Normalcy In SW, NW: Virtues Of Community Dialogue!

A ttention in the South West and North West Regions is now focused on how well all and sundry can fully put hands on deck to end the decade-old socio-political upheaval that has wrecked untold havoc on life and li­ velihood therein since 2016. Against a backdrop of still-existing pockets of resistance in the two restive re­ gions, the Head of State despatched the Prime Minister to the South West and then the North West to flag off Community Dialogue for Peace ini­ tiatives for normalcy to fully return. This is to ensure that peace reigns in all the nooks and crannies of the re­ gions for people to live and go about the activities unperturbed. The Head of Government was in Buea on September 28, 2026 where he met with administrative, political, tra­ ditional, municipal and religious au­ thorities as well as business operators, elite, and community leaders across the six administrative Divisions of the South West Region to launch the Community Dialogue For Peace. Chief Dr Joseph Dion Ngute told the au­ dience that peace is priceless and as such, non-negotiable. “Our goal is peace. We cannot continue to hide. It is time we organize ourselves and put an end to this because nobody will do it for us. It is all of us sitting here, who have the capacity today to organize and talk to those boys that the time has come for them to leave. It is incumbent on us to do that,” was the message the Head of State’s envoy took to Buea for the entire South West. One of the hallmarks of the event in Buea was the presentation to the Head of State’s messenger of some 25 repentant separatists’ fighters who recently dropped their weapons in Akwaya Subdivision. The initiative then took the direction of grassroots with fruits awaited. Similarly, the Prime Minister was in Bamenda on October 15, 2026 to launch the initiative for the North West Region. Like in Buea, Joseph Dion Ngute said peace requires col­ lective efforts and action. He therefore enjoined members of the elite, tradi­ tional rulers, trade unions, civil society and religious leaders, different sta­ keholders and the entire population to get down to their respective com­ munities to apply the diverse strate­ gies of community dialogue to ensure a return to peace, normalcy and se­ curity in the entire region. In Bamenda, some 30 ex-fighters who heeded to the Head of State’s call and surren­ dered were presented to the public. In Bamenda like in Buea, the Prime Minister sounded unequivocal ...