By Soulemanu Buba
A soldier of the Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR) fighting against separatists in the Northwest Region has warned the population of Bamenda, especially bike riders, to flee whenever they see an armoured car or a military truck approaching.
This was after three civilians were knocked down by a speeding military truck in Bamenda over the weekend.
Talking to MMI on condition of anonymity, the soldier said some of his colleagues have opted to be reckless towards civilians, especially as they believe the administration will take no action against them no matter what they do.
This came after three persons were crushed by an armoured vehicle in Bamenda on Sunday, February 19.
The first was an old man who was violently hit around the Ntarinkon neighborhood by the same vehicle which also knocked down two other civilians few minutes later.
“The vehicle deliberately left its own side of the road and hit the victims at the opposite side of the road before driving off as if nothing had happened,” said the soldier, who seemed to sympathise with the victims.
“Such cases have been brought before military hierarchy but nothing was done. Some relatives of victims were even threatened with arrest when they took the matter to the authorities. This caused them to flee. My advice is that if you see an armoured car approaching from any direction, do your best to give way and be safe especially in the evening hours of the day,” he further said.
The recent incident in Bamenda came after a military truck knocked down and critically injured a man at Matazem, a border locality between the Northwest and West Regions of Cameroon.
Witnesses said one of the soldiers who was on the vehicle had shouted, “Anglofools, Ambazozo” as they drove off towards the West Region.
Aside many who have been killed by military trucks in the Northwest and Southwest Regions, others have seen their bikes and vehicles destroyed in such avoidable accidents.
Some Bamenda residents complained that authorities do not consider their plight whenever they report such incidents, while others have resolved to ignore them in order to stay out of trouble.
Several people among over 6,000 Anglophone civilians killed in the conflict since 2017 were killed by speeding military trucks.
The Southwest Region recently experienced a similar scenario like that of Bamenda in the Northwest, when a speeding military truck knocked down and killed a bike rider in Kumba on Friday, February 17.
The Senior Divisional Officer for Meme Division, Chamberlain Ndong, like the soldier in Bamenda, advised agitating bike riders to always make way when they see military trucks approaching.
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