By Darrion Fozo
The ongoing arm conflict in the Northwest and Southwest regions has placed many families in a tight position as both state forces and non-state forces use the fear of each other to extort money from the local population.
A growing phenomenon today is known as “failure to report” a phrase used by security forces to arrest individuals who are suspected to have had dealings ( mostly financial) with separatists or non-state forces. Such are threaten with prosecution and imprisonment by the security forces and forced to negotiate their way out by paying huge sums of money to bail themselves from detention.
Anchored in the Cameroon Penal code (CPC) section 107: Failure to report states ” any citizen who in time of peace fails to inform the defense forces, administrative or legal authorities, as soon as he comes to know of it, of any activity liable to injure the defense of the nation shall be punished as under the last forgoing section” The last forgoing section refers to 106: prejudice punishable with five years.
Separatist fighters also use a similar means to extort money from ordinary citizens. When security forces carry out arrests, separatist fighters usually storm the area after their release to kidnap those they say have reported them to security forces. They are tagged “black legs” (meaning betrayals to the Anglophone cause) and are required to pay huge amounts in ransom before they are released.
Cityweb has come across several such cases. Many of the victims opted to remain anonymous for fear of further reprisals. Many refused to talk to the press even with the guarantee that their identity will not be disclosed. But a few willing to share their experience exposed a worrying trend.
In April, Workers of a construction company operating in Mezam where kidnapped by separatist forces in the Bamenda I municipality and held in captivity for 3 days in the jungle up the hills between Babanki -Tungoh and Bamendankwe. They were only released after negotiating payment with their abductors, separatist fighters, one of the abductees whom we would only refer to as Bakong told City Web.
Bakong, who was the lead driver was later picked up by elements of the National Gendarmerie – Bamendankwe at his Up Station residence. He was grilled for several hours and detained for failing to report the incident to the forces of law and order. He was released after paying 350,000 FCFA. No receipt was issued he said.
Two brothers were picked up by separatist fighters operating between the Bafut and Bambui area, still in Mezam Division in late January 2024, their elder sister told City Web. One of the brothers worked as a mechanic In Bambui town. The Sister Jenny (Not the real name) said he usually worked on repairing the police patrol vehicle. He was accused of enabling the enemy by separatist fighters. Unfortunately he was with the younger brother when they came to abduct him. They were forced to pay huge amounts by family members before they were released from custody.
“I basically have to run around to gather money from friends and other family members to pay for his ransom” Jenny told us in pidgin English with tears forming in her eyes. Her bother, the mechanic she told us a couple of months later relocated to Bafoussam, in the west region.
In July, a similar incident unfolded in Bafia, a locality in Muyuka subdivision of the Southwest region. Several youths were rounded up by the mitary for interrogation. Days after their release, separiatist fighters reportedly stormed the village and picked up some of the boys. They were accused of indicating their hideouts to security forces. They were forced to pay ransomes before they were released.
A couple of days later, one of the victims who travelled to Bamenda reported that his friends had been picked up by security forces again. This time he said they were accused of failing to report their kidnapping and were extorted more money. Others who could not pay the money demanded were detained for longer periods.
Rene (not his real name) says arrest warrants have been issued against most of those who paid ransoms to help release their family members and friends.
The extortion is not limited to these few situations, City web also noticed another pattern in Santa, Mezam Division. The Nana Family (other names withheld) told us of their daughter forced to flee home for months now because she was dating a gendarme officer who abandoned his duty post due to the ongoing conflict. A very timid and reluctant Mami Nana showed us around her derelict compound abandoned all to herself and three grandchildren whose parents have all gone to “to god knows where” she said.
A widow, she told us “each time my daughter comes home there is always a problem with the police or the boys (separatist fighters)” she said visible angry at her predicament. It’s a situation of jumping from the fry pan into fire between the police and the Ambazonian she expressed her frustrations to us.
“They say she knows where her father is” pointing to one of the grandchildren. “How could she?” she asked herself, adding they don’t even pity my condition,not even those we think were fighting for us.
Mr. Jean (also not his real name) is a road side fuel vendor in Bamenda. He deals with contraband fuel smuggled in from Neighbouring Nigeria. He told us the only way for him and many other in his line of business is to reserve a percentage of their weekly earnings to pay top security officials to prevent them from constantly harassing them and on the other hand to also negotiate liberation tax with the separatist forces.
When contacted by Cityweb, the mechanic earlier mentioned expressed his frustrations adjusting to life in a French speaking town and the difficulties he is going through with his family. He said he is still trying to payback part of the 800,000 frs his family and friends raised to pay for the ransom. But the worst is that he is viewed suspiciously by most of his neighbours who usually refer to him as an Ambazonia, a derogatory name for Anglophone separatist fights.
Due to restrictions reporting on the activities or passing information on the mass media about seperatist forces by the government of Cameroon, we could not talk to the separatist fighters to get their view on this accussations . On the other hand security officials have been tight lips responding to our questions.
As the crisis continue, many innocent civilians are caught up in this web of extortion perpetrated by men wielding guns. They cannot run to the military to report for fear of reprisals by separatist fighters and they unwillingly yield to separatist demands when the barrel of the gun is pointing down on them knowing that unscrupulous security officers are waiting to pounce and feed out of them.
Hon. Ngala Gerard of Nkambe during the visit of the PM Dion Ngute to Bamenda in July called on communities in the Northwest region to promote peace and root out criminals whom he described as kidnappers who collect ransom from innocent citizens. Hon. Ngala’s call was an indication of the alarming rate of extortion from the local population.
In November 2024 it took the combined effort of the media and renowned humanist like Bar. Akere Muna to call for the release of Dr. Atia Tiliarus, a Bamenda based journalist and the Divisional Officer for Idabato, Mr. Ewane Roland from armed men after days in captivity
Many citizens have come to see the crisis as a game of cat and mouse between the security forces and the separatists fighters. It’s true they say “when the elephants fights, it’s the grass that suffers”
