As the Anglophone crisis is worsening day by day, death by death and disappearance by disappearance, every family and every community are dealing with their sorrow, trauma, loss and despair in their very unique, personal and communal way.
The Voice recently went by the Galaxy Snack Bar at Meta Quarters in Bamenda and was reminded by candle vigil that was being held by close friends of PAFE FRANCIC NJIKE, the owner of the Bar, who was kidnapped, abducted and ‘disappeared’ on March 17, 2019 at about 11:30am.
It will be recalled that Pafe Francis Njike is a matriculated Civil Servant, graduate from the Higher Institute of Sports (INJS) who was seconded to the Bamenda City Council as the Council’s financial Director.
At the time of his abduction he was no longer employed by the Bamenda City Council. Mr. Pafe, who was born on February 14, 1968 (does anybody remember that this is Valentine’s Day) was a prominent, upwardly mobile in a very unique socio-economic environment and very industrious in a very volatile and dangerously political atmosphere to say the least.
He remains a permanent and remembered personality within the network of his former classmates, students, family and most importantly the very political sensitive population of Bamenda City Council – the seat of dissent and opposition in Cameroon.
The humanitarian aspect of Mr. Pafe’s abduction lies in the fact that he was a chronic patient – he was legally blind, deaf and with a dangerous heart condition. That is why he was no longer permitted to legally drive at the time of his abduction. In such a condition how could Mr. Pafe be a threat or a pawn to and for anybody?
Following Mr. Pafe’s disappearance family members, especially in the United States were contacted, duped and extorted of exorbitant sums of money.
The Voice learnt that Mr. Pafe’s elder brother, in his desperation, left his Douala residence and came with a “Man of God”, and a group of three other devout Christians, to pray at the abductee’s residence at Mile 6 Nkwen, but that when they entered the gate, prayed and were about to leave, Mr.
Louis Pafe (the abductee’s elder brother) and the four others were also kidnapped by unknown persons and held for a week and Mr.Pafe’s family and siblings, in the United States, were forced to disburse 800,000.00 Francs CFA, before he was released.
Since then, Mr. Pafe Louis has been receiving threatening calls anonymously. In the same light, The Voice learnt that one of the Abductee’s sisters in the US was contacted anonymously and informed that they knew where the Abductee’s three children were in Bafoussam and that they (the anonymous callers) will be coming for the Abductee’s children who are in Cameroon. As would be expected, this has created a sustained sense of pandemonium within the family and friends of the Abductee – Mr. Pafe Francis Njike.
Mr. Pafe’s kidnap, abduction and disappearance is shrouded in absolute mystery and investigatory quagmire. This is because his disappearance is difficult to place at the feet of the government or the Separatist self-defensive forces of Ambazonia. On the one hand, nobody saw uniform officers abduct Mr. Pafe Francis Njike, like they did somebody like Abdul Karim, in broad daylight. On the other hand, nobody saw him ‘mount the Sanili Bike’ that is characteristic and vintage methodology of Amba kidnappings.
Even so, it is very difficult not to wonder aloud to whom and with whom lies the all-important duty of protecting its own very population. The supreme function of every viable and legitimate government is to protect its own very citizens. The puzzling question is: how come a matriculated citizen, employee of arguably the second most populous City Council in Cameroon, and a visible participant in the day to day economy of his community ‘just disappear’?
And the powers that be – city police, national police, gendarmes, army (after all the region in which Mr. Pafe disappeared in is in a continuous state of war and soldiers, war equipment and full force of the military is in plain display for anybody to see), air force and administrative officers including the Government Delegate, the Senior Divisional Officer, the Army General, the Regional Delegate of National Security, Gendarmerie and the Governor. These are the faces behind national power and security – where have they been in the face of the disappearance of Mr. Pafe?
Furthermore, if The Voice is to believe and accept the premise that Pafe was ‘disappeared’ by the Amba Boys, does it mean therefore that these same Amba Boys have really rendered the NW Region ungovernable and therefore lent credence to the argument that there is no political and administrative authority exercised by the Yaoundé Government and regime over the same NW Region and its citizens – even if they are employees of the very government and regime.
Either way, Mr. Pafe’s kidnap, abduction and disappearance is a wide window through which to view the degenerating humanitarian situation in Cameroon. In fact, according to Gaby Ambo, who was contacted by phone, he is saddened by Mr. Pafe’s abduction which is one of “fourteen (14) fresh cases of disappearances” that he is working on.
In its continuous quest for the truth and keeping the people informed The Voice will continue to shine the light on the mysterious and inexplicable but more importantly the uninvestigated disappearance of Mr. Pafe Francis Njike.
Ancestral Mbomwei in Bamenda.