In September 2016, C3T brought to the attention of the government of Cameroon, several giant signboards planted in different towns in Cameroon. The posters were supported by GICAM, the Employer's League of Cameroon and carried as main messages, “Contraband Cigarettes Finance Insecurity”, “Stop to Contraband Cigarettes” and “Contraband Will Take You To Prison”. They further encouraged citizens to only buy cigarettes that are licensed for sale in Cameroon, and warned of sanctions that await defaulters.

The Problem
The Cameroonian Coalition to Counter Tobacco saw this as a maneuver by the tobacco industry to do outright publicity for tobacco products, and encourage people to smoke. C3T saw these posters as a blatant defiance of the 2006 Law on Publicity which bans all forms of advertising of tobacco products on the mass media in Cameroon.

The Actions
The Coalition in a letter to the Minister of Communication, President of the National Advertising Council, highlighted the fact that linking tobacco consumption/purchase in any form with insecurity is an act of prejudice that undermines the safety and livelihood of Cameroonians. This, according to C3T, is something the government should not tolerate especially at this time when Cameroon is at war with terrorists.

C3T highlighted the fact that the Government of Cameroon has the sole responsibility to track illicit trade in tobacco, and has so far proven that it is doing a marvelous job in that domain. The coalition saw no reason why an Employers' League will want to share that responsibility with the government, if not for the purpose of bypassing the law of the land to carry out publicity for tobacco products.

C3T did not end at writing to the advertising control body in the country; it published a Press Release in the country's lone state owned bilingual daily newspaper, Cameroon Tribune and organized a Press Conference to denounce the action.

The Results
The actions of C3T did not go in vain. The government of Cameroon indeed reacted to all the actions and pressure from the coalition. Less than a month later, C3T received a congratulatory letter from the minister of Communication. In the letter, the minister stated that he had written to GICAM and asked them to take down the billboards. And indeed, the billboards were taken down.

Who says we cannot move mountains when we are united in our fight? C3T heartily thanks the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids (CTFK), the African Tobacco Control Alliance (ATCA), and the many other partners who sent in their moral support during that trying moment.