Prisoner without a Crime. Disciplining Dissent in Ahidjo's Cameroon: Disciplining Dissent in Ahidjo's Cameroon

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten I had given up all hope of ever being released from this prison while Ahidjo was in power. I looked up to God and passed much of my time in prayer and meditation. Many of my friends express wonder at my ability to stay in prayer and meditation for long hours but this is the source. This is how I filled in the hours of my detention. Remember that in Mantoum I even grew to love the days of confinement in solitary cells. The Director thought that the worst punishment he could inflict on me but did not know that I enjoyed those days most. The only thing was that if I finished the number of days I had decided on for the spiritual work then the rest of the days might become wearisome. But it so happened that each time I decided on the number of days, they turned out to be either exact or a day short or over the length the Director decided. So I spent my time then in prayer and meditation waiting for the day of the Lord. And it came when I least expected it. My hostility to the regime was known by all and so neither Commissaire nor Director ever came near me talking of the regime for fear of receiving those words that pained their ears. I think sometimes those words caused them to think again. In May or June 1976, a group of five or six people were brought from Ngaoundere. Important Muslims they were and big businessmen too. I remember one of them was the husband of the President of the WCNU (Women of the Cameroon National Union). The story went that they had carried out a certain Islamic rite against Saoudou Daouda and Ahmadou Ahidjo. They had slaughtered a horse, or maybe a cow, and buried it thereby calling on the angels of 146 Albert Mukong death to visit these two. The people themselves never accepted the accusation. But the story circulated in the prison that, but for the vigilance of the security network, the buried horse would have gone rotten and nothing could have saved the two great lords. This story shook the faith of the people in the regime. If even Muslims could resort to these extremes what did they expect of the men from the South? And this man whose wife was the WCNU President, he was a personal friend to Ahidjo and the Head of State always visited him at home each time he came to Ngaoundere. Who then was a sincere lover of this Ahidjo? And so they started seeing some reason in what I had been saying. I had told them that there were only two members of the CNU I knew of who truly belonged to the CNU. Every other person was a fortune seeker and did not even like the party. The Commissaire became more friendly with me and often came to discuss with me, putting questions to me on the preindependence struggle, the parties and their leaders and policies. I was not reserved for it mattered less to me for what objectives he was seeking the information. It was good to bring these facts to as many Cameroonians as possible. It was about this time, too, that another prisoner arrived at the camp. I think it was already in August 1976 when this one came. I can’t remember his name but he was a big shot from Yaounde. He was a Commissaire Divisionel Principal of Police, either the Director of Police Judiciaire or Deputy Director of Renseignenents Généraux (General Information). And you know these are the real overlords in this country. He could not understand what was happening to him and those around, too, looked embarrassed at his coming. Who then was secure in the regime? I remember shortly after he had arrived he once came to me desirous of hearing my story. He thought he would not be there long and when he got back to Yaounde he could throw a better light on my case. I laughed at him and told him 147 Prisoner without a Crime: Disciplining Dissent in Ahidjo’s Cameroon that he did not understand the logistics of his own regime. I assured him it would be easier for me to be released than for him. All the same I told him my story was the story of...