Prime Minister and Head of Government, Chief Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute, has called on traditional rulers, religious authorities, elites and civil society leaders in the North West Region to intensify community dialogue and persuade armed youths to abandon violence, warning that the responsibility for ending the nearly decade-long crisis cannot be left to the military alone.
Speaking at the Bamenda Congress Hall on Thursday, October 15, during a meeting with the region’s traditional and administrative authorities and other stakeholders, the Prime Minister said those who live and work closest to local communities have a crucial role to play in bringing the conflict to an end.
“The military has stabilized the region, but the military cannot get into every home to bring out the secret killers,” he said. “So, the ultimate responsibility to end this rests on our shoulders. No other person will do it for us.”
Dion Ngute urged participants to use their relationships with young people in their communities to encourage fighters to lay down their weapons, return home and take advantage of government reintegration programmes.
He said the meeting was different from the usual engagements he holds during visits to Bamenda, describing the gathering as an opportunity for the region’s leaders and stakeholders to take greater responsibility for the search for peace.
The Prime Minister acknowledged the suffering caused by the crisis, which began in 2016 and has claimed lives, damaged public and private property, disrupted education and affected businesses and livelihoods.
“I stand before you today with a heart that is deeply concerned, a heart that is sorry that our people have endured for too long,” he told the audience.
Describing the North West as a region of courage, culture and hardworking people, Dion Ngute called for an end to what he described as a senseless war, noting that many of those involved in the fighting are young people from the same communities now bearing the consequences of the conflict.
He challenged local leaders to speak frankly to the fighters, saying their actions were hurting not only themselves but also their families and the communities to which they belong.
The Prime Minister said the security forces had helped stabilise the region but could not resolve the crisis on their own. He therefore placed particular emphasis on community-level engagement, with traditional rulers, religious leaders and local elites acting as intermediaries between communities and armed youths.
Dion Ngute called for renewed efforts to implement the community dialogue approach outlined by President Paul Biya during his inaugural address in November 2018.
He read out the President’s call for traditional rulers, elites and other stakeholders in the affected regions to raise awareness among members of armed groups and encourage them to accept the government’s offer to lay down their weapons.
He stressed that community dialogue should be conducted in collaboration with administrative authorities to facilitate the reintegration of former fighters after they have passed through the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) programme.
The Prime Minister described traditional rulers, religious authorities, elites and other community figures as important links between government and the population. He urged them to use that position to persuade young people that continued fighting was damaging their future and that of their communities.
He also commended stakeholders who, he said, had supported peace initiatives over the years, including football tournaments and other community activities intended to bring people together.
The Head of Government also highlighted reconstruction and development projects as signs of progress in the region, while acknowledging that much remains to be done after years of destruction and insecurity.
He recalled his first visit to Bamenda after his appointment as Prime Minister, saying the level of movement on the roads at the time was markedly different from what he had observed during the current period.
According to Dion Ngute, improved cooperation among local stakeholders, the work of security forces and government reconstruction efforts have helped create conditions for the implementation of development projects.
He cited the Bamenda bypass and other infrastructure initiatives as examples of projects whose progress depends on a more stable environment.
The Prime Minister also referred to work carried out under the Presidential Plan for the Reconstruction and Development of the North West and South West Regions, including the rehabilitation of schools, hospitals, churches and markets damaged during the crisis.
He said some former fighters had acquired new skills through DDR centres, while others were being reintegrated into society.
Dion Ngute further defended the outcomes of the Major National Dialogue held in Yaoundé in 2019, pointing to the special status granted to the North West and South West Regions and the institutions established under that arrangement.
He said the effects of the conflict had set back the region’s development and that rebuilding damaged infrastructure and restoring public services remained necessary steps towards recovery.
Education featured prominently in the Prime Minister’s address, particularly the difficulties faced by children who have spent years out of school because of the crisis.
He recounted a conversation with a mayor from a remote council area in the South West Region, who raised concerns about children reaching adolescence without having completed primary education.
Dion Ngute said some children who had missed school for years were now beginning primary education at 14, 15 or 16.
He warned that prolonged disruption could leave these children at a disadvantage when competing for admission into professional training institutions.
The Prime Minister suggested that education authorities should examine possible ways of helping affected pupils recover lost learning time, including a modular approach that would allow them to progress through their studies in shorter periods.
His remarks highlighted the long-term consequences of the crisis for a generation of children whose education has been interrupted by insecurity.
While acknowledging the progress made in reconstruction, Dion Ngute said the return of peace could not be measured by buildings and roads alone.
He argued that the region could not be considered fully peaceful as long as residents remained afraid to travel freely, visit their villages, cultivate their farms or sleep safely in their homes.
The Prime Minister called for a North West where children could attend school without fear, farmers could work their land, traders could open their businesses without intimidation and families could spend weekends in their villages in safety.
He urged those attending the meeting to return to their respective communities as advocates for peace and to continue the dialogue beyond the walls of the Congress Hall.
“Let us continue to show a North West Region where there are no more roadblocks, a North West Region where children can go to school safely,” he said.
Dion Ngute ended his address with a call for peace in the North West Region and across Cameroon, expressing hope that greater community involvement would help bring the crisis to an end.
For the communities affected by the conflict, the challenge now is to turn these calls into meaningful action: sustained dialogue, the safe return of children to school, freedom of movement and conditions that allow families to live and work without fear.
