It all started in the Far-North region of the country a few months ago and the rest of the national community thought it was a regional issue. Not until a few months later that some cases were reported in the North Region, particularly at Beka in the Faro Division and in parts of the Douala metropolis. Government went into frantic posturing with the Minister of Public Health virtually present wherever a new case was discovered. But the sheer fact that the epidemic has continued to move from one locality to the other and without any real effective system put in place to stem the advance, is already an indication that current policies posited by government have to be revisited.
There are some symptomatic elements that openly question the efficacy of current control problems. Buea is not Limbe! It is not Tiko! It is not even Kumba! In these areas, there are vast expanses of flat or marshy lands that make the flow of water very difficult. In these locations, it is also difficult to come by drinking water easily. From this point of view, Buea was a most unlikely destination for an outbreak of cholera! Not when nature has been so generous as to provide easy sources of drinking water and by the sheer landscape that forces water to continue its course which, very often ends out of the Buea municipality. And what of the old cliché, very well known in the North-West and South-West regions, that residents of Buea are referred to as “I was”; an apparent reference to their recognized senior social status due to the seriousness of the municipality? Buea’s Mayor Charles Mbella Moki, who is known to particularly love his municipality, must be biting his fingers now that the dreaded and shameful cholera is right at his doorsteps. Mr. Moki is widely acknowledged as a foresighted mayor; but his actions, which we earnestly believe will be fast in coming, will not have the desired effect if the entire national plan to stop the wild goose spread of cholera is not given new steam.
Yesterday, it was Maroua, Garoua, Beka and Douala. Today, it is Buea; a most unsuspecting destination for cholera. This simply means that if appropriate measures are not taken, a new outbreak could occur even in the most posh neighbourhoods of the national capital where even the most senior decision-makers are lodged.
Cholera has become intractable and public office holders must be seen to be working on innovative strategies that go beyond the routine of seeing the Minister of Public Health coming to a locality after an outbreak; condescendingly dishing out gifts to afflicted family members and making fresh promises about government’s determination to stop the epidemic.
Because of Buea’s geographical position and the elevated social status of most of its inhabitants, no one expected cholera there. The fact that it came at all, is a very clear indication that the threat should be taken very seriously and that fighting strategies must change. And immediately.
