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Gouma Mtha hasn’t slept all night. As has been the case for more than four years, when 5 p.m. struck his watch, he abandoned his house to take refuge in the mountains of KassaI, this village located in the Far North region of Cameroon. . He spent the night partly awake like the other inhabitants, watching for the torches of those who are called here people there “, fighters of the Islamist sect Boko Haram which has been carrying out attacks since 2014 in this border region with Nigeria.
” As soon as we see their lights, we sink into the pebbles of the hills. Shelters were built there., specifies this man born around 1963 wearing a leather hat. But to tell you the truth, last night, I mainly thought about the match of the day. »
From 7 a.m. on Thursday, January 13, Gouma Mtha took the road to Mora, a locality that hosts thousands of people displaced by the threat of the Islamist group. More than two hours of brisk walking that took him through towns emptied of their populations.
That day, Cameroon faces Ethiopia in its second game of the African Cup of Nations (CAN) football. ” I love football too much. It makes me forget for a few hours the attacks of Boko Haram, smiles this millet farmer. When the Indomitable Lions play, I don’t like to miss. When they win, it warms my heart. »
“It boosts morale”
It is 5 p.m., the time to kick off the match. Gouma Mtha sat down on the benches installed facing the screen under the veranda of a shop. They are more than ten spectators. For lack of places, some are standing.
Like any good fan, they shout when the Cameroonian players have the ball, get angry when the opponent takes it and cheer their team loudly. When the Ethiopians opened the scoring, the smiles faded, until the equalizer and an explosion of joy. ” I’m happy, happy, happy sings Gouma Mtha.
Ibrahim Barnabas does not lose a crumb of the show. It is he who ensures the projection in front of his small grocery store, thanks to his video projector. Throughout the month of the CAN, from January 9 to February 6, this trader, also president of Casablanca, a small football club in the Pokodo-Centre canton, intends to broadcast several matches, in any case all the meetings of Cameroon and neighboring Nigeria.
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