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Tag: Paul Biya

  • Cameroon opposition leader to face legal action over election unrest, government says

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    Cameroon’s Interior Minister Paul Atanga Nji says opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary will face legal action over allegations he incited “violent post-election demonstrations”.

    At least four protesters have been killed during clashes between security forces and opposition supporters since Cameroon’s election on 12 October, with 92-year-old President Paul Biya winning an eighth consecutive term.

    Tchiroma Bakary insists he won the election, a claim dismissed by Biya’s ruling party, the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM).

    Violent crackdowns by police and security officers on protesters have alarmed the international community, with the UN, African Union and EU calling for restraint.

    On Tuesday, Nji accused Tchiroma Bakary of organising what he said were “illegal” protests leading to the loss of lives, and also criticised him for declaring victory in the election.

    He added that Tchiroma Bakary’s “accomplices responsible for an insurrectionary plan” will also face legal action.

    Paul Biya, who came to power in 1982 and is now the world’s oldest head of state, won the 12 October election with 53.7% of the vote, compared to 35.2% for Tchiroma Bakary, according to Cameroon’s Constitutional Council.

    Tchiroma Bakary is yet to respond to the government’s decision to try him, but he had previously told the BBC that he would not accept a stolen vote – and that he was not afraid of being arrested.

    On election result day, he said armed men opened fire on protesters assembled near his residence in Garoua, fatally wounding at least two civilians.

    On Tuesday, the interior minister revealed that an investigation would be launched into violent incidents before and after the announcement of the election results.

    “During these attacks, some of the criminals lost their lives,” he said, without providing a specific number of protesters who have been killed in the clashes.

    Nji added that several members of the security forces had also sustained serious injuries.

    Although Nji insisted the situation nationwide was now under control, protesters remain active in some parts of the country, especially in Douala and Garoua, where demonstrators mounted roadblocks on Tuesday, and burnt tyres on the streets.

    Analysts warn the post-electoral violence could plunge the country into a political crisis.

    Additional reporting by Natasha Booty and Michel Mvondo

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  • Cameroon’s bishops call for calm after opposition declares election victory

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    Cameroon’s influential Catholic Church has called for calm, as fears grow that violence could erupt once official results from the presidential election are declared.

    Opposition candidate and ex-government spokesman Issa Tchiroma Bakary has declared himself the winner of the 12 October election, saying he defeated 92-year-old President Paul Biya, who is seeking to extend his 43 year-rule by seven more years.

    Tchiroma’s declaration was criticized by both the government and Biya’s ruling party, with several officials describing it as illegal.

    Cameroon’s Constitutional Council has not yet released the final results.

    It has until 27 October to declare the winner.

    Tchiroma’s defiance and promise to defend what the 76-year-old calls his victory has raised fears of violence in the central African nation.

    In a statement released by the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon (NECC), Catholic Bishops expressed the need for peace and stability.

    The clerics said they hoped that the official result would reflect the will of the electorate, and “nothing will be changed by any authority involved in this exercise”.

    The Catholic Church is highly respected and is viewed as a moral voice of the nation.

    Its statement echoes the sentiments of many, who have urged the Constitutional Council to ensure that the result is not rigged.

    Some of the Church’s prelates have been outspoken in their criticism of Biya and how he has governed.

    In January, Monsignor Yaouda Hourgo, Bishop of the Diocese of Yagoua in the Far North region, said it was preferable for the “devil” to take power, rather than for Biya to seek re-election.

    “We’re not going to suffer any more than this. We’ve already suffered enough,” he said in his homily.

    Following protests over alleged fraud, the Constitutional Council said it would begin hearing complaints on Wednesday. Its verdict will be crucial in determining who will be the next president.

    In a message to the judges, the Catholic Bishops reiterated a simple message: “The truth shall set you free.”

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  • Cameroon awaits presidential election result

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    Vote counting is under way in Cameroon following Sunday’s presidential election in which incumbent Paul Biya is seeking to extend his 43 years in power.

    Biya, who at 92 is the world’s oldest head of state, is being challenged by nine candidates. If he wins, it will be his eighth consecutive term in office, with the next election due in 2032.

    No official results have been announced, but one of Biya’s main rivals, former government spokesperson Issa Tchiroma Bakary, has claimed victory.

    His declaration flouts a government warning that any unilateral publication of results would amount to “high treason”. The Constitutional Council has to announce the election outcome within 15 days of the vote.

    In the run-up to the poll there were complaints from the opposition of attempts to suppress their support.

    In August, the Constitutional Council barred 71-year old Maurice Kamto, widely viewed as the main challenger, from taking part.

    Interior Minister Paul Atanga Nji said on Sunday that voting had taken place “hitch-free” across the country. But there was a call for a boycott in the English-speaking regions in the west and there were reports of clashes in the north.

    In the two restive Anglophone regions, where separatists attempted to bar residents from voting, some did turn out at the polling stations. But many others stayed away for fear of reprisals.

    On Sunday, angry Tchiroma supporters took to the streets in his stronghold of Garoua. They clashed with security forces, who fired tear gas, after his residence was cordoned off.

    Earlier in the day, the former Biya ally had said he was the subject of threats.

    “It is not Tchiroma who is the problem, he told reporters, adding that he “places himself under the protection of God and the Cameroonian people”.

    “I am at home; I will not move. If they intend to come and take me away from home, I will not move,” he declared.

    Despite this Interior Minister Nji said the polls were held without major incidents in all 10 regions of the country.

    He did not comment on the situation in Garoua but rather repeated previous statements that some presidential candidates were planning to publish the results of the election ahead of the official declaration.

    Nji described this as a major red line, threatening action against anyone suspected of breaking the law.

    More from the BBC on Cameroon’s election:

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