should be to mount pressure on the French-supported government so that it should embrace the Canadian-supported Swiss initiative that is popular with many Western countries,” he stressed.
Once the government buckles under the pressure and decides to embrace the Swiss initiative, then each faction can use the opportunity to present its case. Fighting and killing other fighters only weakens the struggle and the government is watching gleefully as we shoot ourselves in the foot,” the official said.
“We cannot keep on slinging mud at each other. We are splitting our ranks and this is diminishing our capacity to achieve anything meaningful,” he pointed out.
“Mistakes will be made along the way, but instead of focusing on those mistakes, we should be focusing on the solutions and methods that can enable all the factions to work together,” he stressed.
“From every indication, the government is desperate. The crisis has robbed the government of vital revenue streams and this is hurting so badly. The current burning of homes is designed to force the fighters to down their weapons, but from every indication, things will not work the way the government has planned,” he said.
He added that “the burning of homes in villages is not playing in the government’s favor. The Diaspora should use this reckless approach by the government to close ranks. A strong diplomatic initiative should be launched by all the factions and a huge delegation sent to the UN and other organizations to ensure that the Southern Cameroons crisis is not pushed to the back burner,” he stressed.
“Suppress your egos and let unity prevail. As Anglophones, we can achieve a lot if we close ranks, rob ourselves of our egos and consider that the real enemy is the Yaoundé government that is killing our people just for complaining,” he underscored.
“The government is hurting. It is running out of cash. Its coffers are drying up. Those of us within are aware of the state of the country’s finances. If this crisis continues for two more years, the government will shut down many operations. Things are not looking up for this government that thought it could restore order in one week, but it has failed woefully” he said.
He urged Anglophones to contribute money to any faction of their choice, adding that the ultimate goal should the improvement our fate. We have gone through a lot as a minority and if the Diaspora does not bail us out, then we are stuck with a government whose secret agenda is to assimilate us at all cost.
He concluded that he could have loved to express his views openly, but said it would be like committing suicide.
“This government is devilish. It never hesitates to kill those who challenge it. If Wirba had stayed in Cameroon, he would have been history today. He was smart to have left,” he pointed out.
The burning of homes cannot be part of the special status the fake major national dialogue came up with, he said.
“This government cannot be trusted. We must fight to attain our goals. There is no turning back. This government says one thing and does the opposite. Does special status mean burning homes and killing innocent people?” he questioned.
Since the conflict started in 2016, some 5,000 civilians have lost their lives, while sources close to the ministry of defense say some 2,018 soldiers have died and this figure does not include police officers and prison guards who have also been attacked by Southern Cameroonian fighters.
By Kingsley Betek in Yaounde and Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai in the United kingdom