The monthly initiative of female traditional title holders from the North West region led by the General Manager of Cameroon Telecommunication, CAMTEL, to regularly mourn and condemn in the strongest of terms the incessantly killings in the two English-speaking regions Cameroon has been hailed for massively contributing to the voluntary surrendering of weapons by armed separatist fighters.
The revelation was made Wednesday 24 February 2021 as the Queen Mothers once more gathered at the Bamenda Commercial Avenue Grand Stand to condemn the recent killing of three traditional rulers in Lebialem Division in the South West region by gunmen believed to be commanded by Oliver Lekeaka a.k.a ‘Field Marshal’, self-styled leader of separatist armed group, the Red Dragons.
“…about the impact today, the fruits of the initiative we cannot measure. The boys leaving the bushes day and night to join the DDR Centres in Bamenda and Buea,” revealed Ndinwa Benedit, CAMTEL’s Head of Communication and Public Relations. He equally channeled the GM’s words of encouragement to fellow Queen Mothers and women of the two regions.
“…I cannot be in happy while my sisters, mothers from the NW and SW regions are suffering. Children are killed day and night. I cannot sit in Yaounde comfortably when blood is being shed. My sisters cannot go to their farms. They cannot go to the markets to do their business. They cannot send their kids to school,” said Ndinwa on behalf of CAMTEL GM who was unavoidably absent due to pressing duties.
The Queen Mothers (Mafors) poured out on the streets not only to condemn the nonstop killings and other atrocities rocking the two troubled regions but to continue to beg belligerent groups to give peace a chance and permit the return of normalcy.
They prayed God to look down on the suffering masses and touches the hearts of belligerents to drop their arms and rather carry pens and provide to kids to resume school. They mourned the murdered chiefs of Essoh-Attah village in Lebialem and prayed for the repose of their souls and others recently killed throughout the troubled regions.
Worth recalling is the fact that Chiefs Simon Forzizong, Benedict Fomin, Peter Fualeasuoh Fuambeh were pulled out of their houses in Essoh-Attah village and dragged to the market square where they were shot in cold blood and their lifeless bodies dumped in a nearby river Saturday 13 February 2021.
“We Queen Mothers (Mafors) of the North West Region deplore and condemn in the strongest terms the constant killing of our Chiefs in Lebialem, and children since the escalation of this crisis in our beloved Anglophone regions,” partly read a statement from the Mafors who also recalled in the sad memory of HRH Chief Ngale Ikome of Dibanda village killed 13 December 2020 in Fako Division of the South West while in captivity as well as the murdered women and children in Ngarbu, Comfort Tumasang chopped into pieces in Muyuka, Florence Ayafor in Santa and the seven children brutally assassinated in Kumba last October 24, 2020 as they sought to study.
“As Queen Mothers we uphold the sanctity of live and the protection of all human lives in and out of our communities…,” said the Queen Mothers in their statement. They added that: “never should we be comforted by what could have been prevented”.
The mothers in general and the Queen mothers in particular unequivocally stated that they are the hardest hit in the crisis that has forced them to live through the unbearable pain of seeing their offspring die daily due to the crisis.
They staged a walk along the Bamenda Commercial Avenue to show their resentment to the killings with placards conveying varied messages all condemning the acts and begging belligerent groups to sue for peace.
By Doh Bertrand
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