Over the last two weeks, the nation’s focus has been on Yaounde following the holding of presidential elections wherein the incumbent, Paul Biya, is being suspected to have lost woefully.  The winner, Prof. Maurice Kamto, had declared that he had won; a day after polling and his announcement has sparked not just hope among his supporters, but fear within the ruling party.

Over the last two days, there have been hearings on post-election fraud, with the ruling party being the prime suspect. The hearings have attracted national and international attention, as Prof. Kamto’s legal team exposes the ruling party’s rigging strategy and tactics.

The rigging involved the Far North, Northwest, Southwest and South regions where opposition returning officers were chased away by ruling party officials.  In some ridings, ruling party officials signed on behalf of the opposition officials and in some cases the figures simply do not add up.

In the northwest and southwest regions where a violent and vicious war has been going on, soldiers had to vote as many times as they wanted on behalf of the ruling party as the violence had driven the population out of the regions. But from every indication, things seem to be looking up after two weeks of massive killing in the two English-speaking regions.

This has made many analysts to think that the situation might be improving, especially as many internally displaced people who had fled to East Cameroon are now returning to the English-speaking regions, as many of them suspect that if the elections are released in favor of the incumbent, there could be violence or even a civil war in East Cameroon.  Over the last two days, two caches of weapons have been found in Foumban and Bangante, two major cities in Prof. Kamto’s region of origin.

The fear of a civil war is all the more real as Kamto yesterday reiterated before the Constitutional Council that he was the winner of the October 7 poll and the Constitutional Council should do the right thing to ensure the people’s will is respected to ensure the country is spared the type of chaos that has been playing out in Southern Cameroons.

But the situation in Yaounde does not seem to be of any concern or interest to Southern Cameroonian fighters who hold that the elections are simply a distraction. They also hold that once the situation deteriorates, they will step up attacks against the forces of occupation and they will do everything to protect their territory by securing Southern Cameroonian borders.

According to an audio message sent to the Cameroon Concord News Group, Southern Cameroonian fighters are simply working hard to make their impact felt during this period of confusion in the country.

“We have seen that some forces of occupation are being withdrawn from our territory to help keep peace in their own country. We are aware that trouble is brewing in the neighboring country. We will not let that distract us,” the audio message says.

The speaker in the tape further adds that “we will do everything in our power to remain focused. We would not allow the enemy to drag us into its problems. We will be watching the enemy from a distance, as it proves to the world that it is incapable of ensuring peace in its country.”

“We are using this opportunity to urge our citizens to return home and to support the fighters to flush out the forces of occupation. We still have unfinished business and we have to turn the heat on the enemy,” the message underscores.

“We are happy to see them fight each other as this will weaken their grip on our territory. We are urging our citizens to steer clear of the situation in East Cameroon as it does not concern them,” the message concludes.

Prof. Kamto has reassured Southern Cameroonians that once declared the winner of the presidential poll, he will engage in a sincere and an inclusive dialogue.

But his message does not seem to be music to many Southern Cameroonian ears, as many citizens from this region have made up their minds to walk a different path, though they support him in his fight to bring genuine democracy to his country.

By Rita Akana and Kingsley Betek