Opposition leaders in Cameroon contest official election results as protests continue
Opposition leaders in Cameroon on Tuesday objected to the official results of the October 12 presidential election after the country’s top court declared the world’s oldest leader Paul Biya the winner as protests continued across the country.
Citizens began protesting in mid-October after opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary declared victory while official results were still being counted. Since then, security forces have clashed with angry protesters in several cities, including the opposition strongholds of Douala and Garoua and the capital Yaounde. At least four people were shot and hundreds were arrested as opposition supporters demanded credible results.
On Monday, the Constitutional Council said Biya won the election with 53.66% of the vote against his former ally Tchiroma, who received 35.19%. The results are final and cannot be appealed.
International bodies and human rights organizations condemned the violent response to the protests on Tuesday.
The European Union said on Tuesday it was “deeply concerned” by the violent suppression of the demonstrations that took place on October 26 and 27 and regretted the deaths of many civilians by gunfire.
The UN Secretary-General echoed these concerns and called on political stakeholders and their supporters to “exercise restraint, reject violence and avoid all forms of provocative rhetoric and hate speech.” Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other human rights groups also noted the “excessive use of force” against protesters and called for an investigation into the deaths.
District administration minister Paul Atanga Nji told reporters on Tuesday that protesters were “wreaking havoc” in many towns across the country ahead of the official announcement of the presidential election results.
Atanga Nji said, without giving further details, “Some criminals lost their lives in these attacks. Many members of the security forces were also seriously injured in the clashes with the demonstrators.”
Shortly after he was declared the winner, 92-year-old Biya sent his thoughts to all those who “needlessly lost their lives” in the post-election violence and their families.
However, opposition candidates rejected the results announced by the Constitutional Council. Tchiroma declared victory two days after the election and last week called on his supporters to “come out en masse”. He called on the Constitutional Council on Tuesday to announce “truncated results” and give Biya an “illusory victory”.
Tomaïno Ndam Njoya, the only female candidate who came in fifth place in the election, said on Monday that the election result did not reflect the “sovereign will” of the people.
“These reflect an electoral system weakened by irregularities, manipulations and repeated violations of the law,” he said.
A group of eight local civil society groups had previously highlighted several irregularities during the election process, including the presence of deceased voters on electoral lists, unequal distribution of ballot papers and attempts to stuff ballot boxes. But the African Union mission said the vote “was largely conducted in accordance with regional, continental and international standards.”
Biya is expected to be sworn in within 15 days of the official announcement of the results, in accordance with the Cameroonian Constitution. He first came to power in 1982, following the resignation of Cameroon’s first president, and has remained in power ever since; he later took advantage of a constitutional amendment that abolished term limits.
Cameroon is an oil-producing country with modest economic growth, but young people say the benefits are not extending beyond the elite. According to World Bank data, the unemployment rate is at 3.5 percent, but 57 percent of the workforce between the ages of 18-35 works unregistered.
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