Cameroon: Nigerian Fulani herders kidnap 22, sow terror in Ako Subdivision

By Tata Mbunwe

Armed Fulani herders from neighboring Nigeria have kidnapped some 22 people in Buku, a village in Ako Subdivision of the Northwest Region bordering Nigeria, sources have told MMI.

The villagers were kidnapped in two separate attacks on the village on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2.

The Mayor of Ako, Nkanya Nkwai, said about 12 heavily armed Fulani men from Nigeria stormed Buku village on Saturday, in search for a local vigilante man named Abdu Karimo.

“The went into a little store and took out all the chewables and soft drinks but did not harm anyone in the village. Rather, they asked for Abdu Karimo, who is an interim ‘Ador’ who fights against illegal trans humans and helping in pushing back thousands of animals from Nigeria that destroy crops and farms in the Subdivision,” the Mayor said.

Mayor Nkanya Nkwai added that the armed men stormed the village again on Sunday, April 2, and kidnapped eight people whose whereabouts are yet unknown.

“Today (Sunday) around 10am, they came out on the road between Ako town and the border market, stopping anyone who passed and collecting money and useful items, including phones,” he added.

The incident has reigned terror on Ako for the past few days.

Dieudonne, a resident of Ako who has been following up developments concerning the issue, told MMI the armed men have kidnapped 22 people from Buku in total during their operations on Saturday and Sunday.

“Among those kidnapped is Flora, the wife to a young business guy from Buku village. The kidnappers have demanded 100 million francs from Mr Theodore, the husband of Flora,” Dieudonne said.

“The Fulani are said to be coming in from Nigeria and, even though the acts were committed in Cameroon, the contacts which they use in contacting one of the victims’ husband is a Nigerian mobile number,” he added.

Almost no security

The attack on Buku has been blamed on the presence of very little security in the Subdivision altogether, and especially around the Cameroon-Nigeria border.

Dieudonne said Buku village is separated from Nigeria by a vast, uninhabited land through which Nigerian armed groups easily sneak in and conduct attacks unnoticed by the few custom officers stationed at the border crossing.

“In other border villages, there are no security forces like Buku, where the second incident happened. Even in the heart of the Sub-divisional headquarter, Ako, only 10 kilometres away, last week villagers were kidnapped in a border market. There is no security in Ako Subdivision Subdivision to say the least,” he said.

The Mayor has informed administrative authorities about the recent kidnapping, stating that it “requires urgent measures.”

Ako is one of the five Subdivisions that constitute Ndonga Mantung Division in the Northwest Region.

Amid the ongoing separatist conflict in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon, the Division has enjoyed much peace, with very limited separatist activities.

Mimi Mefo Info