Return To Normalcy : Moral Personalities, Civil Society Highly Needed

Government is stepping up measures in the domains of security, reconstruction, provision of facilities and contacts at different levels to ensure that peace returns to the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon that have been under burden of security crisis since 2016.
The Head of State, President Paul Biya’s overtures extended to people who are still in the bushes and forests to drop their arms and come to the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) Centres where they will be prepared for reintegration into society are much in place. In the arduous task of finding the path to peace, the role of opinion leaders, moral personalities and the civil society is more and more urgent considering that they are irreplaceable stakeholders in the process. Government officials such as Governor Adolphe Lele Lafrique of the North West Region have in all public outings called for every actor and individuals to collaborate with the security and defence forces as well as the administrative authorities to consolidate peace strides and eradicate pockets of resistance.  The July 16, 2023 killing of 10 people in Nacho Junction in Bamenda provided the occasion for opinion leaders, moral personalities and civil society to expressing their yearning for peace.
Religious leaders who are key moral personalities have to use all avenues to pray and appeal to their followers to sue for and be peace crusaders.  Archbishop Andrew Nkea of the Bamenda Archdiocese has been proactive. He used the sad incident of the Nacho Junction to appeal to humanity in general “I have always said that love is better than hatred. I have always said that living and loving one another is better than killing one another. We want this violence to stop. Let people be able to go on with their normal lives. We condemn hate speech.” The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon Rt.  Reverend Fonki Samuel Forba has been vocal from the spiritual perspective calling for all to embrace peace. Muslims clergy during this...