BY HELLEN NGWE
The North West and South West regions have remained restive since the outbreak of the Anglophone crisis in 2016. Investigative findings and reports from many human rights groups and Non-Governmental Organisation shave condemned the extrajudicial killings mostly by military, on innocent civilians including children and pregnant women and the burning of homes.
The government crackdown on Anglophone activists since 2016 when the crisis began has intensified with arbitrary arrests, detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings becoming the new normal, human rights group have said.
Human rights groups and governmental organisations have in one voice condemned the extrajudicial killings by both non-state armed groups and by military on innocent civilians, including children and pregnant women and burning of houses.
Reports say this situation has caused many to migrate to French-speaking towns of the country, while others have fled to neighbouring countries and overseas where they are living as refugees.
According to statistics from human rights groups, over 7,000 persons have been killed, hundreds kidnapped, thousands of houses and over 400 villages razed with over 75,000 persons identified as internally displaced with over 45,000 living as refugees in Nigeria. Some have been left in constant fear either due to the demise of their love ones or because their houses have been razed. These attacks have been so alarming that human rights groups across the board have concluded that Cameroon is no longer safe.
Tension continues to rise within civilian populations in the North West and South West regions, which are in peril, panic and pandemonium. Due to this confusion and fear of the unknown, many youths and businessmen continue to go underground.
Hope for peace were rose early this year as a much talk about dialogue was announced, but the anxiety died down. Since then the killings, kidnapping have resumed and the list of victims of this crisis continues to grow.
Metuge Popina Nkonge, a holder of a Higher National Diploma in Marketing and herfather, Metuge Ngeoh Titus, a police officer in Tombel, Kupe Muanenguba Division of the South West went through hell in the hands of both of government forces and separatist fighters, before escaping for safety.
Metuge hinted us how after her graduation sometimes in 2019 in Buea, she relocated to Tombel to meet her father who had just been elected a community leader, also known as Quarter Head and was living while in Tombel amidst the Anglophone crisis. Sometimes in March 2020, she narrated that an incident occurred and the residence of the Divisional Officer, DO, of Tombel was burned own. She added that one evening they heard a voice calling her father’s name, saying “Mr Metuge please come outside with any person you are hiding with, we have been sent by the Commissioner of Police to bring you and your daughter to the station”.
Metuge Popina disclosed that her father recognised the voice to be that of his colleague, and asked her to follow him.
When they got out Metuge, hinted, they saw five police officers standing beside their car who whisked them to the station and were placed in very harsh inhumane detention conditions for several days. They both fell sick while in detention.
The Commissioner of Police later called Metuge’s father into his office and disclosed to him that,”someone in the community reported to them that they saw him in a meeting with some separatist fighters a day before the DO’’s house was burnt down”.
Popina’s father is reported to have told the commissioner that as a Quarter Head he holds regularly meetings with youths and elders in his community. Metuge Popina’s father asked why his daughter was arrested and the commissioner replied that “your daughter is among the people supplying food, cigarettes and other items needed by the separatist fighters”.
But Metuge Titus rather told the commissioner that his daughter just graduated from University and came back home because things were a little bit hard for him to support her to continue living in Buea after graduation.
Colleagues are of Metuge Titus are reported to have pleaded with the commissioner to release them, rather than sending them to Yaounde central prison. He and his daughter were released after they both signed an undertaking never to associate with the separatist fighters.
After their release, many sympathisers visited them and one of the sympathisers, who was Metuge Popina’s father’s colleague, told him that father he should be careful with his friend (Mr Gilbert Ebong) whom he defeated during the election to become Quarter Head. He indicated that Ebong had been the one giving the commissioner fake information about Metuge and his duaghter’s involvement with separatist fighters.
Few months after, Metuge narrated, some separatist fighters came to their residence in Tombel and requested for his father’s gun since he is a policeman and her father told them that he cannot do that since it’s the government that is controlling the guns. The separatists turned around and started mounting him pressure to join them and he refused since he is a government official and doesn’t know how genuine their demand for secession is, especially as separation is against the law.
Metuge Popina and her father were now victims of circumstances from both the government and separatists.
The last hit on the family of Metuge, was when a primary school was burnt down during a crossfire between the military and separatists wherein some separatist fighters were killed and two police officers shot and in critical condition. This provoked the call for a state of emergency in the area.
Metuge Popina narrated that her father and her were arrested and taken to the police station and placed under harsh detention conditions. All attempts to secure their release were futile, even with the intervention of their lawyer.
Metuge Popina disclosed that her father’s colleague, a top ranking commander, hinted him that plans were underway to take them to Yaounde because they had received information that they’re siding with the separatists, supplying them food, medications and other items.
Aware of what befalls others who have been ferried to Yaounde under trumped up charges of secession, revolution, propagation of false information and terrorism like the jailed Ambazonia leaders like Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, Barrister Eyambe Ebai, and Nfor Ngalla Nfor, the Commander made up plans for them to escape from prison and for them to immediately leave the country.
That’s how we escaped from Cameroon on May 5, 2022.