Fear and anger have gripped the people of Bambui in Mezam County after the lifeless body of a respected community leader was discovered early Monday, March 9, 2026. Nchami Calistus, the Quarter Head of Atunibah in Bambui, was found dead at the busy CHS Junction, a key area linking Bambui to neighbouring communities around Bamenda.
Local sources report that armed men operating around Bambui abducted the traditional authority days earlier. According to residents, the late Quarter Head was taken from his residence near the Presbyterian Church in Down CCAST, a locality well known to students and locals in the Bambui university town.
Community members say this was not the first time Nchami Calistus had been kidnapped. The respected Atunibah Quarter Head had reportedly suffered a similar abduction in the past before regaining his freedom. His latest kidnapping and tragic death have now sent shockwaves across Bambui and the wider Mezam County.
Residents who gathered at CHS Junction on Monday morning expressed deep frustration over the worsening security situation in Bambui, a community that hosts the University of Bamenda and has repeatedly been caught in the crossfire of the ongoing Ambazonian struggle.
The killing of the Atunibah Quarter Head adds to a growing list of traditional authorities and civilians who have lost their lives in the escalating conflict across Ground Zero, particularly in the Mezam zone of Ambazonia. Many locals fear that the continued targeting of community leaders will further destabilise villages already struggling under years of war.
As of the time of filing this report, no armed group had officially claimed responsibility for the killing. Meanwhile, the people of Bambui remain in mourning as questions continue to mount over the circumstances surrounding the abduction and death of their community leader.
