The Roadblock Hell
(November, 19)YAOUNDE - SANGMELIMA
The plan today was to cover 250
Km. According to a rather optimistic schedule it should have taken 5
hours.
After 4
hours we had covered a mere 30 Km and come across 4 nasty roadblocks!
The longest delay came 30 Km south
of Yaoundé. The policeman checked to see
whether the Land Rover was carrying a fire extinguisher. He inspected it
minutely and complained about its expiry date on the side. He demanded a fine
of CFA 25,000. Following a lengthy debate,
the policeman accepted CFA 5,000 without a receipt. Similar scrutiny was
lavished on tail-lights, axles, tires, mirrors and all this in the name of road
safety. Oddly, no one asked about seat belts, which Cameroonians put on about
as often as fur coats.
At every roadblock, the police went
through our papers, word by word, in the hope finding an error. The police decided that the Land Rover’s
papers were ‘too old’ (I have driven this Land Rover since 1998) and the fine
would cost us another CFA 25,000. As luck would have it, 2 mosquito-nets did
the trick.
In total we have been stopped 6
times, and this for ages. It’s truly dreadful to believe. For the policemen
being sent out on CONTROLE, as they love to call their roadblock shifts,
is a privilege. And so they had better make the best out of it, to get – steal
– as much money as possible, hoping to be out there again. Believe it or
not but Cameroonian drivers have to cope with this on a daily basis.
After 6 long hours, having covered
only 183 Km on an empty stomach, we finally arrived in Sangmelima.
Tomorrow’s plan is to reach
Mbalam.
David
Robertson, 19/11/2016, 19.00 Hrs
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