The majority Francophone administration has intensified police action following the killing at the weekend of two police by unidentified assailants.
In recent months, a separatist movement calling itself the Republic of Ambazonia appears to have gained traction, levelling accusations of repression and human rights abuses against the Francophone-dominated government of Duala, the capital.
A major irritant is a television station run by the ‘South Cameroonian Broadcasting Corporation’, transmitting from South Africa that supports the separatists.
Men, women and children have been seeking refuge across the border with Nigeria, from Cross River State to Taraba State in large numbers. The burden has fallen on Nigerian local authorities in the face of the reluctance of the Federal administration to release humanitarian assistance.
Observers warn that unless something is done to arrest the deteriorating situation inAnglophone West Cameroon, what is now only a trickle of refugees can become a torrent, leading to tragic political consequences.