By Tata Mbunwe
Two officers in Buea who were kidnapped by separatist fighters operating in Fako Division of the Southwest Region have been freed, bi-weekly newspaper, The Post, reported in its March 3 edition.
The officers of the judicial police in Buea, who were named as Gideon Tikum and Honoraine, were reportedly kidnapped around Lisoka village in Buea Subdivision while on patrol on Wednesday, March 1.
They were taken by fighters loyal to separatist ‘General Sagat’, who operates in Buea and Muyuka Subdivisions, Christopher Tambe Tiku, a human rights defender, said.
The Post reported that Tambe Tiku succeeded in securing their release that Wednesday evening, after negotiating with ‘General Sagat’, who had threatened to kill them.
MMI learned the two officers were beaten and their guns seized by the separatists.
“I was traumatized when he threatened to kill them in the next two hours. I virtually went down on my knees and convinced him the two officers were my children. One of them, coincidentally, bears the name Tikum. I insisted that he was my son. It is on this note that he insisted that I should report in person to Ekona and negotiate their release,” Tambe Tiku is quoted to have said.
By Wednesday evening, the two officers had been released. It is not clear whether any ransome was paid for their freedom.
This was the second notable negotiation Tambe Tiku has successfully conducted during the armed conflict in English-speaking regions of Cameroon.
In 2018, he also negotiated with separatist fighters to release some football players of the University of Buea who had been kidnapped.
Mimi Mefo Info
