The Ambazonia Revolution and CameroUn’s Empty Treasury: CAF Must Begin Looking Elsewhere for AFCON 2019.

In 2017, a survey carried out by one of La Republique du Cameroun’s tabloid ‘Le Quotidien de l’economie’ showed that the Cameroons’ economy, was losing billons due to the ongoing revolutionary conflict in Southern Cameroons/Ambazonia. An economist of LRC origin, Dieudonné Essomba, stated in the report that Southern Cameroons play a very strategic role in the colonial economy, and argued that the disruption of economic activities in Ambazonia through the ghost towns and boycotts could only lead to a bleak economic future for the colonial economy. Citing the Southern Zone of Ambazonia for instance, Essomba asserted that it is undoubtedly the most nutritive economic feeding bottle for LRC, considering its oil production activities, huge agro-industries like CDC and PAMOL, Timber exploitation, production of Cocoa beans and other big economic activities.

In January, 2018, Reuters reported that the declaration of War on the people of Southern Cameroons by the colonial President Paul Biya, has cut many Cocoa beans buyers off from parts of the Southern Cameroons, especially in Manyu County, which is source to roughly half of the Cameroons’ total production, which reached around 240,000 tons last season. “Our usual buyers are scared. Some come, but they stop in towns like Mamfe and do not dare to venture further into villages that produce more cocoa,” a cocoa farmer in Mamfe, told Reuters.

Few days ago, the 2018 CameroUn International Cycling Tour was annulled just a day to the start of the eight-day event. The proclamation was made on Friday 9th March 2018 by the President of the CameroUn Cycling Federation Honore Yossi. Yossi, lamented that financial constraints accounted for the cancellation and it was donee on the instructions of the colonial Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Bidoung Mpatt. “We had our last preparatory meeting with the Minister, who asked me to annul the cycling tour because the budget is not readily available. It will be a disgrace for participating athletes and foreign delegations to go without food, shelter and transportation” Yossi told the press.

The scandal came after series of preparatory meetings, mobilization and trainings organized by the CameroUn Cycling Federation in partnership with the colonial Ministry of Sport. Foreign athletes were already in the country waiting for the final day of the event, just to be embarrassed with the cancellation of the event.

With all these, it is evidently clear that the colonial economy is collapsing and the colonial master has started paying the price of repression, subjugation and the declaration of an unjust war against those who feed the limping nation. The future is therefore not going to be palatable.

This is a nation that claims to be preparing for to host the 2019 African Cup of Nation, unable to host a mere cycling tour, due to financial constraints. Is this how they intend to pull out as host of the AFCON on the final day of the commencement of the tournament? How does LRC intend to get the resources to host several nations in a continental tournament as AFCON, when she is presently engaged in a stupid war against the colony that serves as her bread? Are they sure Ambazonians are even ready to welcome any AFCON in their territory, when they are presently being massacred and maimed because of what is duly theirs?

When Southern Cameroons lawyers, teachers, civil society and the entire population rose against the colonial master, LRC in 2016, in protest against socio-political, economic and judicial subjugation and assimilation, colonial agents like Laurant Esson, Minister of Justice said braggingly that, it was just a matter of time and hunger was going sent the ghost town operators and striking Southern Cameroonians back to their bases. Unknown to him, the strike was just a revolutionary embryo that was going to metamorphosed into a full blown revolutionary conflict and crumble the occupier’s economy.

Through the nonviolent approaches of ghost towns, economic sabotages and school boycotts, Southern Cameroonians have also been determined that it was just a matter of time and the colonial master, LRC is going to face the economic consequences of their arrogance. By declaring war on the peaceful people of Ambazonia, the colonial President Paul Biya, thought he was just going to crush some few misguided miscreants and secessionists obstructing the exploitation of his colonial farm. Unknown to him he simply planted a seed of economic downturn and an empty treasury. Ambazonians appear determine to face the colonialist and confront them in their territory block by block, county by county, until freedom comes. This is the time to fight and decolonize Ambazonia forever or forever stay in slavery and colonial occupation.

BaretaNews, the people’s revolutionary platform is therefore sending a clear message to THE CONFEDERATION OF AFRICAN FOOTBALL (CAF). IT IS HIGH TIME THEY STARTED LOOKING FOR AN ALTERNATIVE HOST OF THE AFCON. THE COLONIAL REGIME IS BROKE AND NOT READY, AND EVEN IF THEY WERE READY, AMBAZONIANS HAVE VOWED THAT SO LONG AS THIS REVOLUTION IS ON, AN THE COLONIAL EQUATION REMAINS UNSOLVED, THE TERRITORY OF AMBAZONIA REMAINS UNSAFE FOR ANY VISITING AFCON TEAM. THE PEOPLE OF AMBAZONIA CANNOT GUARANTEE THE SECURITY OF ANY FOREIGN DELEGATION COMING INTO SOUTHERN CAMEROONS IN THE NAME OF AFCON.

Ambazonia Shall be Free

James Agbor, BaretaNews Political Analyst