Cameroon: Bakassi - Nigeria Quits At Last

Posted to the web 18 August 2008 Nkendem Forbinake Yesterday in Calabar, it took barely 40 minutes to end a dispute that has seen Cameroon and Nigeria on their heels for the past 15 years. It was an extremely emotional moment for the two countries as retrocession events began at exactly 12 noon and by 12.40 pm all was over. What had started in 1993 by the military occupation of the Bakassi Peninsula by Nigerian troops ended in an air-conditioned Roland Adjai Peregrino Hall in the official lodge of the Governor of the Cross River State of Nigeria. The ceremony, watched by top political and military leaders of Nigeria began with the playing of sung versions of the Nigerian and Cameroonian national anthems. Then came a series of speeches - five in all. Successively taking the podium were Said Djinnit, the chair of the... [read full story]