Evening hours of Thursday April 11th, a truck and 3 workers of the waste management company in Bamenda, HYSACAM , were abducted at the refuge dump site of Mile 6 and 7, Mankon. These workers and their equipment are still in an unknown destination under the hostage of Unidentified gunmen. These gunmen are believed to be members of the separatist forces fighting for the separation of the Anglophone communities from the dominantly French Cameroon.
Since arm conflict erupted in the region late 2017, it has been difficult for big companies like HYSACAM to effectively carryout their job. This accounts for why, the onetime most healthy and cleanest city in Cameroon has become a risky health and sanitation zone with stinking waste everywhere around the city. The population is also yet to know how to manage her waste as every corner of the street are often littered with bio and non-biodegradables. Health workers have often noted that the situation of dirt explosion could lead to serious health crisis as fear of a cholera outbreak was announced by the Northwest Regional Delegation, ministry of Public Health in 2018.
The recent abduction is only going to exacerbate the health risk and increase the ugly sanitation situation which the Company has been fighting to reverse. These workers have had challenging times working given that, both belligerents of the ongoing crisis have instituted rules that impede the company effective functioning at the workplace.
Thanks to the curfew imposed by Northwest Governor from 9pm to 6am for 1 year running, working to clean streets at night has been impossible, reducing about 5 hours of working time. This creates overload of work with very limited human and material resources at dawn coupled with overcrowded streets.
On the part of separatists, they have vowed not to permit any Company of French background to operate in the region. This accounts for the kidnaps
Last year, one truck was set ablaze at the original dump site in Nkwen, with several threat for the workers not to use the area again. This took them back to the old one in Mankon. HYSACAM workers like other big companies especially those involved in construction, have often come under attack by these fighters. Individuals and businesses are also suffering kidnaps, thievery, ransom taking and even chopping of body parts and killings from some of the fighters.
For a company that is task to clean the entire city with just about a billion frs suffering from such brunt and having existed for just about 3 years in the city, it is not known if it will cope the ugly ways. The Communication unit of HYSACAM is yet to make a statement. It remains unclear where the truck and three workers are, and what the demands of the abductors are as well.
