Kini Nsom
3 March 2008
opinion
In a thinly-veiled statement during his declaration February 27, President Paul Biya accused SDF Chairman, Ni John Fru Ndi, of being the hidden hand behind last week's strike that grounded the entire nation close to one week.
The statement was a replica of what the Deputy Secretary General of the CPDM, Grègoire Owona, had made in the afternoon of that same day. Grègoire Owona had gone haywire on the airwaves of CRTV Radio calling Fru Ndi names and accusing him of manipulating innocent kids to go on the strike. He wondered whether by behaving in such a manner Fru Ndi still qualifies to be called a politician.
Many observers were taken aback when the Head of State did not go behind Owona's talk. He completely swept the reason for the strike under the carpet and accused Fru Ndi of practising [political] witchcraft and scheming to overthrow his regime by sending young people into the streets.
Biya did not only sound like a full-fledged dictator, but also accused Fru Ndi of struggling to use the strike to seize power from him. He said the SDF Chairman was manipulating the youths to enable him acquire what he was unable to through the ballot box.
The Head of State did not make any allusion to the grievances of those who were on strike. His tone and message constituted a threat that he was going to use the army to quell down what had degenerated into a rebellion. One commentator referred to him as a local Hitler who was going to crush the strike by way of blood and iron.
After listening to his message, a group of angry youth's stormed the streets, burning the carcasses of vehicles but were chased away by the heavily armed ad fierce looking troops.
Presidential Guards Fuel Strike
After President Biya's declaration, heavily armed troops were stationed in strategic junctions of the town. Yaounde looked like a town under siege. Presidential Guards, finger-on-trigger, waved back people in a very menacing manner. Even civil servants who attempted to go to work on February 28, were sent back home.
Police shot tear gas as angry youths burnt tyres on the streets. The rumbling sound of teargas could be heard everywhere as clouds of thick black smoke made their way graciously into the sky.
Biya In Military Jeep
When the strike took a violent twist on Wednesday February 27, President Biya reportedly entered a military jeep and was driven around Yaounde town to take the tempo of events for himself.
Some inhabitants of the Messa neighbourhood said they spotted the Head of State peeping through the window of the car as youths vented their anger about the high cost of living.
A source close to the Presidency of the Republic said Biya was really embarrassed that the protesters, some as young as 10, came very close to the Unity Palace at Etoudi and burnt tyres and set may other objects ablaze.
He reportedly expressed disappointment that those leading the strike were mostly the young and attributed such an act to witchcraft.Angry that government had only reduced fuel prices by FCFA 6, a group of young people were spotted at Carrefour Warda heading towards the Prime Minister's Office.
The youths are said to have pelted people with stones, asking to see Chief Ephraim Inoni.
Troops chased them away
In some neighbourhoods, the strike was peaceful until the forces of law and order came in with military brutality. They brutalised and arrested anybody they could lay hands on. The restive around the demonstrations reacted by throwing stones, mounting barricades and burning tyres on the road. Enormous property was destroyed with part of the tarmac on which the tyres were burnt already breaking off.
Strike Leaders In A Mess
Although it was announced in the night of February 26 that the trade union leaders had come into an agreement with government to end the strike, the striking drivers refused to budge the next day.
The strike instead intensified when it was alleged that government bribed the union leaders to accept the FCFA 6 reduction on fuel prices. Thus, the trade union leaders were no longer in control of the strike. They were insulted and threatened when they tried to explain to them that it was logical to suspend the strike because government had made important concessions to them.
Police reportedly shot dead five people. Close to over 400 others were arrested.
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