Separatists-Imposed Lockdown On Ekok Highway Taking Heavy Toll On Road Users

For dayss now, the Mamfe – Ekok road has been on a total shutdown following a travel restriction that was imposed by separatist fighters.

The lockdown on the road is supposed to last for two weeks, but just seven days into it, road users and business people especially are already feeling a sting of the lockdown.

All Economic and Administrative activities have frozen in the area, while hundreds of stranded passengers impatiently wait on the road for the lockdown to be lifted.

According to reliable sources at the Ekok border with Nigeria, hundreds of persons who had crossed over to purchase merchandise have remained stranded for several days at the border without a route to go through given the complete shutdown of the road.

Separatist fighters have said that the lockdown will only be lifted on April 12, 2021.

One of our sources who says they crossed over to Nigeria to buy goods for his uncle’s funeral slated for April 15, says the plans might be jeopardized.
“…His funeral is supposed to be on the 15th of April. So we went to buy some stuffs from Nigeria only to come and meet the lockdown at the borders. We have been here since then praying for the 12th of April to reach so that we can leave this place,” he lamented.

There equally has been no form of resistance by the Cameroon military, as it is equally revealed that no form of confrontation has occured since the lockdown was imposed. The one person who breached the lockdown was a driver who did so on Sunday. He was allegedly killed by the separatists and his car taken to the bush. This was a message sent by the fighters.

The exact reasons for the imposed two weeks lockdown is largely obscure. However there are speculations that it may be a strategy focused at dismantling the military checkpoint at Eyumojock.