Fifty Three years after execution: Group, Offre Orange, celebrates nationalist, Ernest Ouandie.

The group placed a wreath on the tomb Ouandie.

According to Dr Hilaire Kamga, Ouadie will continue to be remembered as a statesman who fought with determination for the liberation of Cameroon from the yoke of colonialism.

He recalled that, the man who is being considered as a martyr was executed in Bafoussam on January 15, 1971 at 4:16 p.m.

“He received 12 bullets and like he had whised, the blood that oozed from his body will continue to produce several revolutionaries who will continue the fight for the total liberation of Cameroon,” Kamga is quoted as having said during the event.

The Parish Priest of St Robert Catholic Church Bamougoum, Fr Philippe Kahake, is quoted as having said he lived the moments of the execution. 

Describing him as a symbol of resistance and nationalism, the priest is reported to have talked of how, he since then, took the commitment to always be part of the commemoration of the execution of Ouandie.

“He paid the price for the liberation of Cameroon. He was executed for me, for you, and for us all,” media reports quote the priest as having said, adding that, he  “watched them pour the bullets on him and came out minutes later and saw the blood on the streets”.

About Ouandie

Ernest Ouandié, fondly referred to as Comrade Emile, was born in Bangou, Upper Plateau Division of the West Region in 1924. 

After graduating from the École Supérieure de Yaoundé in 1943 as a native instructor, he became actively involved in the struggle for workers' rights as a member of the Union des Syndicats Confédérés du Cameroun, USCC.

His involvement in trade unionism led him to join the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon, UPC party. 

In 1952, during the Eséka Congress, he was elected Vice President in charge of organisation and press organs, including La Voix du Kamerun. 

When the UPC was dissolved in May 1955, he went into exile in Ghana with other leaders like Félix Roland Moumié, Abel Kingué and Ndeh Ntumazah.

In 1961, Ernest Ouandié decided to return to Cameroon to re-launch the armed struggle for the independence of the then Kamerun. 

He formed the Comité révolutionnaire, the new leadership of the armed struggle, and launched the Armée de Libération Nationale du Kamerun, ALNK in 1962.

On August 19, 1970, he was arrested and detained at the Mbanga Brigade and later condemned to death in a mock trial. He was executed in Bafoussam on January 15, 1971.

Ouandié, according to reports, had during his execution refused to be blindfolded. He is said to have faced the firing squad barefaced to leave a final mark of defiance and bravery on the faces of all who knew him. 

His execution, according many, was supposed to mark the end of the UPC. Since then, the UPC is still existing till date. On June 27, 1991, Ernest Ouandié was proclaimed a national hero, along with other leading figures.

He was rehabilitated on December 16, 1991, leaving behind a legacy of resistance, nationalism and sacrifice.