Southern Cameroonians from Ediki and other communities closer to neighbouring city Douala have been taking refuge in that part of the country running from the barbarism of La Republique colonial forces. While it may sound funny, it is absolutely correct as citizens everywhere in the world always find refuge in the next available border country. That is why those in Manyu could easily run to Nigeria, the immediate border country. The war is not against the people’s themselves per say. In this historical write up, Prof Carlson Ayangwe carefully dissects what we offered citizens from La Republique decades ago when they too were running from combine La Republique and France actions against them, Southern Cameroons offered them abode and shield them from French terrorism. Read on.

 

It is common knowledge that Ambazonia gave refuge to thousands of French Cameroun refugees fleeing French horrible repression (the French said they were fighting terrorism – maquisard was the dreaded term then in use) and slavery-like forced labour.

In doing that it saved hundreds of thousands of those people and kept alive their hopes of an independent French Cameroun. That was from the 1940s right up to 1961. Then with Britain (illegally) transferring Ambazonia to French Cameroun, our mere presence brought a measure of sanity and stability to the political, social and economic politics of that country.

We then became the stabilizer of that fractuous country politically and economically and opened its eyes to an alternative narrative in terms of governance, culture and world view.

Our presence therefore saved French Cameroun from communal self-destruction and our natural resources saved it from complete ruination and becoming a totally failed state.

Many people do not realise rhat French Cameroun has always been a patchwork of antagonistic ethnicities, cultures and proclivities. First, there is the Nordiste vs Sudiste rift in terms of religion, culture and political outlook. Within each if these two broad rival divisions are bitter communal/ethnic fights.

In the North, the Haussa-Fulani (locally known as the peuhl or foulbe) have always looked down on and oppressed the native Kirdi people, denying then access to basic human rights and still practising slavery. The atrocities of Rey Bouba are well known. The very early French collaborationists in French Cameroun were the Haussa-Fulani. And upto the 1950s the French seriously considered excising this part of French Cameroun and ceding it to Chad or even Nigeria on grounds of ethnic, religious and cultural oneness.

In the Sud there was a clear antagonism between other Sudiste communities and the Bamileke seen as invading and expanding southwards to areas in Littoral and Centre. The Bamileke themselves kept complaining about the so-called ‘limited space’ they have in their native area and pleaded that as an excuse for their expansion southwards. They even tried to expand into part of Ambazonia, Tombel in Bakossiland. That insursion led to the Tombel ‘war’.

The Bassa too have not always seen eye to eye with the Duala especially on the French Caneroun liberation agenda, regarding which the Bamileke and the Bassa assumed leadership. The real cleavage though in the Sud has always been between the Bamileke and Bassa on the one hand, and the Ewondo and Bulu on the other hand. The Bulu and Ewondo even during the German period have always gravitated towards collaboration with the coloniser; and have always been the preferred ‘fonctionnaires’ and ‘politiciens’ of the French. And this fact has always put them on a colision course with the Bamileke and Bassa.

The effect of the presence of Ambazonia has been that these deadly rivalries were put in abeyance as successive French Cameroun regimes strategically diverted attention to a so-called over-riding need to integrate Ambazonia into French Cameroun so as to have unimpeded access to Ambazonia’s wealth. That is what all the hot air about so-called reunification, national integration and national unity has all been about. Ambazonia was presented as the common enemy againts that so-called national unity. There was even conjured the spectre of Ambazonians as so-called ‘secessionists’ and therefore to be extinguished via absorption in every respect and part of French Cameroun population transferred to occupy Amabzonia. At once French Cameroun people were made to forget their mutual antagonism and infighting and to focus on dealing with the Ambazonia enemy.

The current worry in some Western minds is that with Ambazonia’s decolonization and freedom, there will no longer be a stabilizing entity to prevent French Cameroun from going its old antagonistic ways and splintering into three or four unviable entities: the Haussa-Fulani-Kirdi 3 northern provinces; the 3 centre-sud-est southern provinces; the Duala-Bassa littoral province; and the Bamileke west province. Of these the Bamileke province has the least chance of survival as an entity that is why of all these entities they are the most worried and violently anti-Ambazonia.

By Prof Carlson Ayangwe.

5 comments
  1. @Carlson Ayangwe, you call yourself a professor? What a garbage and divisive piece of write up! Even in the same family, does everyone look at each other the same way? Please keep your mouth shut when you have nothing to say.

    1. Jojo, we know that in French Cameroon, you are not allowed to speak. He has is point. Argue on merits, stop asking someone to keep their mouth shut.

  2. In Ambazonia we allow for free speech and the free expression of ideas. Many uninformed contributors to this forum are welcome to reveal their obliviousness. It’s through exposure that historical facts on Ambazonia, biya’s lrc and the world are corrected. No one should ask another to “keep his /her mouth shut.”

    No one in Cameroon, Africa and the world can question the vast knowledge, wisdom and humility that Professor Anyangwe brings to the table of facts and ideas, on matters of governance and civil rights and especially on Ambazonia. The Professor ‘s article on biya’s lrc encroachment in Ambazonia is timely and straight to the point.

    Professor Anyangwe just briefed us on the callous nature of lrc french republic’s intransigence and systematic aggression on its people who are already reduced to puppets. Biya’s Lrc is corrupt and made up of a heartless coldblooded machinery that only fends for itself. As they kill Ambazonians in the name of some concocted fake unity, Ambazonians shall resist biya’s encroachment in Ambazonia. It’s Ambazonia or nothing.

  3. I see my self, my son, my … in all these our people.

    That is where I will be than rather accept slavery, colonization, oppression, …

    The Revolution continues, we shall over come.

    Long Live The Federal Republic Of Ambazonia.

  4. The truth of the matter is that a Tiger will never change the stripes on its skin. Finally, we can see how this write–up is getting under the skin of the LRC troll. We have been taken for granted for too long and this time around, there is no turning back. The souls of our fallen heroes as well as the sufferings of those who have been maimed and presently unjustly incarcerated shall not be sacrificed on the altar of the follies of LRC slaves like Philomen Yang, Atanga Nji, Patrick Ekema, Tabetando, etc.
    To those Ambazonians who are still sitting on the fence, it is time to start supporting the cause by funding the “My-trip-to-Buea”. The time for cheap talk is over.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You May Also Like

ABS Hits Back at Cameroon’s Denials, Maintains President Biya is Dead

ABS Hits Back at Cameroon’s Denials, Maintains President Biya is Dead In…

One Nation, Two Anthems: Where the Mungo Meanders

Very few people know the second stanza of the Cameroon national anthem.…

Cameroon’s Future in Question as Biya Faces Serious Health Issues

Cameroon is facing a period of uncertainty as rumours swirl about the…

Colonial Soldier Killed Despite Using Civilians as Human Shields

Colonial Soldier Killed Despite Using Civilians as Human Shields By Mbah Godlove…