Fighting between Cameroon’s regular army and Anglophone independence fighters has left so many civilians trapped in the conflict. As events unfold, tensions are mounting as the two parties battle for legitimacy. This has led to a mass exodus from the conflict-hit regions to safer cities mostly Douala, Bafoussam and Yaounde.

The situation has remained stiff as both parties show strength, forcing the population to a dilemma as they no longer know what to believe anymore. The government is still to call for the much talked about dialogue that is highly awaited to put an end to the long lasting rift.

It was in late 2016 that Common Law Lawyers took to the streets a peaceful strike action against perceived attempts by the government to annihilate Common Law heritage in a constitutionally bilingual, bicultural and bi-jural Cameroon. Teachers in the country’s North West and South West Regions joined the lawyer’s peaceful strike same period, to also protest what they said were attempts to dilute the Anglo-Saxon educational system in favor of a French system. But the government in an attempt to stop these strike actions instead beat, maimed, arrested and shot at unarmed lawyers and teachers.

Since then, matters have gone worst, especially after the arrest of Barrister Agbor Nkongho, Dr. Fontem Neba and others considered to be moderates at the time. The events soon slipped into the hands of activists in the diaspora who have since shifted from talking to endorsing an armed rebellion to restore what they say is their independence and statehood.

It is in the same like that Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and other leaders of the pro-independence front otherwise seen as activists were arrested on January 5, 2018 in Abuja-Nigeria and illegally extradited to Cameroon. The search for many other activists has been on. The likes of Eric Tataw, Tapang Ivo, Mark Bareta, Chris Anu, Ayaba Cho Lucas and lots more have been declared wanted by government.

Members of the banned Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC) that has long advocated for the force of argument to get Cameroon’s North West and South West into an independent state are also facing the law.

The story of Vincent Njikang Ngoe, a member of the outlawed SCNC who was among those who fell in the security dragnet in April 2018 in Limbe, has been revealed. He was among the many who have been clamouring for the restoration of the independence of the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon otherwise referred to as Southern Cameroons or Ambazonia.

Our investigations revealed that Vincent Njikang Ngoe who came from abroad last April 2018 to bury his grandfather was napped. He is said to have escaped detention under unclear circumstances, as mentioned by the security forces, and his whereabouts is still unknown. His family home in Limbe and Nyasosso has since been raided, and that of Nyasosso is reported to have been burnt down with his uncle, Kome Pius trapped inside and burnt alive. His parents have since escaped for safety. Barely few weeks after his uncle was burnt alive in Nyasosso, Vincent lost another member of his family last Monday 11^th and reports are still unclear as to the cause of his sudden dead. But rumours are directed to the non-disclosure of Vincent’s whereabouts. These and many others are cases of people who may never be seen again as the conflict in the restive regions persists.

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Following the military raid in Bafut last Monday January 25, 2019 that led to the killing of over 14 youths in the sub division, many families have now joined that of Mami Lum Frida, a woman in her late 70s who is now confined to a wheelchair after her house was burnt in Bafut last year by yet to be identified men leading to three casualties. Though Bafut inhabitants claim the house was burnt by uniform men, The SUN cannot independently confirm who actually set the house on fire. The old woman lost her husband as a result of the fire incident, including two of her grandchildren Rene Nkwenti and Sylvia Nkwenti who died as a result of the fire.

When interviewed by The SUN, Mama Lum said the recent killings gave her nightmares as she lamented at her friends’ children’s funeral last week. She said the recent killings in Bafut brought to mind the deaths of her husband and grandchildren. She worried about the whereabouts of her grandson Princewill who escaped from Bamenda since in November 2017 just after the escalation of the Anglophone crisis into an armed conflict. Her story and many others remain underreported due to the escalating tensions and the ongoing war between La Republique and Ambazonia fighters in the North West and South West region of Cameroon. The fighting presents high risks to journalists who find it difficult to travel to the conflict and war zones. The SUN Newspaper correspondent met mama Lum at the compound of Pa Neba Mathias in Niko Bafut whose family was lamenting the loss of their two sons that occurred last Monday due to the military raid by the special BIR forces in Bafut that left over 14 youths dead, believed have been killed by the La Republique government. It has become totally unsafe for any Bafut teenage boy to walk on the streets Bafut.

During its interviews, The SUN later found out that Ade Christopher, Princewill Nkwenti, Niba Ambroise, and many others were some of the youths who took part in the October 1, 2017 mass street protest in Bamenda for the independence of Southern Cameroon which turned deadly. Many youths who took part in the demonstrations in all of Anglophone Cameroon have remained on the run with many arrested and locked up in maximum security prisons in Yaounde Cameroon. It was also discovered that the military actually used drones to take pictures of demonstrators which facilitated them to easily track them down later. Hundreds of youths have been whisked off in military trucks without any prior warning to unknown destinations since the October 1, 2017 Anglophone protests.

It is worth noting that Bafut has become the strong hold of Ambazonia restoration fighters with over 1000 fighters who now control the sub division. No administrative activities take place in Bafut and many of it youths have fled to different towns out of Bamenda and the North West. Children do not go to school in Bafut and most regions around; even birth certificates cannot be issued in the subdivision. Transportation activities have been grounded and people have to go about their daily activities on foot. Many children out of school help commuters transport their luggage in carts around the area due to the halt in the movement of automobiles.

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