The Forces of Law and Order were in all nooks and crannies of Yaounde on Christmas Eve ensuring security.

It’s Christmas Eve. The countdown to the birth of Jesus Christ is drawing nearer and a mammoth crowd of Yaounde city dwellers are seen moving towards the 20^th May Boulevard where there is the necessary fiesta to commence the birth of Christ (Ya-Fe). The time is about 11:45 pm. The Central Post Office Junction is impassable. Inhabitants have formed little groups in and around the flower gardens at the junction. Taxis and heavy trucks struggle to find their way around the Central Post Office Junction. Traffic policemen are seen trying to control movement around the roundabout. Around the CAMTEL building, the situation is not different. The area has been transformed into a market square with people trading in all types of commodities. The sale of roasted fish and alcohol is at its peak. Suddenly, a young man in his twenties is heard shouting “chief, chief, chief.... this is my Identity Card, I am not a criminal”.

Many people seemed confused because the chief in question is somebody in a grey-colour suit. It fact, he is a professional policeman who mingled amongst the population trying to ensure that all goes well while tracking criminals particularly pick-pockets who are usually common around such areas during festivities. This is just one of the methods put in place by the security forces on the night of December 24^th to make sure that the population feasts in peace. The Forces of Law and Order did not leave any stone unturned to maintain peace during end-of-year festivities. On December, 24^th men in uniform where seen not only maintaining peace and tracking down criminals but also assisting those in distress. Around Yaounde en Fete (Ya-Fe) premises, they were seen in their numbers keeping an eye on the crowd. Suspected bandits were quickly fished out for interrogation. While those involved in accidents were transported to the nearest medical emergency unit.

Information indicates that the Delegate General for National Security (DGSN) took all the necessary measures to ensure that his men were effectively present in the field. CT made a stopover at some police stations on Christmas Eve where it was discovered that the majority of the personnel were out for night patrol. At the First District Police Station in Yaounde, special measures were taken to handle the huge crowd at Ya-Fe which is just a stroll from the police station. The station deplored 15 different night patrol groups of about three to five persons per group. These efforts apparently paid off as the number of criminal cases that were registered in various police stations in town on December 24^th were reportedly limited compared with those of the previous years.