At least six inmates at the New Bell prison in Douala have died of cholera since 18 February last. The latest, Rodrigue Ndagueho Koufet, who died on 7 April, had been held in arbitrary detention since September 2020 for being involved in peaceful protests.

“The Cameroonian authorities must urgently take all necessary health measures to ensure that detainees suffering from cholera and other medical conditions have prompt access to adequate medical care” Samira Daoud, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa

It has been confirmed that Rodrigue Ndagueho Koufet died of cholera on 7 April at Douala Hospital, where he was taken from the city’s central prison and chained to his hospital bed. According to the judgment, which we have seen, the Douala Military Court sentenced him to three years in prison and a 200,000 CFA franc fine on 7 December 2021 for ‘co-action of insurrection, gathering, meetings and public demonstrations’, having been arrested in September 2020 during peaceful protests of the Movement for the Rebirth of Cameroon (MRC). Others detained for the same reasons are also likely to be in a worrying health situation.

The authorities must also release all those arbitrarily detained, including detainees from the English-speaking regions and members of the main opposition party, the MRC, who have been arrested over the past five years for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.”

Culled from Amnesty International

Separatist fighters have kidnapped 10 villagers in Cameroon’s restive Anglophone region of Northwest, accusing them of working with government forces to fight the rebels, according to local and security sources.

On Thursday, the fighters released a video on social media of the kidnapped civilians, including six elderly women, three middle-aged women, and one man in the Oku locality of the region.

The fighters said they “will be treated accordingly” for their “crime”.

Since Monday, civilians in some villages in Cameroon’s troubled English-speaking regions of Northwest and Southwest have been staging protest demonstrations to denounce atrocities by the separatist fighters on civilians.

On Tuesday, villagers in Mbalangi locality of Southwest killed three separatist fighters after they attempted to disrupt a football game.

Villagers are increasingly forming self-defense groups to protect homes and families from the separatist fighters in the regions, according to security reports.

Separatist fighters started clashing with government forces in 2017 in a bid to create an independent nation they called “Ambazonia” in the two Anglophone regions.

Source: Xinhuanet

Two Cameroon government special forces were killed and another seriously injured late on Wednesday in an hour-long gunfight after being ambushed on the main road linking Bamenda to Wum.

The area is a notorious Amba fighter’s sanctuary in Mezam Division, North West Region.

The attack was one of four major gun battles that erupted across the North West, underscoring the dangers facing the Francophone army soldiers and other Southern Cameroons troops still loyal to the Biya regime in Yaoundé as they aim to curb the Ambazonia resurgence.

The soldiers from the Special Service Unit in Bamenda were returning from a patrol when Ambazonia fighters hit their vehicle.  Some of the soldiers left the vehicle and two died in the ensuing battle. The injuries to the third were described last night as serious and life-threatening.

The troops reportedly called in a quick reaction force from Bamenda which also came under Amba fire.

By Fon Lawrence in Bamenda

The last five years have been really tough for English speaking Cameroonians. The Biya Francophone war, the daunting Covid-19 pandemic and the Ambazonia Interim Government “kontry Sunday” lockdowns-all these means  living under unbearable conditions and restrictions and far away from family and friends.

This is for good reason. It is five years since the Biya regime made a huge and costly mistake by thinking that all political issues must only be addressed through repression and oppression. After close to five years of fighting, Paul Biya and his Beti Ewondo gang have transformed Southern Cameroons into a massive killing field.

The Southern Cameroons communities in Meme Division in the South West Region were disproportionately affected by the Biya war, the Kontry Sundays and the Covid-19 pandemic.  So keeping safe is at the forefront of all in the city of Kumba.

But a recent outing by the Senior Divisional Officer for Meme has once again demonstrated how Biya and his French Cameroun immoral political elites see the people of British Southern Cameroons.

Ambazonia fighters in Manyu Division have killed at least 10 soldiers in three attacks on army checkpoints in Ebam, Bakwele and Ekok.

Cameroon government security officials in Mamfe said a further 15 servicemen were injured. They said other attacks on army checkpoints in Eyumojock Sub Division wounded several army soldiers.

Cameroon Concord News gathered that the Ambazonia fighters may have taken some soldiers hostage when they raided the checkpoint in Ebam.

Vice President Dabney Yerima of the Ambazonia Interim Government announced recently that Amba fighters all over Southern Cameroons will be launching a series of complex attacks and ambushes despite the large-scale military campaign to suppress the British Southern Cameroons uprising.

Sunday’s attack mirrored past Amba raids in Ekok bordering the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Dabney Yerima said the new Amba attacks will mainly target Francophone soldiers and administrative officers loyal to the Biya Francophone regime.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files from Kingsley Betek in Mamfe

Now that the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) party is over and the continent’s spotlight is no longer on Cameroon, many realities of its citizens’ daily lives are hitting them hard, including escalating food prices. President Paul Biya’s government might have spent billions in a blatant attempt to appease a frustrated youth and improve his dwindling support, but the Afcon failed as a public relations exercise. 

The Olembé Stadium stampede that claimed the lives of eight people on 24 January had already put a damper on the festivities of the tournament. And the Indomitable Lions’ failure to win the Afcon, instead settling for bronze, didn’t help the situation.  

“Since February we haven’t had three meals a day in our home,” says Stephanie Mebenga, a resident of Yaoundé, as she shops for food in the large Mokolo market. “My children and I have been forced to skip meals to survive since the cost of living is extremely high.” 

Mebenga, a widow in her late fifties and mother of three, was forced to move to the capital from Boumnyebel, a village about 120km from Yaoundé. She used to sell locally made plantain chips as a street vendor but moved about a year ago in search of a better life. Though she has a new job in the wholesale trade, things haven’t changed much.

“For some time now life has been very expensive. I find it difficult to feed my children and myself. The money I receive isn’t enough to pay for all our needs. We have rent, tuition fees, electricity and transportation to pay. The rest of the money is very little. But with the way food is expensive we really cannot cope. I don’t know if I can hold on for too long anymore.”

Mebenga isn’t the only one struggling. “I have a neighbour whose conditions are worse than mine and I am sad. I live with constant fear. I don’t know what can happen tomorrow. Just look around you,” she says, pointing at the stalls, “and see how goods get bad because there is no one to buy. People can’t eat. You can’t feed yourself and your family. And you don’t know when it will end.”

Going up and up

Most Cameroonians are going through the same ordeal daily. The cost of living has dramatically increased and families are struggling because of skyrocketing prices in the markets nationwide. The prevailing situation has forced them into hardship, especially those with only one source of income. 

For instance, the price of 1 litre of oil has risen from 1 150 Central African francs to 1 300 francs (R33). A tray of 30 eggs has gone from 1 500 to 24 000 francs (R604). A 50kg bag of rice that usually cost 13 000 francs is now 15 000 (R380) and the price of 1kg of fish now stands at 2 000 francs (R50) rather than 1 300.

Douala in the Littoral region is the Cameroonian city with the largest population at more than 2.77 million people. It is also the economic hub of the country and arguably among the most expensive of the 10 regions to live in.

The city has its own perennial challenges such as high crime rates, water shortages, traffic congestion and power failures. The region, in particular Douala, had the highest number of cases during the recent cholera outbreak, with only the Southwest region recording more. Medical experts have declared cholera endemic in areas like Makepe Missoke in Doula and advised people to avoid drinking water, fruit and vegetables obtained from there.

“The situation is catastrophic in Douala,” says resident Peldrine Blanche. “There’s no electricity, there is no water and there is no food. After Afcon many of us were not expecting this. We expected to see the economy boom. None of us thought things could get worse. We are still dealing with Covid-19 and now we have the cholera outbreak.”

The government budgeted 13 billion francs for the organisation of the tournament, just half of what the minister of sport initially wanted. “The stadiums couldn’t bring enough money to the country. The organisers were obliged to give tickets to fans to fill the stadiums. If not, only a few people would be able to pay for tickets,” says Kakdeu Louis-Marie, an economist and senior lecturer at the University of Maroua in the Far North region. 

Louis-Marie believes the main issue now in terms of the infrastructure built for the Afcon is how to improve it and make it profitable for the country. “It is not only in the stadium that you make money during the Afcon. You also have the audiovisual fees. This is where we had to invest and we didn’t. That’s why we had low income from the Afcon for our economy.”

Interventions needed

Cameroon can change things around if it starts producing more staple foods domestically, says Louis-Marie. “When we import we can’t influence decisions in suppliers’ countries. Now that wheat and flour are expensive, there’s no way we can control things because 100% of the wheat we have in Cameroon is imported. We need the political will to solve this problem.

He also points to the violence and human rights abuses that have plagued Cameroon as the government fights separatist groups in the Anglophone regions. “Six of our 10 regions aren’t stable. Living standards in some regions are not acceptable. There is no other solution than to promote national production to be sure that people should not die of starvation.”

Cameroon’s post-Afcon struggles have been felt across the board, including among teachers. Ten teachers’ associations and unions announced a strike in late February and resolved not to teach until the government pays their salaries in full as well as allowances and bonuses that have been in arrears for years. Some teachers haven’t been paid their full salary in as long as a decade. 

Teacher Wanjah Mercy says she has to teach private classes “no matter how cheaply” to make a living wage. “It is greatly affecting my family because we no longer eat the way we used to eat. We aren’t able to add fish or meat [to our diet]. Even the corn fufu that we use to complement meals won’t be rich [in nutritional value]. You just have to manage things.”

Bambot Valentine, a resident of Buea, the capital of the Southwest region, says he started experiencing the rise in the prices of basic commodities after the Afcon. “I went to the store on a usual morning to get bread for breakfast and the owner told me she doesn’t have bread. It was strange because she always had bread. She told me she no longer orders bread because the price has gone up and customers don’t understand.

“It was very strange so I moved to the next store. But most of the stores in my area had stopped selling bread because of the increase in price. Local bread that we used to have for 300 francs now costs 400 francs,” says Valentine.

“It is greatly affecting my family and me because the cost of living has gone up.  We cannot buy in bulk like we used to. Our expenditures have been limited. We can only get half of what we used to get so it must last longer. We used to get a bag of rice since we live in a large home and consume it for two to three weeks. But right now we can only get half a bag of rice.”

This article was first published by New Frame

A high-ranking official from the Ambazonia Interim Government has held the Biya Francophone dominated regime primarily responsible for the creation and continuation of the crises in French and Southern Cameroons.

“Biya and his so-called French Cameroun political elites are behind the tragedies and instability in the Ambazonia homeland. Ever since the armed resistance started, Yaoundé has been creating conflicts among Southern Cameroons groups, carrying out attacks and backing Atanga Nji Boys,” Professor Carlson Anyangwe told Cameroon Concord News late on Sunday.

The senior aide to Vice President Dabney Yerima also blamed the Francophone community for supporting the corrupt regime in French Cameroun in igniting the war in Southern Cameroons.

“Yaoundé is responsible for the war in Southern Cameroons and all the repercussions it is now having on the Ambazonian people,” Carlson Anyangwe pointed out.

Anyangwe went on to denounce the disunity and unhealthy rivalry that rocked the Ambazonia Interim Government, stating that the measures taken by Vice President Dabney Yerima have helped in stabilizing the leadership issue.

“Dabney Yerima will never support corrupt front line leaders who pursue their interests and by extrapolation the interest of the occupying French Cameroun regime,” Professor Anyangwe concluded.

By Isong Asu

A well-placed source with strong ties to President Biya’s personal physician has hinted Cameroon Intelligence Report that the head of state is very acutely ill. The 89-year-old President is nearing his end in the Etoudi Palace.

Biya has been a healthy head of state who always kept away from his office. But all changed two years ago when he was hospitalized with an infection in Geneva. What is remarkable about the Biya current health situation is how little the presidency of the republic is revealing about the illness to the Cameroonian people.

The president’s men are busy on state radio and television propagating matters concerning the war against Boko Haram, the Southern Cameroons crisis and the deteriorating security situation in the East region. But underneath all these maneuvers is a vicious succession battle.

In a secret meeting held recently in Mvomeka’a, Biya’s political inner circle agreed to support the appointment of a Vice President. Cameroon Intelligence Report gathered that during the meeting Biya experienced a nervous chill and sent for his doctor.

Lately, Biya has been receiving pills and having a lot of blood taken for examination with a feeling of fatigue and general malaise.

Our source added that the head of state had a sore throat radiating abdominal pain, and also a burning feeling during urination.

“Biya is feeling extremely nervous as his ancestors are calling” our informant noted adding that “Biya’s pain relieves him when sitting and it increases when he is lying down. His face is now very flushed and he appears extremely shaky and nervous.”

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with Intel files

Immediately he took office as head of state, social welfare and the protection of women and children in Cameroon under President Biya became a thing of the past.

Many children in both French and Southern Cameroons have been seen in school campuses with horrific injuries after being battered by their stepdads or so-called boyfriends to their mums.

Many innocent kids have died but none has ever become a watershed moment for child safety in Cameroon. Even after our investigative report on the sex scandal in the University of Buea, there have been no major changes to how the Francophone dominated government tackle child abuse.

Teachers have not been paid for ten years and social services are only provided by senior government officials like Prime Minister Dion Ngute who marry young girls on a regular basis.

Despite the promises made by President Biya in his numerous end of year speeches, teachers, medical doctors and the police are still failing to notice the signs of abuse until it is sadly too late. The consequence is what the nation just witnessed in Yokaduma in the East region of French Cameroun where five innocent children were offered poisoned bread and chocolate by their mum’s ex boyfriend.

The late Simon Achidi Achu as prime minister had vowed to bring in a new process so child abusers and killers will die behind bars but failed due to the harem of women and young girls he acquired for himself as head of government.  

These horrific deaths of Cameroonian children like the five in Yokaduma are not rare but the circumstances under which they were killed are uniquely tragic and preventable.

The Yokaduma incident provides crucial learnings but its clear not for this present Biya regime with no mechanism to support child protection and prevent and respond to abuse.

Children safeguarding agencies are there to provide free sex for highly placed civil servants in a country where children’s safety is not top priority.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Cameroon has known so many challenges, such as meningitis and terrorist attacks in the north and a civil war that has sent many civilians and soldiers to an early grave in the two English-speaking regions of the country, but by some miracle, the country is still standing on one leg.  

Despite the massive and destructive corruption that has become a way of life in the country, many Cameroonians are still hopeful that there is light at the end of the tunnel, but many analysts hold that the light at the end of the tunnel may be that of an oncoming train that might kill many people. Dark clouds have been gathering over the country over the last ten years, but by some stroke of luck, a rainbow always appeared to instill hope in the people. 

Cameroonians are running on hope. The escalation of food prices and the fear of a popular revolt across the country are causing the Biya regime to lose sleep while many Cameroonians seek avenues of leaving the country. 

Hope alone will not enable them to meet their basic needs. Cameroonians believe that the country will not avoid a man-made disaster manufactured by a government that is deaf and dumb because one person must die in power.  

The government has been dealing with a lot, but 2022 may be bearing very bad news for the regime which is on its last leg. Teachers across the country have dropped their chalk and will not be returning to the classroom if their grievances are not met. 

Their students have been calling on the kleptocratic and gerontocratic government to pay their teachers so that they can return to school. Their place is in the classroom and not on the streets. 

But the plea seems to be falling on deaf ears. The government is cash-strapped, and its creditors are tired of bailing it out in unfortunate circumstances created by inefficiency and corruption.  

Many of the teachers have been working for more than a decade without a salary and some who have retired have gone for close to two decades without a pension. The old ones are all sick but cannot get the medical care they need due to poverty. 

The Cameroon public service is a maze that is replete with many processes and procedures that only those manning the systems understand them. Many Cameroonian retirees die shortly after retirement because of abject poverty and when they are sick, they never know who to turn to for care. 

The medical system itself is inefficient and it has become a marketplace wherein only the rich can be attended to. Many Cameroonians are dying in silence. Stress-related diabetes and hypertension are taking their toll on many people across the country. 

Kidney failure is now rampant among youths, and this has become a cause for concern. Stress is crippling their bodies, especially as many see no hope in the future. Unemployment has attained epidemic proportions and the aging government is at its wit’s end. A once effective healthcare system has been reduced to a graveyard for those who lack the financial resources to head out of the country.

The country’s healthcare system is replete with scandals which never get investigated. The government simply does not care. The country’s officials and their families seek healthcare abroad and are blissfully oblivious of what is happening the country’s hospitals. 

The scandals in Cameroon’s healthcare system have made it hard for Cameroonians to trust their own medical doctors. The doctors who took the Oath of Hippocrates to serve humanity have become self-serving, making it hard for patients to trust the people who are supposed to save them when they are facing health challenges. The country’s hospitals have become consultation clinics, with poorly trained doctors playing God.

Even the corrupt police officers are threatening to join the teachers’ strike if the government does not find appropriate solutions to their sorry plight. Many are sick and tired of harassing ordinary citizens for little bribes. They have lost their dignity and they hope a good salary can help them regain their lost dignity and respect. 

The government is trying to ensure that the police does not throw itself into the mix, as this may spell the end of a corrupt regime that is living on borrowed time. 

The military is also grumbling and if it becomes part of the equation, then things will unravel very fast. Corruption has overwhelmed even those who designed the system. The government must tread very carefully if it does not want to deal with a nation-wide uprising. 

Things are really falling apart. Cameroonians are looking forward to the day things will be different. They have been hopeful for decades, but that hope is fast dwindling, especially as the country is in the grip of a cholera epidemic. The epidemic is spreading like wildfire, hitting the entire Southwest region and parts of the Littoral region like a ton of bricks. 

Limbe, Buea, Tiko, Njombe and Penja have all been caught up in the battle and some deaths have already been reported. Not even Yaoundé, the country’s capital, has been spared. Many neighborhoods in the capital have gone without water for years and this is responsible for the numerous water-borne diseases which have killed many residents of Yaoundé.

The end seems to be near. Things are falling apart and if care is not taken, Cameroon could be caught up in a pretty mess, especially as the level of political and economic frustration is very high.

If the government must preempt chaos in the country, it must adopt new ways. The current governance methods have failed Cameroonians. They have inflicted a lot of pain on many citizens and the greatest expectation for most Cameroonians is a change of government, especially as the current president, Paul Biya, who is 90 years old, is physically and mentally declining.  

 He is now more than a museum piece. His health is fast failing. His last outing during the African Nations Cup clearly tells the world that he is gradually expiring. But will his expiration imply a change of direction in Cameroon?  Only his successor will answer that question.  

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai