By Thomas Mokum
Inmates of the Bamenda central prison have addressed a letter to the President of the Republic Paul Biya appealing and suggesting ways to solve the on-going armed conflict in the North West and South Regions.
Inmates of the Bamenda central prison have addressed a letter to the President of the Republic Paul Biya appealing and suggesting ways to solve the on-going armed conflict in the North West and South Regions.
The inmates sent their message during
the finals of the first edition of Inter-prison Sports competition for talent
promotion and social change Futsal tournament at the Bamenda Central Prison
Thursday April 25.
 |
Inmates
and Father of Humanity representatives at the Bamenda Prison
|
Organised by
the nongovernmental organisation NGO Father of Humanity, the inmates handed
what they called letter of peace and a peace plant to the head of state, the
inmates expressed the need for a solution to be provided to the current armed
conflict tearing the two regions. To solve the conflict, the inmates solicited
”the unconditional review of our legal system and the conditions of those
leaders imprisoned since the outbreak of the crisis and the unconditional
release of those who have been arrested and detained unjustly in relation to
the Anglophone crisis.” The inmates went on to recommend “an all-inclusive forum
for dialogue and consultation on all the demands and grievances put forward
should be convened with a view to seek genuine acceptable political long
lasting solution.
Like the
inmates, the Senior Administrator of the Bamenda Central Prison Ngu Ndama Henry
is also very worried about the situation of the detention facility as a result
of the armed conflict. According to the administrator, the prison which
normally had about 500 to 600 inmates has witnessed a huge increase. As a
result of the armed conflict which has led to the transfer of inmates from Wum,
Nkambe, Bali Fundong and Kumbo central prison to Bamenda, the Bamenda central
prison now accommodates over 1000. The resultant consequence of this is food
and space shortage.
With the
slow nature of court activities due to the armed conflict, it has become very
difficult for some of the inmates to be heard with hearing taking longer time
than usual. Some of the inmates have been abandoned by their family members who
can no longer visit them because either the roads are blocked or it’s a ghost
town or they fear being kidnap. Other caregivers have left have left the region
to other parts of the country as internally displaced persons IDPs.
The Father
of Humanity prison tournament involving ten prisons that is the C-ward of the
Bamenda Central Prison, the Juvenile Reformatory center Bamenda, Mbengwi, Ndop,
Bali, Wum, and Fundong Principal prisons and the female section of the Bamenda
central. In several messages displayed during the match pass that preceded the
finals, the inmates decried violent extremism, hate speech, corruption, crime,
fake news, drug abuse and HIV/AIDs transmission. The highly contested finals
will see the Bali Central Prison beat Bamenda Central Prison 7-6. After other
competitions like egg race, needle and threat, several prices were awarded.
 |
| Traditional display during the finals event |
Father of
Humanity representatives and Organisers of the tournament used the final event
to encourage the inmates to avoid drug abuse.