Hon Sam Moma Mofor: The Santa Lion & soul of Cameroon, 30 years after his death, his voice still challenges the nation.

As Cameroon prepares to commemorate three decades since his death, the question confronting the nation is no longer who he was, but whether the country has remained faithful to the ideals he fought for.

A patriot forged before The Republic

Born in 1924 into the royal family of the Baforchu Fondom (Mbu) in what was then the British United Nations–mandated Southern Cameroons, Sam Moma Mofor came of age before the Republic itself. He was educated at Basel Mission Primary School, Mbengwi, and later moved to Kumba, where he trained in medical nursing, a rare and critical skill at the time.

But his education did not stop in classrooms. It continued on footpaths, farms, marketplaces, and village squares, where leadership was learned through service. He healed the sick, counseled the troubled, and united people long before he held political office.

A man who lived with the people, not above them

Before politics, there was life and Sam Mofor lived it fully. A farmer, livestock rearer, healer, musician, husband, and father, he embodied the Cameroonian ideal of self-reliance and community solidarity. His home in Santa was both a refuge and a forum, open to the needy, the curious, and the hopeful.

Evenings often found him guitar in hand, turning music into a tool of social bonding. In an era of hardship and limited infrastructure, his unofficial pharmacy and community health center saved lives and restored dignity.

He raised a large family six wives and twenty-four children, but his definition of family extended far beyond blood. Entire communities claim him as their own.

The Lion who walked for unity

History will remember Hon Sam Moma Mofor most for his unyielding advocacy for Cameroonian unity during the volatile pre- and post-independence period.

At a time when fear, mistrust, and regional suspicion threatened to fracture the future, he chose the harder path: dialogue, persuasion, and physical presence. He walked — often literally from village to village, from Santa to Yaoundé, Bamenda to Buea, and into East Cameroon, engaging chiefs, elders, and opinion leaders. His message was consistent and uncompromising:

Cameroon’s strength lies in unity, not division. That courage earned him the name “The Santa Lion,” a symbol of fearless advocacy, not aggression; of conviction, not coercion. His efforts contributed meaningfully to the outcome of the 1961 Plebiscite, shaping the Cameroon we know today.

Unity practiced, not preached

Unlike many leaders, Sam Mofor did not limit unity to speeches. He inscribed it into his own household. By naming his sons Bokwe Mofor (after Hon Bokwe of the South West) and Nguele Mofor (after Mbarga Nguele of East Cameroon), he made a personal declaration that Cameroon’s regions belong to one family. In doing so, he demonstrated that nation-building begins at home.

A parliamentarian without distance

As a Member of Parliament, Hon. Mofor remained deeply grounded. He resisted the temptations of elitism and never abandoned his people for protocol. Farmers, teachers, traders, and chiefs remained his primary constituency.

He believed that leadership divorced from the people becomes tyranny, a lesson that remains painfully relevant.

Why the Santa Lion still matters

Hon Sam Moma Mofor’s legacy is not nostalgia. It is a mirror reflecting both what Cameroon has achieved and what it risks losing. At a time when unity is tested, institutions are questioned, and trust is fragile, his life reminds us that nationhood is built by men and women willing to walk difficult roads for the common good.

The Lion sleeps, but the roar endures as commemorative activities approach on Saturday, January 10, 2026, the Santa Lion is not merely being remembered, he is being summoned- summoned to remind Cameroon that unity is a responsibility, leadership is service and that courage is action. The Lion may sleep, but his spirit still walks the land.

By Nyoh Moses in Las Vegas, US