Libii’s Bamenda Theatrics: Apology Too Little, Capital Promise a Pipe Dream
Bamenda, Southern Cameroons – October 2, 2025 – In a calculated bid to woo ‘Anglophone’ voters amid the shadow of “ghost towns” and separatist lockdowns, presidential hopeful Cabral Libii staged a high-drama rally here today, blending contrition with audacious vows. The PCRN leader’s dual pronouncements—an apology for his 2020 call for a state of emergency in the crisis-torn Northwest and Southwest regions, and a pledge to uproot Cameroon’s capital from Yaoundé to Bamenda/Buea by October 12—may play well to a frustrated crowd, but they smack of electoral cynicism more than substantive reform.
Libii’s apology, delivered with theatrical humility, revisited his infamous reaction to the horrific Kumba school massacre that claimed seven children’s lives in October 2020. “I was shocked and emotional,” he confessed to a sparse but fervent audience at Commercial Avenue Grandstand, clarifying that his “state of emergency” plea never intended militarization but rather urgent humanitarian action. The crowd erupted in applause, a rare sound in a city paralyzed by separatist-enforced shutdowns. Yet, this mea culpa arrives five years late and suspiciously timed, just 10 days before the October 12 presidential poll. Critics, including rival campaign insiders, dismiss it as damage control: Libii’s 2020 outburst alienated many Anglophones who viewed it as endorsing Yaoundé’s heavy-handed crackdown on the separatist uprising. By invoking the Kumba tragedy now, he’s not just owning a misstep—he’s weaponizing shared grief to burnish his “reconciler” image, without addressing how his words may have emboldened the very military escalation he now decries.
The real head-scratcher, however, is Libii’s bombshell promise: If elected, he’ll decamp the presidency to Bamenda (or Buea) immediately post-victory, governing from the Anglophone heartland “until peace is fully restored.” It’s a bold nod to federalist ideals, echoing the 1961 federation’s spirit that many separatists claim was betrayed by the 1972 unitary shift. In theory, it signals solidarity with a region that’s bled over 6,000 lives since 2016, per UN estimates, and could pressure holdouts to the negotiating table. Libii framed it as “community federalism” in action, vowing to sideline soldiers for dialogue.
But let’s cut the rhetoric: This is fantasy politics on steroids. Relocating the seat of power—home to 3 million in greater Yaoundé, with its entrenched bureaucracy, security apparatus, and international diplomatic corps—isn’t a weekend jaunt. Logistical chaos would ensue: How do you evacuate ministries, secure a war zone for VIPs, or reroute billions in infrastructure without tanking the economy? Bamenda, under siege from ambushes and lockdowns, lacks even basic connectivity for such an operation. And the optics? It risks inflaming Francophone majorities who see it as favoritism toward “troublemakers,” potentially fracturing the national unity Libii claims to champion.
This isn’t leadership; it’s a Hail Mary from a third-place contender polling in single digits against Paul Biya’s machine. Libii’s Orange Coalition has mobilized impressively—drawing cheers despite the ghost town—but his Bamenda stop feels like pandering to separatist sympathies without the spine for real concessions, like inclusive dialogues excluding Biya loyalists. The apology? A PR Band-Aid on a gaping wound. The capital shift? Campaign catnip for headlines, but devoid of a roadmap beyond feel-good federalism buzzwords.
As Cameroon hurtles toward October 12, Libii’s gambit underscores the election’s high stakes: a vote less about change than survival. Will Anglophones buy the redemption arc, or see through the spectacle? In a nation where promises evaporate faster than rain in the Adamawa, today’s rally may echo louder as opportunism than oracle. For now, Bamenda’s streets, briefly alive with orange flags, revert to uneasy silence—much like the chasm Libii’s words fail to bridge.
