Anglophone Crisis: How Six Journalists Escaped Life Threatening Gun Shots On The Bamenda - Bali Road

By Raymond Dingana

Our second trip to Bali was what one would say was worse than the first. The first journey took us right to Bali but the second ended in a fiasco.

The deafening gun shots with some sounding like bombs, the hide and seek that we had to play and the  bush path we did not even master to get back to town was one that would probably have taken our lives but then, we are alive today to recount what happened.

It was on Wednesday August 10,2021 when a team of journalists made of four men and two women set out for another journey to Bali, a village situated about 19km from the town of Bamenda, chief town of the restive North West Region of Cameroon.

 we wanted to see how things were unfolding weeks after the North West Administration and Separatist fighters placed a ban on the circulation of Motor Bikes and Vehicles.

From every indication, things are rather getting worse. We began sensing danger at Hospital Round About when a driver told us that, vehicles were not moving beyond nanga junction.

Bamenda-Bali Road Remains Blocked, Wednesday August 10,2021

Things were not that bad as we moved towards mile 90. At the security check point, no one was there, they may have been eyeing us from the bushes, who knows?

As we passed the check point, a person with disability was spotted from a distance. When we met him, he said the military had been in Chomba since 2:am.

We knew then that, the journey wasn't going to be smooth as the first, yet passion was the only force driving us forward thus we proceeded.

The Situation Of The Raod From Nanga Junction Towards Mile 90

After the Mile 90 check point, we did not see up to five persons on the road. The story from Naaka bridge was something else. Just one person was spotted meters away from us.

When we crossed the Naaka bridge and entered Baliq, we started hearing gun shots from a distance, other colleagues developed cold feet while others insisted we continue.

As we continued, the sound of the guns intensified. We started running for cover when it appeard the gun shots were really too close to us.

One of us out of confusion dashed in to the near by bush on the left side of the road while the rest of us ran to the right side of the highway.

It was then that, a collaleague shouted, "pass this way," that was when the 'confused' colleague realized he was on the wrong side of the road.

With his trypod in his ampit, you needed to see his foot steps as he caterpulted himself from the other side of the road to meet us.

Thank God for a man who opened his doors to us just when the sound of the guns had intensified making it look like we were the target. At this point, we thought our end had come.

Make man no stand for window or for door, bullet fit take ye, meaning no one should be around the doors or Windows because a bullet could hit him, the man who kept us in his house cautioned.

We prostrated to the animating gunshots, our heartbeats singing tunes of tired athletes returning from the Mount Cameroon.

Journalists On The Floor To Avoid Being Hit By A Stray Bullet.

Just the fact that we kept hearing the sound of the gun shots, we knew we were alive because of this saying that, if you are shot at and you don't hear the sound of the gun, it means you are gone.

He told us how he has not opened his front door for years because its not safe. He explained how armed men stormed the Naaka bridge where those trekking from Bali to Bamenda get vehicles to bring them to town.

He further said, the armed men shot at the vehicles before asking the owners to take them away never to come back till further notice.

After spending some time on the floor, we went out to strategized on how we were to disappear from the gun infested area and appear in town.

The guy who hid us showed us a bush path to take. It was the old Bali road through Naaka to new layout mile 90 Nsongwa in Bamenda II Sub Division.

We had another option which was to use the main road. We agreed to use it but as we showed our faces on the tar, deafening gunshots sent us running back in to hiding. It was very difficult to tell who was shooting. However, what we can say is that, the gun shots were coming from both sides.

It was at this point that, we decided to use the bush path to Bamenda.

Few minutes in to our journey, we were saluted by another set of gun shots. We ran to another house like rats that have just seen a cat.

What we could not understand was why a lady we met in her farm was rather laughing at us as we ran for cover.

She behaved as if nothing was happening. She said she saw us passing before the gunshot started and pitied us because she knew we were not going to have it easy ahead.

Through the bush path we walked and finally made it to mile 90 Nsongwa. We passed through the residence of the late publisher of Chronicle newspaper, Erick Motomo.

The Bush Path We Ended Up Using To Get To Town

His mum and other relatives were there. We greeted and expressed our happiness to have seen the compound looking clean and good.

At mile 90 Nsongwa, we met a man and two ladies trekking to Bali. They had come to town to sell Cocumba using their hand push trucks.

We told them about the situation on the road and advised them to be careful.

As I penned down this story, their journey to Bali has not left my mind. I kept asking my self if they finally got home safe or not given that, we could still hear gun shots as we left the area.

They had come right to town because where they were no vehicles to take them to town from the Naaka bridge.

It pains seeing people suffering like that. No one knows when the crisis will end. The People keep reminding government and the separatists that, the military option has failed and has rather cost the lives of many. To them, time to try another option away from using force is now.

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