KAMTO PAYS TRIBUTE TO “POLITICAL HOSTAGES” JAILED 6-7 YEARS: “I BLEED EVERY TIME I THINK OF THEM”

The President Of the MRC party Maurice Kamto has dedicated his 113th “Monday Thought” for 2026 to Cameroonian activists and opposition leaders he describes as “political hostages,” some of whom have spent six to seven years in prison.

In the weekly reflection, Kamto said his movement has endured “so many gusts” but “never has the wave swept us away.” Still, he admitted to deep personal pain over his allies’ continued detention.

“We have received so many gusts, and never has the wave swept us away. But I feel like I am bleeding every time I think of my political friends held hostage for 6 to 7 years in Cameroonian jails solely out of political hatred,” he wrote.

Kamto framed political engagement as a costly struggle. “I learned early on that engagement in the opposition in a context of political savagery and messianism can lead to the worst, and that the fighter is sublimated in the magnitude of his sacrifice for a common cause,” he emphasized.

He closed by saluting the resilience of the detainees, saying their suffering strengthens the opposition’s resolve. “Political hostages, you rejuvenate our common struggle and shine in our hearts every day that hatred prolongs the ordeal of your years in prison,” the MRC leader stated.

Kamto’s message comes amid renewed calls from civil society and opposition parties for the release of political prisoners in Cameroon.

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