My Painful Experience: Cooking Gas Has Become a Luxury in Cameroon.

Hi guys, accept warm greetings from the motherland of Cameroon, and welcome back to my blog with love❤️from @chant.

Life in Cameroon these days is becoming extremely difficult. Every morning, we wake up to new challenges, and the things we once considered necessities are gradually turning into luxury goods. Cooking gas, potable drinking water, electricity, and even good internet have become things many families struggle to afford or access.

Honestly, sometimes I wonder how ordinary families are surviving in this country. I was busy cooking for the family when, suddenly, my gas ran out. Just like that, one minute, the food was on the fire, and the next minute, the flame disappeared.

^{Searching for cooking gas.}

At first, I was not too worried because I thought getting another cylinder filled would be a simple task. After all, cooking gas is something we use every day, right?

But little did I know that I was about to embark on an unexpected adventure. For the past two months, I had seen several people wandering around town with empty gas cylinders, moving from one vendor to another in search of cooking gas. I had mentioned this situation to my husband several times, but I never imagined that I would soon become part of the same queue of desperate people.

I immediately told my husband that our gas had finished. He disconnected the cylinder, and we drove around town, visiting one gas vendor after another. Unfortunately, everywhere we went, the answer was the same, “…No gas”

Can you imagine driving around with an empty cylinder, spending fuel and time, only to return home without achieving anything? It was frustrating.

Since the vendors could not help us, we decided to go directly to the gas company. We thought that, as a company responsible for supplying cooking gas, they would surely have some available. When we got there, we were told to come back the next day.

The next morning, I took the cylinder and went back to the company. Guys, what I saw there was heartbreaking. People were everywhere, each carrying empty gas cylinders, hoping to get their turn. We were asked to write our names on a piece of paper and wait.

Simple, right? Not really 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️. I waited for more than four hours under the scorching heat of the sun. Four good hours, yet, nobody could give us precise information about how long we were going to continue waiting.

^{Waiting but without any one telling you for how long.}

Were we going to spend the entire day there? Would the gas finish before it got to our turn? Nobody seemed to know but we were left to wonder around.

Meanwhile, my husband and the children were waiting in the car. As the hours passed, the kids started crying. The heat, hunger, and long wait were becoming too much for them. At that point, I had no choice but to tell my husband to drive back home with the children. I was tired, frustrated, and honestly, I was beginning to lose hope.

Just when I thought I would have to return home empty-handed, something unexpected happened. One of the workers at the gas company noticed how the children were crying. He saw the situation and called me. He asked me to bring the cylinder so he could assist me in getting the gas without going through the long procedure we had been following.

Guys, I cannot explain the relief I felt at that moment. As he helped me, he said something that touched my heart 😘

“…Today is my child’s birthday and I don't want to see any child cry.”

Those words were simple, but they carried so much kindness. In a situation where everyone was struggling to get what they needed, this man chose to show compassion and just like that, I finally got my cooking gas.

We are living in a country where connections sometimes seem to determine who gets access to necessities, it is easy for people to think that anyone who succeeds must have someone powerful behind them.

^{Empty cylinders waiting to be filled.}

But the truth was simple, I was just a mother who had been waiting for hours, with children crying in the car, and a kind worker decided to help me. I was happy that I finally got the gas, but at the same time, I felt deeply sad and asked myself when did basic needs become luxury goods? Guys, this is the reality many Cameroonians are facing today.

We pay highly to get potable drinking water. We pay dearly for good internet. We spend exorbitantly on cooking gas. Electricity remains another challenge, and the list continues. Everything seems to be getting more expensive, while the ordinary citizen is left to struggle.

How are families supposed to cook, feed their children, and survive when even the fuel needed to prepare food becomes difficult to obtain?

Our children deserve better. Our families deserve better. Every Cameroonian deserves access to necessities without having to spend hours in the sun, beg, or depend on personal connections.

As for me, I remain grateful to God for the kind worker who helped us that day. His words reminded me that, even in difficult times, humanity and compassion still exist.

But honestly, our hope is increasingly on God because many of our politicians have disappointed us. They make promises, but ordinary citizens continue to suffer while those in power seem more concerned about their own comfort. We need leaders who care about the people, not just their stomachs. Until then, we continue to pray, hustle, and survive.

Have you experienced difficulties getting cooking gas recently? How long did you wait, and how did you eventually get it? Share your experience in the comments. Let's talk about it.