Growing alarm is surrounding the deteriorating health of renowned resistance activist André Blaise Essama, whose continued detention by the French Cameroun regime is now threatening his life. Family members and members of his legal team say the fearless activist, who has spent several months inside New Bell Prison in Douala, is battling severe diabetes that has resulted in a serious chronic infection. His lawyers warn that unless he is immediately transferred to a specialised medical facility, he could lose one or both of his lower limbs through amputation.
According to his lead counsel, Barrister Fabien Kengne, Essama’s condition has worsened dramatically behind bars. The lawyer maintains that the imprisoned activist requires urgent medical intervention that cannot be adequately provided within the prison environment. His legal team says every delay increases the risk of irreversible damage, making his continued detention not only unlawful but also life-threatening.
The latest health crisis unfolds against the backdrop of what his lawyers continue to describe as an illegal detention orchestrated by the French Cameroun authorities. Essama was arrested on November 7, 2025, barely a day after the controversial swearing-in of the French Cameroun regime’s declared presidential winner following the disputed October 12, 2025 presidential election. He was reportedly held under administrative detention for fifteen days on the orders of the Littoral Governor before being kept in custody without what his lawyers describe as any valid detention warrant.
His legal defence further argues that the transfer of his case to the French Cameroun Military Tribunal in Douala represents another abuse of judicial process, insisting that a military court lacks the legal competence to prosecute a civilian. They maintain that his prolonged incarceration has become a politically motivated punishment rather than a lawful judicial process.
Known by many supporters as “The Fighter,” André Blaise Essama has spent nearly two decades confronting symbols of French colonial domination in French Cameroun. He gained international attention after repeatedly bringing down and decapitating the statue of French colonial General Philippe Leclerc in Douala, insisting that monuments glorifying colonial conquest should be replaced with memorials honoring African liberation heroes and Pan-African patriots.
His unwavering defiance made him one of the most frequently arrested activists in French Cameroun. By 2020, Essama revealed that he had been arrested at least 78 times during seventeen years of activism. Yet, despite repeated imprisonments, intimidation and harassment, he remained steadfast in challenging colonial symbols and authoritarian rule.
Unlike his previous arrests, however, his current imprisonment has unfolded amid an intensified crackdown by the Yaoundé regime against opposition figures and activists accused of supporting the presidential ambitions of Issa Tchiroma Bakary following the disputed 2025 election. Several prominent political voices, including Djeukam Tchameni and Anicet Ekane, also came under increased pressure during the same period.
By Lucas Muma l BaretaNews
