BY Evelyn Kubu
As state forces battle separatist fighters in Cameroon’s North-West and South-West regions, civilians are left to bear the brunt.
In this edition, The SUN zooms into the tale of Chefor Bryant Shey who has been declared wanted by security forces over allegations of sponsoring separatist fighters.
In November 2022, Chefor, while traveling to the village for the burial of his Uncle Mr. Shey Samuel Nwebu with his family and to participate in rites regarding the death of his late father Mr. Shey Emmanuel Bantar, who died in 2020. While in Taku Village, his village of origin in the Ndu Subdivision of the Northwest Region of Cameroon, Chefor was kidnapped by armed separatist fighters who seek the independence of their country christened Ambazonia.
The separatist fighters were demanding months of accrued taxes from Chefor Bryant Shey for the burial of his father which supposedly did not take place in the village as expected by them thereby depriving them of their burial taxes.
“He was accused of being a blackleg by the Separatists for not supporting their struggle. Today, he wants to come and build his father’s grave without contributing to the struggle for our Liberation,” said one of the fighters who goes by the name General No Pity. “If he doesn’t pay a tax of FCFA 2 million, he will be killed and buried here in the bush. Anyone from Ambazonia who does not support the struggle is a traitor.”
Faced with a hard choice, Chefor is said to have bought his way out of separatist captivity with the sum of FCFA 1 million, promising to send his financial support for the struggle monthly.
Upon his release from the separatist den, some state forces reportedly started actively searching for Chefor. He was being accused of financially supporting the separatist movement of which he claimed to be innocent, and was a victim of their activities himself.
Chefor got wind of the plot to arrest him through a tip-off he got from an unknown caller claiming to be a government security agent. He was told he was on a wanted list and should leave the country as soon as possible for his own safety. Chefor fled the country last April to an unknown destination, leaving behind his wife and daughter for fear for his life.
Since 2017, English-speaking separatists have been fighting in the Central African nation, with the claimed objective of breaking away from the area occupied by the French-speaking majority and establishing an independent English-speaking state.
The separatists have been accused by the government of committing atrocities against English-speaking citizens. Government has also blamed separatist fighters for carrying out untold atrocities and Vise Versa.
According to the International Crisis Group, the war has killed over 6,000 people and displaced over 760,000 others.
