Cynthia Ngum

21/08/2026

Today, August 21st, marks 40 years since the Lake Nyos disaster that happened here in Cameroon.

Thousands of people died, countless livestock were lost, and so much was destroyed.

Growing up as a child, and even as a young adult, I never really knew that the gas responsible for the disaster was not carbon monoxide.

Of course, in chemistry classes, we were always taught that carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas. We learned that it forms a very stable compound called carboxyhemoglobin with our hemoglobin, preventing the blood from carrying oxygen properly. So, naturally, I always assumed that carbon monoxide was responsible for the Lake Nyos disaster.

It was only much later that I learned that it was actually carbon dioxide — CO₂.

And this is where it gets interesting.

We are all taught that carbon dioxide isn’t a poisonous gas, and technically, at the normal concentrations we encounter every day, it isn’t considered poisonous in the same way as carbon monoxide. But high concentrations of CO₂ can be extremely dangerous and even fatal.

And that was exactly what happened at Lake Nyos.

In 1986, a huge amount of carbon dioxide that had accumulated in the deep waters of the lake was suddenly released into the atmosphere. The gas spread through the surrounding area, displacing oxygen and causing people and animals to lose consciousness and die.

The Lake Nyos disaster is regarded as one of the most unusual natural disasters in modern history. Natural disasters happen all the time, but a lake suddenly releasing a massive cloud of invisible, deadly carbon dioxide is not something most people would ever imagine.

In 1986, some of our parents weren’t even born, but history was being written here in Cameroon.

And honestly, I pray that this country begins to take the affairs of its people and its environment more seriously. Because perhaps if the risks around Lake Nyos had been properly understood and monitored at the time, the scale of this disaster could have been prevented or reduced.

May the souls of all those who lost their lives in the Lake Nyos disaster rest in peace.

21/08/2026

Women will always be women

20/08/2026

My dear , is it you seek or is it to prove that and are responsible?
Because it’s beginning to sound like you so want it to be them than truly getting justice for the guy

19/08/2026

If we’re going to use statistics about Black women having children with multiple fathers to attack Black women, then we also need to talk about the men involved. A woman doesn’t have a child with a “baby daddy” by herself. Every statistic about multiple baby fathers necessarily involves men as well.

I’m not saying Black women have no responsibility. Of course we have to take accountability for the decisions we make about s*x, relationships and reproduction. But accountability cannot be selectively assigned to women while the men involved are treated as invisible.

And let’s be honest about the social reality. Many women who have children with a man don’t actually want to end that relationship. Most times baby mamas end up sleeping with their baby daddies even after the relationship ended because they truly didn’t want it to end.They would often prefer to raise their children with one man if the relationship were healthy, stable and cooperative. Sometimes separation happens because of infidelity, abandonment, irresponsibility, incompatibility or circumstances neither person originally expected.

So if we’re going to discuss why some women end up having children with multiple fathers, we need to examine the behaviour of both s*xes and the relationship culture producing those outcomes.

And the same applies when people advocate for polygamy as though it exists independently of these relationship dynamics. If men are simultaneously having children with multiple women, being unfaithful, abandoning families or refusing responsibility, those behaviours will inevitably have consequences for the structure of families and communities.

So yes, Black women should take accountability where accountability is due. But Black men should do the same. You cannot meaningfully discuss the reproductive behaviour of one half of a population while pretending the other half had nothing to do with it.

If the goal is actually to improve Black families, then the conversation should be about accountability for both men and women—not using statistics as another excuse to shame Black women.

Look at the statistics for the Asian population, it reflects the reality of both Asian men and women

19/08/2026

African parents never take accountability

15/08/2026

14/08/2026

Tell us in the comments below what your financial bracket is

13/08/2026

Someone tell the Okoyes to leave us alone

12/08/2026

This woman is my experiment. She places at least 10 curses on everyday 😂😂😂.
Her life gets worse while his gets funkier. It’s either the curses are working in reversal or they just don’t work 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

12/08/2026

Dear Christians, keeping sentiments aside, tell me why this is a taboo to you