The Agony of the Bali Road Block

 The Agony of the Bali Road Block

As the tussle continues between the state and non state armed fighters with decisions and counter decisions imposed to exhibit supremacy, the population remains caught in between. Both say they're fighting for the people yet the common man doesn't feel involved in the fight as he's punished the more like the grass that suffers when two elephants rustle. 

It's getting to a month now that circulation on the Bamenda-Bali road and within Bali subdivision was prohibited. After the recent attack on state forces in the area that claimed the lives of about five soldiers, the Senior Divisional Officer for Mezam imposed a ban on the circulation of bikes within Bali subdivision for a three months renewable period. 

Non state armed fighters in the area known as The Buffalos also in reaction to the ban on bikes imposed their on ban on the circulation of cars within the subdivision for an undisclosed period, probably until the S.D.O reverses his decision. Likely out of pride that's said to usually go before a fall, non of the two warring parties is ready to backpedal on their decisions despite realising their counter productiveness, thus instilling more hardship on the population. 

Sam Tabeng, Ngyen-Mbo Now a Market Place Where Goods Come in from Bali

The (trans African) Bamenda-Bali-Batibo-Widikum-Ekok highway is the main commercial entry and exit route of the North West region. The traffic density on the road is very heavy on daily basis as passengers and goods worth hundreds of millions keep being transported on what many term, the best road in the entire region. Just a day of no movement on this road is a huge economic loss to the region and the impact felt in all 7  divisions within the region and beyond. 

Ever since the implementation of the ban, commuters have been going through thick and thin to move from place to place (with goods). Life is becoming unbearable and many who are able and capable now resort to other means of movement like trekking or pushing their farm produce and goods in trucks to Bamenda and neighbouring communities. 

Mbengwi, chief town of Momo division is now the passage way used by many from Widikum, Batibo, Bali to access Bamenda the regional headquarters and back. Before the advent of the ongoing Anglophone Crisis, Bali had been at daggers drawn with her neighbour, Ngyen-Mbo for many years. Repeated clashes kept resurfacing year in year out on a disputed piece of very fertile land the two communities have been claiming ownership of. 

On many occasions, cash crops like plantains, coffee and other food crops that were doing well on the said land ended up being cleared down or burnt by unknown individuals. Several acts of vandalism on any structure the government tried to mount on the said land to broker a peace deal were committed. Some state officials were even reported to have escaped from the farm at top speed due to gunshots during field visits in an attempt to seek a lasting solution to the Bali-Ngyen-Mbo land dispute. 

Mbon Motor Park, Mile 18 Mbengwi

Fortunately or unfortunately, the Anglophone Crisis that started in 2016 brought the dispute to an unintended end in that it is alleged most of those who used to fight on the land now had a bigger and better opportunity to join the various armed groups that emerged to fight and have since then till date been fighting against state forces in their quest for the independence of former British Southern Cameroons otherwise referred to as Ambazonia.

With the recent ban on circulation of bikes and cars within Bali subdivision, Ngyen-Mbo, their neighbour is now one of the passage way being used to pass from Bali through Mbengwi to Bamenda and back. An economic buffer zone has emerged already at Sam Tabeng, a road side junction in Ngyen-Mbo where farmers from Bali now struggle and bring their farm produce to stand by the roadside and wait for cars to transport them to Bamenda. Some buyers too in Bamenda are beginning to come to Ngyen-Mbo to buy directly from mostly Bali farmers that can't make it to town. Pineapples, garden eggs, maize etc are now on sale at Sam Tabeng.

On Monday August 5 2021 I took a car from my Mile 18 Mbengwi residence to Bamenda. The driver was in a haste and so had no time to stand at the Mbon motor park to load. He took off with me alone on the front seat and upon arrival at Sam Tabeng in Ngyen-Mbo, behold, here where passengers and goods more than he could carry. Faced with the situation, he was compelled to carry overload, 3 in front amongst whom was a pregnant woman plus him the driver, making 4 and 4 too behind. No one complained for tough situations demand tough solutions. 

In the course of our journey, the passengers, mostly from Bali kept narrating the ordeals they're going through at moment. I noticed they love their vernacular. They'll speak a bit in Pidgin English and the next minute in Mungaka, their native language. Their main cry was inaccessibility to the market. They have food stocked at home and on their farms but no way to carry to the market to sell. Life is getting harder, they lamented, yet non of the fighting parties seem to care about their plight. 

Cars Now Going to Bali, Batibo, Widikum Through Mbengwi

The pregnant lady disclosed she's travelling to Bamenda to begin buying diapers and other needs for her expected baby. She added that her situation is worst because where she leaves in Bali is just near a military post and they've been warmed not to dare leave. This means they're now being used as shield because with their presence, the non state armed fighters won't attack them for the sake of the civilians around the post. As they kept chatting in the car, their wish was common, that both parties review the decision they each took to ban circulation. As we travelled along, they kept narrating more ordeals they're now facing and appreciated the passability of the Mbengwi road because as they said, the situation would've been worst if this second option of passing through Mbengwi wasn't even available. 

The driver too shared their pain, explaining why he had no choice than to overload the vehicle. For long, the Mbengwi Drivers Union instituted an order that all drivers must carry only one passenger in front and four behind. With the current situation, some are beginning to go against the said order. Some drivers that used to ply the Bamenda-Bali-Batibo-Widikum have now resorted to the Mbengwi road all in a bit to make ends meet. Upon arrival at Alubakam, gun carrying non state armed fighters were on the road, diverting all cars into the bush where another set is present, politely asking for any free will (financial) support from the commuters. Everyone is hustling for daily bread. The little you have in your pocket to go and buy something, another person wants a bit of it. 

The crisis across the two English Speaking regions of Cameroon is on but while the situation of the South West region is improving, that of the North West is rather deteriorating. Calm and serenity may tarry for weeks but sooner, either an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) is detonated somewhere targeting military cars or somebody is kidnapped somewhere or gun battles ensure somewhere or a lockdown imposed somewhere. This is the undesired new way of life the people are now bound to go through daily. In the course of this, lives are being lost prematurely, the economy is deteriorating. 

Business Now Booming at the Mbon Park, Mbengwi

All calls from both within and without the country for a genuine unconditional dialogue to be called so as to seek a final solution have been falling on deaf ears. The government of Cameroon has repeatedly termed the crisis "a pocket of resistance" claiming  the situation is under control. International bodies expected to resolve the Anglophone Crisis as they've resolved such crisis in other countries have fallen short of the people's expectations. In all these, while the suffering population wants an end, the few persons on both sides and even those passing for neutral bodies reaping fruits from the crisis keep provoking it to persist. However, there's still hope considering that anything that has a beginning has an end. "One day na one day" many people now say.