SDF Denies Losing Members to CPDM in Njikwa, Insists Militants Were Already Out

By Njodzeka Kernyuy

A senior member of the Social Democratic Front (SDF) party has clarified that five individuals who recently joined the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) party in Momo Division had left the SDF long ago, contrary to reports that they were decamping.

The individuals, from Njikwa in the Momo Division of the Northwest region, were welcomed by the head of the CPDM’s permanent delegation to Momo, Acha Rose Fomundam, over the weekend.

They had claimed to have just resigned from the SDF to join the CPDM.

Speaking to MMI on Monday, SDF’s National Legal Adviser, Barrister Ndangoh Tah Calvin, said the five individuals left the party many years ago.

“So they can’t claim they were members of the SDF party who just resigned,” he stated, adding, “That was an insignificant event.”

The state broadcaster, CRTV, had reported that the five individuals were top brass of the SDF in Njikwa.

According to the SDF, the highest-ranking among them was Francis Ekana, a one-time District Chairman in Njikwa.

“If he said ‘former’, it means someone is currently occupying that position, meaning he was no longer with the party at time of resignation,” Barrister Ndangoh told MMI.

During an interview at the event, Francis Ekana said they joined the CPDM because the party had been preaching peace.

“And Momo people are peace-loving people,” he told the state broadcaster.

This is not the first time individuals who left the SDF long ago have used its name to gain relevance.

Last month, some individuals who had been dismissed by the SDF and had joined the CRM party later crossed to the UNDP of Bello Bouba Maigari.

Instead of presenting themselves as former CRM members, they claimed to be from the SDF.

The SDF Deputy Secretary of Political Education and Training, Ndifor Richard, suggested this was a quest for relevance.

To him, without using the SDF’s name, the event involving the supposed G37 members would have been insignificant.

Ekana Kidnapped

Although Ekana praised the CPDM for the peace in the division, Barrister Ndangoh claimed that Ekana was once kidnapped. MMI could not independently verify this claim.

There has been insecurity in most parts of the North West owing to a separatist armed conflict that escalated in 2017 following the failure to address demands raised by Anglophone lawyers and teachers in 2016.

“Most of these guys have been hanging around Yaounde and have not been to the village,” Barrister Ndangoh claimed, referring to the new CPDM members.

Cross-Party Migration

Since preparations for the presidential election scheduled for October 12 gained momentum, there has been significant migration between political parties in Cameroon.

About three months ago, the SDF claimed that over 30 militants of the CPDM in Obala, Centre Region, had defected to them.

This phenomenon is not limited to these two parties. In the North, the Cameroon National Salvation Front of Issa Tchiroma Bakary and the PCRN of Cabral Libii—both presidential candidates—have also welcomed new members from other parties.