Confusion Monday in Buea; Parents Scamper for Children in Schools, Molyko Gendarmes Take to their heels with Red Caps in their Pockets; Everybody on the Run

Monday, 15th January 2018, was a usual ghost town day across Ambazonia. However, the Capital city of Buea, has of recent fallen under the threats and intimidations of the colonial mayor and the colonial Divisional Officer. As a result, Buea had joined Victoria as the two cities with a very timid responses to the calls for civil disobedience by the revolutionary command.

A good number of the denizens have become more of hailers of the activities of the Tigers in Manyu and elsewhere, than active participants in their own ways. They are often seen and heard discussing the revolution and hailing the Tigers in small gatherings and sometimes in taxis, when they are sure that it is not contaminated with foreign or La Republique du Cameroun (LRC) traces.

Monday was therefore a dramatic day, not only in the capital Buea, but also in other towns within the Southern Zone, like Victoria, Muea, Muyuka and Kumba etc. In fact, it could be described as a confusion Monday, as rumors of the arrival to the Tigers of Ambazonia in Muea, from Mbonge through Muyuka, set the whole town and zone in commotion.

In no time, the rumour had spread like wild fire in different frightening versions. While some parents ran to schools shouting; “those Mamfe ghosts fighters are in Muea oooh, run and take your children,” others could be heard shouting in pidgin English and making telephone calls to their love ones; “them say that Odeshi boys them don enter Buea oooh, them dey Muea now so … run go take your pickin them for school…”

Another versions of the rumor held that; negotiations between interim President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and Mr. Biya’s delegation had flopped in Nigeria, as La Republique totally rejected a Referendum proposal for Southern Cameroons. This has therefore prompted Sisiku Ayuk Tabe to order Amba invisible fighters to move in and chase away the occupier.

As the different versions of the rumour kept spreading like wild fire, that is how all the towns from Buea to Kumba and back to Tiko, Mutengene and Victoria all went into a very high level pandemonium. Parents could be seen running up and down by foot and vehicles; shop owners were folding up with speed, while many could be seen talking on phones and taking to their heels.

Around the UB junction, a few minutes into the commotion, the official black Prado of the Vice Chancellor of the University of Buea, was sighted coming out of campus on break-neck speed. He had surely been briefed by colonial authorities to immediately disappear from campus. This was followed by the vehicles of other University administrators, lecturers, and support staff. That was the end of lectures for the day, as the popular UB Street 127 became filled with students, trooping out of campus in their numbers.

As the huge crowd of students approached the University main gate, the colonial Gendarmes, who had been there trying to sort out the impromptu traffic congestion, sensed danger. They immediately removed and pocketed their red caps before disappearing in the crowd of pupils, students, parents and taxis. That was when the traffic congestion became uncontrollable.

While parents/ guardians were running all over the place pulling out their children from schools, and heading home, the situation was however slightly different at Bilingual Grammar School Molyko. The Principal of the school “Iron Lady” Hannah Etonde Mbua, had called in the colonial forces to take command of the gate to prevent any student from going out and any parent from coming in to take their children.

However, before the colonial forces arrived the campus, a good number of students had scaled the fence and ran home for safety. The few students who could not run away had to stay inside the classrooms with all doors under lock and key, until it was closing time. Even the bitter exchange of words between parents and colonial forces at the gate of the school did not help matters.

By 1:30 pm, 99.99 percent of the schools had been deserted. Shops and banks had wind down and about 98 percent of Taxis in circulation had parked for the day. In fact, the Monday ghost town had automatically taken shape in whole of Buea, and the people were all in their homes, sharing and laughing over their experiences of the day

If the people of Buea, including colonial Gendarmes could run for their lives, after just a simple warning from the Tigers about their arrival in Buea, how then will these people, especially the colonial forces who are the targets, react or act, the day the Tigers actually arrive Buea?. Yesterday event was therefore just a reminder to the people of their responsibility to the revolution, which is to be fully part of the actions to free the homeland.

James Agbor, BaretaNews Political Analyst