Open sources say armed separatists kidnapped the paramount ruler of Kom around Fujua in Fundong late Sunday afternoon as he returned from Njinikom where he had taken part in a thanksgiving mass.

The Fon, sources say, was kidnapped on grounds that he allowed state forces to guard him to and from a thanksgiving mass in Njinikom. He is also faulted for making a stopover at the home Denis Awoh Ndang, Mayor of Fundong.

The separatists are said to have guaranteed the Fon of his protection only if he ceases from having anything to do with state authorities.

“He was kidnapped by the Ambazonia fighters and questioned why he allows state forces to guard him. The fighters also warned him against interacting with government forces, the Mayor, and other authorities,” reports say.

As news of the Fon’s abduction crept from ear to ear, the population soon mobilized and headed towards the camp of the separatist fighters.

Apparently fearing for the worst, the separatists quickly freed the Fon even before the angry crowd could get to the camp.

At the time of this report, Fon Clement Ndi II of Kom was in his palace.

Last year, armed separatists kidnapped the Fon of Nso, Fon Sehm Mbinglo for being a candidate in the December 6, 2020, regional elections. The Fon was seized alongside Christian Cardinal Tumi, archbishop emeritus of Douala.

The abduction of the Fon of Kom came on the heels of the murder of three traditional rulers in Lebialem Division, South West Region by armed separatists on Saturday night.

Cameroon’s state forces have been battling to dislodge armed separatists who pitched their tents in the North West and South West Regions since Anglophone protests transformed into an armed conflict in 2017.

Corporate demands by Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers led to protests in November 2016. The street demonstrations later morphed into ongoing running gun battles between state forces and armed separatist fighters in the predominantly English-speaking regions, leading to untold destruction of human lives, their habitats, and livelihoods.

Tit-for-tat killings, kidnappings, arsons, maiming, and outright terror have become part of daily lives in some parts of the English-speaking regions.