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14, August 2025

Côte d’ivoire: President Ouattara told to go to Cameroon to die in power ⁰

Ivorians who are calling on their president, Alassane Dranane Ouattara to step down after fifteen years in office, are urging him to go to Cameroon if he wants to die in power.

Carrying placards on August 9, 2025 in Abidjan and other cities where there were massive demonstrations against President Ouattara who has done very well economically but is still seeking a fourth term, demonstrators urged him to step down and even migrate to Cameroon where it is possible for a president to be in power for more than four decades.

In Côte d’Ivoire, it is known that Cameroonians lack the courage of their conviction and are incapable of taking down their president, Paul Biya, who is incompetent and development-averse.

Mr. Biya has been in power in the Central African country for 43 years and despite his age and declining health, he has announced that he will run in the October 12, 2025 presidential election.

Cameroonians who had vowed to take down the aging and ailing dictator have all chickened out following the country’s constitutional court’s rejection of the candidacy of the leading opposition leader, Maurice Kamto.

Many people had thought the masses would pour onto the streets to demonstrate against the government’s flagrant injustice but shortly after the constitutional council’s decision, many Cameroonians were instead seen rushing to bars and off-licenses as if they were rejoicing over Prof. Maurice Kamto’s elimination from the race.

Speaking to an irate Cameroonian after the constitutional council’s decision, the Cameroon Concord News correspondent in Yaoundé, Rita Akana, gathered that many Cameroonians were disappointed about the decision and that drinking alcohol was their ideal way of reducing their anger.

“Here in Cameroon, we drink when we are happy and we even drink more to calm down our temper when we are really angry. I know this is wrong but it is hard to change this mentality,” the irate opposition fan said.

“How possible is it for Cameroonians to think things through when there is alcohol? The Cameroonian has lost his courage and sense of direction because of alcohol and the government is aware of this,” he added.

“It is even rumored that the government will reduce the price of alcoholic beverages before the presidential election and this is designed to confuse the already confused Cameroonian. We drink on every occasion and this has really rendered us mentally and psychologically fragile. Until Cameroonians face their government head-on, they will never see the type of develop they all want,” he stressed.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

12, August 2025

Macron admits France’s ‘repressive violence’ in Cameroon during decolonisation ⁰

Macron has acknowledged that France waged a “war” in Cameroon during and after the African country’s decolonisation in the late 1950s, marked by “repressive violence”, in a letter published Tuesday.

The letter, sent to his Cameroonian counterpart last month, follows an officially commissioned report, published in January, which said that France implemented mass forced displacement, pushed hundreds of thousands of Cameroonians into internment camps and supported brutal militias to squash the central African country’s push for sovereignty.

The historical commission, the creation of which had been announced by Macron during a 2022 trip to Yaounde, examined France’s role leading up to when Cameroon gained independence from France on January 1, 1960, but also during the subsequent years.

“The historians of the commission made it very clear that there was a war in Cameroon, during which the colonial authorities and the French army carried out repressive violence of several kinds in certain parts of the country in a war that continued after 1960 when France supported the actions carried out by the independent Cameroon authorities,” Macron said in the letter to Cameroonian President Paul Biya, published by the French presidency.

“It is incumbent on me today to accept France’s role and responsibility in these events,” he said.

Source: AFP

12, August 2025

‘The Elders’ group of global leaders warns of ‘unfolding genocide’ in Gaza ⁰

A group of distinguished world leaders, known as The Elders, has characterized the situation in the Gaza Strip as an “unfolding genocide,” calling for decisive measures to halt Israel’s obstruction of aid into the besieged Palestinian territory, which is causing a “famine.”

The Elders, a nongovernmental organization founded by former South African President Nelson Mandela in 2007 to address global human rights issues and abuses, made the remarks in a statement on Tuesday, following its delegates’ visit to the Rafah border crossing in Egypt.

“Today we express our shock and outrage at Israel’s deliberate obstruction of the entry of life-saving humanitarian aid into Gaza,” the group said.

“What we saw and heard underlines our personal conviction that there is not only an unfolding, human-caused famine in Gaza. There is an unfolding genocide,” it added.

Helen Clark, former prime minister of New Zealand, emphasized the urgent need for Israel to open the Rafah border crossing to allow the delivery of aid after her visit to the site.

Source: Presstv

11, August 2025

Archbishop Kleda issues critique of the Biya regime ahead of elections ⁰

As Cameroon heads to a presidential election in October, Archbishop Samuel Kleda of Douala has sharply criticized President Paul Biya’s government, painting a dark picture of a country so rich in natural resources, but whos resources are so badly managed.

In a 16-page Pastoral Letter released August 8, the leading Catholic noted that “our society is shaken by multiple ills that afflict all social strata.”

“The unease that is currently eating away at our country and causing widespread discontent among citizens in this pre-election period stems from anti-evangelical acts that have been instituted in the management of our country,” the archbishop said, and proceeded to list the anti-evangelical acts: “Poor governance and corruption, distorted democracy, widespread poverty and unemployment, illegal immigration, the dilapidated road network, difficult access to water and electricity, the murky management of oil, injustices in mining, and the Anglophone and security crises in the Far North.”

He said such evils pervert relations between citizens and rulers, leading to abuse of power and injustice.

“However, at present and at all times, our country thirsts for social justice, which is expressed through respect for human rights and the development of everything that allows it to flourish and fulfill its vocation,” Kleda said.

He denounced the “atrocious suffering that particularly affects the poorest and weakest, held hostage by the chains of corruption and injustice,” explaining that the country’s vast natural resources are being plundered to fund the opulent lifestyle of members of the government, while the vast majority of citizens are starving.

He said this has created a socially unadjusted economy in which the rich grow richer as the poor grow poorer, noting that it has been caused by “the refusal to promote integral human development that benefits everyone.”

For him, the challenge facing Cameroon’s leaders lies in “respecting and implementing the concept of the common good.”

He blasted those in government for failing to make Cameroonians their priority, saying that “the focus is on the individual, the group, the clan, the ethnic group, the lobby.”

This state of affairs sacrifices the majority of the population, pushing them toward impoverishment and misery that is destroying Cameroon and jeopardizing “the future of millions of people, especially young people.”

A corrupt democracy

The Douala archbishop also took a swipe at the country’s democratic experiment, saying that it has failed to respect the cannons of working democracies: Tolerance, dialogue, transparency, justice and truth. Instead, Cameroon’s democracy is “tainted by institutional violence, intimidation, and a lack of transparency, truth, and justice.”

For him, a democracy where “political actors are despised, brutalized, and imprisoned is doomed to fail.”

He criticized Cameroon’s political actors for failing to engage in meaningful which prevent “the consolidation of peaceful coexistence.”

Brain drain

The prelate expressed anger that the failure to offer young people hope for a better country is forcing thousands of young people to leave the country, sometimes at the risk of losing their lives, in search of “greener pasture” abroad where they feel sure to get decent jobs, and better living and educational conditions.

“This brain drain is emptying our country of intelligent, skilled young people, scientists, engineers, and health professionals, to the benefit of countries offering better living and working conditions,” Kleda said.

The archbishop also spoke about the opaque management of resources, noting that it is paradoxical that Cameroon that is so blessed with hydraulic potential still has problems of access to drinking water and electricity. He said the “numerous energy development projects, such as hydroelectric dams,” were designed “to enrich corrupt officials through kickbacks.”

He noted further that the management of Cameroon’s oil revenue remains “a complete mystery, because the hydrocarbon sector is controlled by a group of individuals who award themselves exploration and drilling contracts, oil contracts, and marketing rights.”

Kleda finds it unacceptable that hydrocarbons are “not serving the national economy, but are the preserve of a small circle of political power that awards itself contracts and positions and arrogates all rights and privileges to itself, while the majority languishes in poverty.” The same is true of the mining sector.

The Douala archbishop equally addressed the security problems plaguing the Central African nation, decrying the incapacity of the government to find solutions to the crisis rocking Cameroon’s English-speaking regions. The conflict that started in 2016 has so far left at least 6,500 people dead, and a further 800,000 people forced out of their homes.

He blasted separatist fighters in the two regions for killing, committing acts of assault and kidnapping people, but Kleda didn’t have kind words for the military either, explaining that there is “the brutality of the army, which razes entire villages on the mere suspicion of support (for the enemy).”

In the far north of Cameroon, the terrorist group Boko Haram is spreading terror and desolation. Faced with these extremely painful and worrying situations, Kleda is asking the government to spare no effort to “restore peace in all crisis-hit regions.”

With a presidential election scheduled for October 12, the archbishop seems to suggest that it was time Cameroonians vote Biya out of office.

“On the eve of the presidential election in October 2025 in our country, I invite you all to join me, your brother, so that together we may raise our voices to Almighty God to implore peace for our country, a spirit of love and service in families, and for each one of us,” the archbishop said.

“Choosing a president of the Republic is a civic duty that falls to each and every one of us, and which will shape the future of our country. That is why our civic action must lay the foundations for a new and prosperous society, based on peace and justice, and focused on the well-being of us all,” he said.

“I invite all people of good will to change their mindset and attitude, to undergo a profound inner transformation, to embark on a new path and to renew their lives in order to become ‘peacemakers’ (Mt 5:9), according to the will of our Lord,” he added.

Biya will face eleven other candidates at the poll as he seeks an eighth consecutive term of office. The 92-year-old leader has been in power since November 1982.

Kleda’s outing has sparked bitter reactions among the president’s henchmen. Professor Owona Nguini, a political scientist and close ally of the president accused Kleda of using the pulpit for partisan politics.

“The Pastoral letter is clearly partisan in nature. The bishop in my opinion stepped away from his priestly mission to engage in partisan politics,” he said.

Source: Crux

11, August 2025

Nyene Mawn: Key takeaways and talking points from Paris 2025 ⁰

The Manyu Women’s International Organisation (Nyene Mawn) members gathered in Paris over the weekend for the association’s second annual residential convention. Chi Prudence and Soter Agbaw-Ebai report

The sun in Paris was shining, the good weather added to a sense of optimism for a Manyu women’s group that was clearly on the brink of collapse.

Despite social media negativity orchestrated by some rogue elements against Nyene Mawn, the mood in the French capital was du jamais vu indicating that Nyene Mawn queens had move away from the nasty past and the embarrassing so-called conference of presidents’ scandal which had attempted to destroy the Nyene Mawn brand.

Here are the key talking points from the Nyene Mawn Residential Convention

The President-General Dr Mrs Patience Abangma promised the Nyene Mawn queens that she was going to step down and usher in the new generation. This is after she repaired the financial damage caused by the disgraced suspended seven.

Dr Patience Abangma did not need to put a positive spin on her speech to get the Nyene Mawn queens smiling and sharing tears of joy as much as she was.

Delegates from all over the world were in great spirit at the respective meetings that started on Friday and ended Sunday evening.

Nyene Mawn is riding high with their favourite slogan: Nyene Mawn leads, others follow.

This time last year, Nyene Mawn queens crammed into a dour, stuffy hall in the middle of the afternoon in Brussels to discuss their progress and their plans for the future. The atmosphere among Nyene Mawn queens in Brussels that day might be described as quietly confident. If the sense that day was of a Manyu women association on the rise, then Paris 2025, in its glitzier environs, was that of a Nyene Mawn whose time had come.

When the convention started in Paris Noisy Le Sec, Nyene Mawn announced a new interim body headed by Queen Maureen Tabe as President-General, which aims to speed up development deep within the association while Dr Patience Abangma used her speech to promise the women of her complete and total support for the new governing body.

Nyene Mawn queens thanked their out gone President-General Dr Patience Abangma for sustaining the Nyene Mawn cause, the association, the argument against a vicious campaign of blackmail. “Mami Abangma didn’t just win for herself, she won for all the Nyene Mawn queens”, Chief Stella Ntui Arhewoh from the Federal Republic of Nigeria who also moonlights as Second Vice President said, describing how Dr Patience Abangma had challenged attempts aimed at destroying the image of the Manyu Women’s International Association.

Speaking exclusively to Cameroon Concord News, Nyene Mawn’s new strong woman Lady Maureen Tabe said “We’re not going to screw Mami Abangma’s legacy up; we’re going to make sure that we use her leadership style and use our majority following to transform Nyene Mawn and attract quality membership not quantity.”

Whether Nyene Mawn achieves its goals for the female child in Manyu Division in Cameroon remains to be seen. But what’s clear from Paris 2025 is that Nyene Mawn queens are now strong and growing in confidence.

At the gala night on Saturday evening animated by renowned Manyu artist Etando Moh Manyu, Soter Agbaw-Ebai caught up with the President General Maureen Tabe and pressed the new leader on a range of Nyene Mawn matters, including plans to recover the embezzled funds, the indefinite suspension of the dodgy seven and also the key issue of developmental projects back home.

According to Soter Agbaw-Ebai, Nyene Mawn’s new leader was able to provide strong assurance on the issues, and a discussion with our editor showed that Nyene Mawn finally emerged stronger and united than expected.

“I’ll put my hands up any day, any time and say I was one of the Nyene Mawn queens who fought tooth and nail to preserve the image of the Manyu Women’s International Association,” Queen Regina AyukEtah, First Vice President from the Kingdom of Belgium said, explaining that Paris 2025 has given birth to a new spirit in Nyene Mawn.

Inside business day at the Nyene Mawn Residential Convention

Lady Collect Tambeagbor, Nyene Mawn’s Communication Secretary predictably, spoke about getting Nyene Mawn building bridges with other Manyu women groups both at home and abroad.

Another issue that did not receive a clear answer from delegates was why Nyene Mawn decided to suspend the seven members indefinitely instead of the agreed dismissal as recommended by the general assembly.

Lady Priscillia Morand, the new Secretary General of Nyene Mawn spoke in strong terms about the importance of moving the association forward, explaining that Nyene Mawn should not be over reliant on its members in Europe but needed to tap into the Nyene Mawn worldwide diversity.

Support for the girl child in Manyu was also a theme in the residential convention discourse during the AGM, which saw a huge number of Nyene Mawn queens come together. Speaker after speaker gave barnstorming speeches at the AGM.

Many in Paris called for Nyene Mawn to empower its chapters in Cameroon if it wanted to fulfil its pledge to ensure growth across Manyu Division, and recognise this would not happen without transformative investment on the girl child project.

Conveniently, Nyene Mawn is currently trying to rebuild again on its image and finances.

11, August 2025

Cameroon concludes AI training for indigenous people ⁰

Cameroon on Saturday concluded a weeklong training for indigenous people in artificial intelligence (AI) as part of activities to mark the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.

Minister of Social Affairs Pauline Irene Nguene said the Central African nation is working to ensure that indigenous people benefit from the opportunities provided by the advent of AI.

“Indigenous people should not be left out in the changing world. It is their right to learn and apply AI. That is why this training contributes to the fight against social exclusion,” Nguene said in Yaoundé, the country’s capital, while awarding certificates at the end of the training.

Efforts are underway to establish a tiered AI education system to guide indigenous people in rural areas from foundational cognitive awareness to practical technological innovation, according to Cameroonian officials.

The International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is commemorated annually on Aug. 9, with this year’s theme being “Indigenous Peoples and AI: Defending Rights, Shaping Futures.”

By Miriam Metchane Ewang

11, August 2025

Running for President to be appointed minister: why a coalition is difficult ⁰

Ahead of the 2004 presidential election, SDF’s Hon. Joseph Mbah Ndam (RIP) told me, boastfully and happily, that the SDF candidate Ni John Fru Ndi, would come second ahead of opposition coalition candidate Adamou Ndam Njoya. That implied Mbah Ndam knew and was comfortable that incumbent president Paul Biya would win. That was my first direct experience with political half-aim.

I was a young political reporter and editor at The Herald newspaper then. Fru Ndi had walked out of an opposition coalition effort because Ndam Njoya had been chosen as the “consensual candidate”. Though the political and civil society leaders involved concluded that Ndam Njoya was the man with the profile for the job at the time, Fru Ndi’s entourage said it was inconceivable for Ndam Njoya, leader of a “small party” to clinch the coalition ticket over Fru Ndi, leader of the biggest opposition party at the time.

Not everyone running for President really means to be President. Or rather, many run for President to “win” as little as nowhere near elective office even at the lowest level. By the way, only one out of the lot makes it at any election. For many, it is beyond being able to win. They know they really cannot win. Ostensibly, the most selfless of them run to set an agenda by floating their ideas for more serious candidates to adopt them for the wellbeing of citizens. Matter of fact, many only step into the fray to seek for notice. They engage the race for other purposes.

Take the trouble to count presidential aspirants around the world across human history and possibly less than one percent of names on ballots have ever won anything, not even significant votes. The man called Apostle Ambe Valentine Ngwa might just have avoided that, but for his troubles with an early declaration, and smart calculations, he might have secured a political future.

Dr Nick Ngwanyam, a current affairs commentator, might have captured – with apparent marksman precision – what could have been the calculations of this eloquent TV personality who is also a Pentecostal preacher. Ambe declared to run early but, falling short of fulfilling the conditions to appear on the ballot, he announced he was withdrawing from the race to throw his weight behind SDF’s presidential candidate, Joshua Osih, whom he says embodies the vision he has for Cameroon.

Ambe said his bid for the presidency has been frustrated by the impossibility of obtaining the signatures of personalities (senators, first-class traditional rulers, etc) across the ten regions to make up the required 300 to be eligible as an independent candidate.

Who is surprised? Who, except no one, not even Ambe himself really thought he would be an eligible candidate without a political party nomination? He clearly knew he would not be on the ballot. He obviously declared to run for other purposes than to actually run for president. Ambe says he made phone calls to personalities across the regions of the country to obtain their signatures. Just phone calls! Not as much as field tours to meet – not just call – personalities around the country!

Nevertheless, Nick Ngwanyam says, with that act of endorsing Osih, Ambe might have secured a political future, and thus gets elevated to the high stage to travel, eat, lodge, speak and commune at the same level on the campaign trail as Osih, a non-negligible presidential candidate.

And, Ngwanyam adds, after the election, should Osih win, Ambe may stand a chance to become minister or should Osih fall short, Ambe might hope to be propelled to a high-profile political career from the top in the SDF and may eventually run for mayor of Bonaberi in Douala where he lives. Hence, he might have declared to run for president to end up as mayor.

I recall how humorist, Koukam Narcisse used Ni John Fru Ndi’s traditional appellation “Ni” to mock him. (The word “Ni”, used to refer respectfully to an uncle or any senior in the Ngemba languages spoken in several villages in Bamenda and its environs, means “neither/nor” in French.)

Koukam mocked Fru Ndi for all his political bravado and achievements with a massive political party SDF, as being “Ni John, Ni Fru, Ni Ndi, Ni Maire, Ni Député, Ni Président.” (Neither Mayor, nor MP, nor President.) At least, by Nick Ngwanyam’s projection, Apostle Ambe could reap the benefits of his early announcement of a run for the Presidency by grabbing a mayoral seat. Ambe won’t be the first.

In 1997, UPC’s Henri Hogbe Nlend and NUDP’s Bello Bouba Maigari secured ministerial positions under Biya; the one by running for president perhaps to lose, the other by not running to inconvenience Biya and be rewarded. In that election boycotted by the three most vibrant opposition candidates at the time (Fru Ndi, Bello Bouba Maigari and Adamu Ndam Njoya), one of them, Bello, tiptoed backwards and worked his way into the Government as Minister of State. Fifteen years earlier, he had been made prime minister in the first government after Biya became president in November 1982.

Across decades of Cameroon’s political history, politicians and civil society actors have reaped political benefits by their posturing either by running or not running, either by endorsing candidates or offering to be counter-forces or nuisances to potential winners to the benefit of the incumbent.

Such was the case of certain early UPC militants in the 1970s who were lured into the government by pioneer President Ahmadou Ahidjo after the revolutionary party had been subdued with the execution of its last leader, Ernest Ouandie, in 1971. (Um Nyobe and Felix Moumie had been eliminated earlier.)

As a result, Augustin Frederick Kodock was appointed to several positions including Director General of Cameroon Airlines and at the African Development Bank, sponsored by the Ahidjo government. Mayi Matip was elevated to Senior Vice Speaker of the National Assembly under long-serving House Speaker, Solomon Tandeng Muna.

After the 2018 presidential election when MRC’s Maurice Kamto gave President Biya a real run for his money and even claimed stolen victory, Barrister Jean de Dieu Momo was appointed into the government as reward for his spoiler job alongside the G-20. Momo, a Bamileke like Kamto and himself a presidential candidate in 2011, did not run in 2018. He was rather among 20 or so spoiler political and civil society actors who declared they were supporting Biya. Of them all, Momo got appointed into the government thereafter.

In 2022, Nkongho Felix Agbor “Balla” turned down his announced co-opting into the SDF Shadow Cabinet by then leader, Ni John Fru Ndi, with the obvious backing of then Vice Chairman, Osih. Now, with Balla’s endorsement of Osih for president earlier this year, the SDF presidential candidate said upfront that Balla would be his Minister of Justice should he win the Presidency.

Several other candidates in this 2025 presidential race are obviously not running to win but to position themselves for eventualities. They thus use the election as a positioning test, whereby candidates size their bite by their percentage score which is the equivalent of territory captured by armed groups in an armed struggle to weigh their negotiating position during eventual talks.

With 83 individuals submitting files this year to the elections management body, ELECAM, Cameroonians had before them individuals with different motives from doing a dress rehearsal to testing their potentials for future elections by demonstrating their political weight to secure a place on the negotiating table in case political deadlock necessitates a consensus government or a “government of national unity”. Or even just to get their public service debts paid like Leopard Bessiping.

Some presidential aspirants are under pressure from party militants to berth ministerial portfolios for them to have their own “chop farm” like UPC Kodock loyalists or like Charly Gabriel Mbock under Hodge Nlend or like the entourage of Bello Bouba and Issa Tchiroma enjoying privileges at their ministries. Such is the mindset when chances of regime change appear bleak to supporters and they resort to “wetin man go do” (or a sense of resignation), settling for less than the presidency.

By Franklin Sone Bayen

9, August 2025

Biya regime seeks extradition of protesters after embassy demonstrations ⁰

Several people were arrested during protests outside Cameroonian embassies in Belgium and France. The demonstrations were a response to the Constitutional Council’s rejection of Maurice Kamto’s appeal.

In an August 5 statement, Minister of Territorial Administration Paul Atanga Nji said that “in accordance with current judicial cooperation agreements, these individuals will be brought before local courts or extradited to face justice in Cameroon with the full force of the law.”

In Belgium, police intervened to disperse protesters who tried to enter the Cameroonian embassy. They arrested several people suspected of belonging to the Anti-Sardinards Brigade.

On July 31, Minister of External Relations Lejeune Mbella Mbella had already reminded ambassadors in Yaoundé of the international obligation to protect diplomatic missions before the presidential election. He stressed “the strict enforcement of protection measures for personnel and diplomatic and consular buildings.”

This initiative aimed to prevent a repeat of the violence that occurred after the 2018 presidential election. At that time, members of the Cameroonian diaspora attacked several embassies, including the one in Paris, and assaulted the Cameroonian ambassador in Belgium.

In his statement, the minister of territorial administration reaffirmed “the unwavering commitment of public authorities to uphold the laws of the Republic in all places and under all circumstances.”

Source: Sbbc

9, August 2025

Hearing in Alice Nkom’s case postponed again ⁰

The Douala-Bonanjo Court of First Instance firmly adjourned the case against attorney Alice Nkom, Maximilienne Ngo Mbe, and the Central Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (Redhac) on August 5, 2025. This was the third hearing in a sensitive case being closely followed by human rights advocates.

The latest postponement was due to the absence of the Wouri senior divisional officer, Sylyac Marie Mvogo, whose presence is considered essential for the proceedings to begin. According to defense lawyer Charlotte Tchakounté, a firm adjournment means no further postponements will be granted at the next hearing, which is scheduled for October 6, 2025. “The senior divisional officer will have to appear, as he is the only one who can justify the charges brought against the two defendants,” she said.

Alice Nkom, who is the chair of Redhac’s board of directors, welcomed the decision. She believes her legal team’s arguments exposed inconsistencies in the public prosecutor’s case.

Redhac was suspended in December 2024 by Minister of Territorial Administration Paul Atanga Nji, who cited “illicit financing” and other unspecified allegations. The organization’s offices were sealed for three months, a move Nkom called “arbitrary.” In response, the human rights lawyer broke the seals, which led to a series of administrative and judicial summonses against her.

Source: Sbbc

8, August 2025

Yaoundé: Is the world’s oldest leader set for an eighth term? ⁰

Cameroon’s constitutional council has upheld the decision by the country’s electoral body to exclude opposition leader Maurice Kamto from the 12 October presidential election.

While the firebrand political figure was sidelined, 92-year-old President Paul Biya whose candidacy also faced opposition, was cleared to run for what would be his eighth term in the oil-rich Central African nation.

If he were elected for another seven-year term, he could remain in power until he was almost 100.

Kamto was ruled out because a rival faction of the Manidem party which endorsed him presented another individual as a candidate, highlighting an internal squabble.

His exclusion sparked outrage, with his lawyers describing the rejection of his petition as more of a political than a legal move.

Who are the main candidates?

Of the 83 candidates who submitted their applications to the electoral body, only 12 have been approved.

The reasons given by Elections Cameroon (Elecam) for the disqualification of the 71 range from incomplete files, non-payment of the required deposit, to multiple candidacies from the same party.

Of all the contestants, six are seen as the main contenders:

1. Paul Biya

At 92, Paul Biya is the world’s oldest serving head of state. He has been in power for nearly 43 years since 1982. Biya leads the ruling CPDM party which dominates the political scene. He is widely considered the favourite, now that his main rival, Kamto, is out of the way.

The veteran politician has never lost an election since the return of multi-party politics in 1990. However, his victories have been marred by allegations of vote rigging – claims which his party and the government have continuously denied.

Announcing his intention to run, Biya said his eighth mandate would focus on the wellbeing of women and young people.

2. Bello Bouba Maigari

Bello Bouba Maigari, 78, is an experienced politician who hails from Cameroon’s vote-rich northern region.

He is the president of the National Union for Democracy and Progress (NUDP) party founded in 1990. He served in the governments of both of Cameroon’s presidents -Ahmadou Ahidjo and Paul Biya.

In fact, he was Biya’s first prime minister between 1982 and 1983. Since 1997, Maigari has forged an alliance with Biya’s CPDM party that helped the latter clinch significant votes from the north.

However, this political marriage ended in June following pressure from within his party to run independently.

While serving as Minister of State for Tourism and Leisure, Maigari announced his resignation and declared himself a candidate against Biya, who he also faced in the 1992 presidential election.

3. Issa Tchiroma Bakary

Another former Biya ally whose candidacy came as a surprise is 75-year-old Issa Tchiroma Bakary. Like Maigari, he is from the country’s north and has been influential in helping Biya secure the region’s votes.

After a 20-year stint in different government roles, Tchiroma finally pulled the plug on his time with the 92-year-old leader, resigning from his role as Minister of Employment and Vocational Training to announce his candidacy.

Tchiroma, who heads the Cameroon National Salvation Front (CNSF) party, criticised Biya’s governance style and hinged his presidential bid on a promise to overhaul the system, which he described as “suffocating”.

AFP via Getty Images A man painted in green and white colours — Supporters of Joshua Osih came out in donned in party colours when he campaigned in the 2018 election, but he came fourth

4. Cabral Libii

Cabral Libii, president of the Cameroon Party for National Reconciliation (PCRN), is a vibrant member of parliament who is making his second attempt at getting the country’s top job.

In 2018, he was the youngest of the nine presidential candidates, aged just 38, coming third with 6% of the vote.

Libii’s candidature in this year’s election was challenged by PCRN founder Robert Kona, who disputed the lawmaker’s legitimacy to lead the party.

However, the Constitutional Council rejected Kona’s petition and upheld the electoral body’s decision to allow Libii to stand.

5. Akere Muna

Akere Muna was a candidate in the 2018 presidential election but pulled out at the last minute and threw his weight behind Kamto. This time around, Muna, a staunch international anti-corruption lawyer, says he wants to challenge Biya himself.

The 72-year-old is from a family of politicians – his late father Solomon Tandeng Muna served as Prime Minister of West Cameroon after independence, Vice-President of the then Federal Republic of Cameroon and Speaker of the National Assembly.

As Speaker, Solomon Muna swore in Biya when he took over as president after Ahmadou Ahidjo resigned.

Muna is promising to rid the bilingual country of the corruption and bad governance that he says have soiled its image at the international scene.

6. Joshua Osih

JoshuaOsih is jumping into the presidential race for the second time after his first attempt in 2018 proved futile.

He heads the Social Democratic Front (SDF) party, succeeding the iconic late opposition leader John Fru Ndi. The SDF used to be the country’s main opposition outfit, but its influence later dwindled, exacerbated by infighting and the expulsion of several party members in 2023.

Osih, 56, came fourth in the 2018 polls with 3%, but is hoping to defeat Biya through a promise of social and institutional reforms.

AFP via Getty Images A close-up shot of Maurice Kamto. He has short hair and glasses and is wearing a blue jacket. — Maurice Kamto was President Paul Biya’s main challenger in the previous election

Who poses the strongest challenge to Biya?

For many decades, President Biya has succeeded in maintaining a firm grip on power, making it difficult for him to lose elections.

The decision of political heavyweights Bello Bouba Maigari and Issa Tchiroma Bakary to challenge him appeared to make life more difficult, but some analysts believe they do not pose a significant threat to Biya.

Dr Pippie Hugues, a policy analyst with Cameroonian think-tank Nkafu Policy Institute, argues that their alliance with the current regime lessens their credibility with opposition voters.

“Cameroonians need more than just a resignation to trust them,” he told the BBC. “Both have been with the system and watched the nation suffer.”

Dr Hugues further suggested that the two northern candidates might be part of a political plot staged by the regime.

However, ruling party officials have portrayed the rupture as genuine, acknowledging that the CPDM could struggle to obtain as many votes from the north as before.

Given Kamto’s exclusion, Biya’s strongest challenger in 2018, third-placed Libii could arguably claim to be his main threat this year.

Although he got just 6% of the vote, Libii’s political evolution since then has been praised.

He led his party to win five seats in parliament and seven local councils during the 2020 legislative and municipal elections. Since becoming a member of parliament in the process, he has challenged the government on key policy issues, promising sweeping changes if he takes over the reins of power.

However, Dr Hugues says Libii’s vision is opaque, citing Akere Muna as a more convincing candidate with a much clearer project for the nation of nearly 30 million people.

“Muna has a wealth of international experience and diplomatic character, and that is what the nation needs now,” he said, while praising the renowned lawyer’s five-year transition plan to “put the nation back on track”.

Could the opposition unite?

Historically, Cameroon’s opposition has been fragmented especially during elections, with analysts saying this has disadvantaged them.

Ahead of this year’s presidential election, there has been much talk about the need for the opposition to unite and harmonise strategies to take on Biya. But with each candidate prioritising their own interests, it remains unclear if most – let alone all – of them would work together, despite the risk this could help the president.

“It might be the end of their political careers, or their parties, if they don’t come together,” said civil society leader Felix Agbor Balla.

“Kamto and the others must look for someone in the opposition who can carry the baton – and they must put the nation first, rise above their personal ego to look for a consensual candidate that can give the CPDM a run on the 12th of October,” he told the BBC.

Anadolu via Getty Images Protesters gather at Place de la Republique in Paris on May 31, 2025, at the call of the Cameroonian diaspora. Waving flags, holding placards and banners, they expressed their opposition to President Paul Biya, — Maurice Kamato has drummed up support among Cameroonians in the diaspora, as protests in support of him have taken place in Paris, France

Dr Hugues agrees that Kamto should use his influence to drum up support for an opposition coalition since he is now out of the race.

He insists “change must not [only] come with him [Kamto], but change can come through him”.

He added that an opposition coalition is possible and made reference to a meeting attended by opposition figures on 2 August in Foumban town in the West region.

Prince Michael Ekosso, president of the United Socialist Democratic Party (USDP), who took part in the meeting, told the BBC the aim was to lay the groundwork for a “consensual candidate”.

While no specific candidate has been designated yet, the criteria for consideration were laid down.

“We want a figure who is going to be responding to the aspirations of Cameroonians, someone who is flexible to work with others, someone who is bilingual and able to mobilise other candidates and political actors,” Ekosso said.

In the 1992 presidential election, firebrand opposition leader John Fru Ndi was backed by the Union for Change, a coalition of political parties and civil society organisations.

Although he was not the only opposition candidate, analysts say the coalition helped him get 36% of the vote – just shy of Biya’s 40%.

That was the closest anyone has ever got to beating Biya. Fru Ndi even claimed victory, but the authorities rejected allegations of vote rigging and confirmed Biya as the winner.

Many believe if the opposition doesn’t band together as it did in 1992, Biya might have an easy ride to the presidency.

“He has the experience, the human resources and the system to his advantage,” says Dr Hugues.

Source: BBC