Politics

19, April 2026

US: Trump’s approval rating at historic low amid concerns over economy, Iran war ⁰

A new poll has found that two-thirds of Americans disapprove of President Donald Trump’s handling of inflation as well as the war with Iran, revealing emerging divisions within his Republican support base.

According to an NBC News Decision Desk Poll powered by SurveyMonkey, Trump’s job approval rating has reached a new low, with only 37% of adults expressing approval of his presidency, while 63% disapprove—of which 50% disapprove strongly.

This marks the lowest approval rating recorded during his second term in the history of NBC News Decision Desk polling. Moreover, two-thirds of respondents voiced discontent with Trump’s approach to both inflation and the conflict with Iran.

The decline in Trump’s approval rating has been a consistent trend throughout his second term.

The latest findings show a deterioration in public perception of the president’s performance. Although Trump maintains substantial backing from his base, support among Republicans has waned compared to a prior poll conducted between late January and early February.

Currently, 83% of Republicans view him favorably, a decrease of 4 percentage points from earlier this year. Additionally, the proportion of Republicans who strongly approve of Trump’s job performance has fallen by 6 points, down from 58% to 52%.

Furthermore, a striking one-third of Americans believe the country is headed in the right direction, while two-thirds feel it is on the wrong track—representing the most pessimistic perspective in Decision Desk polling since Trump assumed office again last year.

Source: Presstv

13, April 2026

Hungary election: Trump, Netanyahu lose close ally in Europe as Orban defeated ⁰

Hungary has entered a new political phase after Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a close ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump, lost power.

Ending his 16-year rule, Orban’s ruling Fidesz party fell behind the opposition Tisza party led by Peter Magyar in a closely contested election, whose results came out on Sunday.

Israel loses European steward

Orban had cultivated one of the closest relationships with the Israeli regime among the European Union’s members.

He had described Tel Aviv as a strategic and “ideological” partner, with his ties with Netanyahu playing a central role in shaping Hungary’s foreign policy.

During his time in office, Hungary repeatedly used its veto power within the EU to block statements and sanctions targeting the regime’s atrocities, therefore, providing Tel Aviv with diplomatic protection.

Israeli officials are now expressing concern over a potential shift in policy.

Reports from the Israeli paper Yedioth Ahronoth indicated that officials in Tel Aviv closely monitored the election and warned that Orban’s defeat could remove the regime’s last bastion of protection within the 27-nation bloc.

Observers say Magyar, who is more closely aligned with broader European positions, could end Hungary’s use of the veto, allowing for more unified EU action, including criticism of illegal settlement expansion, settler violence, and military aggression.

Trump left without ‘true friend’

The election result also represented a setback for Trump, who openly supported Orban during the campaign.

Just days before the vote, Trump urged Hungarian voters to back his “true friend” and said he would use the full economic power of the United States to assist Hungary in the event of Orban’s victory.

Magyar sharply criticized those comments, denouncing Washington for interfering in Hungary’s internal affairs.

Source: Presstv

12, April 2026

New low for US Vice President as his popularity plummets to historic depths ⁰

US vice president JD Vance is now sitting at the bottom of the political ladder in the country, with approval numbers sinking to levels never seen before for a vice president at this stage in office, according to CNN.

Drawing on aggregated national polling averages tracking Vance since he took office in January 2025, the data reveals that the vice president’s standing has nosedived sharply, landing him in the “historically the worst” position when compared with his predecessors at the same point in their terms.

The numbers tell a stark story. Vance’s net approval rating has plunged from a positive 3 points down to negative 18 – a dramatic 21-point swing in the wrong direction.

“Down he goes,” CNN data analyst Harry Enten, who worked on it, remarked on air while presenting the details, adding that Vance is “not doing too hot to trot at this point.”

For context, Enten walked viewers through the records of other vice presidents at comparable moments in their tenures. Kamala Harris stood at minus 13, Mike Pence at minus 7 and Joe Biden at a net positive of 4.

While Enten acknowledged that vice presidents have generally become less popular over time, he noted that this trend alone does not fully account for the severity of the former Ohio senator’s dramatic collapse.

The sharp decline, Enten suggested, is not happening in a vacuum. Vance appears to be “dragged down along with the president of the United States,” caught in broader political headwinds weighing on the entire administration.

Trump’s ratings have also dramatically sunk amid his deeply controversial foreign policy decisions, including the unprovoked and illegal war against the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Interestingly, it coincides with Vance’s role as the lead US negotiator in talks with the Islamic Republic of Iran in Islamabad, which ended early on Sunday on a negative note.

The talks, which followed the 40-day war of aggression against the Islamic Republic, failed to produce any breakthrough due to the US delegation’s maximalist demands.

Source: Press TV

8, April 2026

Etoudi debunks report of Biya appointing his son as vice president ⁰

Cameroon has debunked reports of President Paul Biya appointing Franck Biya, his son, as vice president.

The reports began to circulate on Saturday after the Cameroonian parliament overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to reintroduce the position of vice president.

The lawmakers voted 200 to 18 in favour, with four abstentions, to pass the bill.

The bill stipulates that the vice president will automatically assume the presidency if Biya dies, resigns, or becomes incapacitated.

Biya, 93, has led the country since ⁠1982 and is the world’s oldest serving head of state. The president is rarely seen in public, and discussion about his health is banned.

The viral reports claimed Franck was named vice president and head of the country’s military authority.

According to the reports, the order was contained in the legislation.

But in a copy of the bill indicates, no such appointment was given to Franck. His name was also not mentioned in the document.

The legislation mandates that the vice president will be appointed and dismissed by the president, serving for the remainder of the president’s seven-year term.

However, the interim leader would be prohibited from initiating constitutional changes or running in a subsequent election.

Officials of Cameroon’s ministry of foreign affairs debunked the reports of Franck’s appointment.

“On April 4 2026, the Cameroonian Parliament adopted a historic constitutional amendment creating the post of Vice-President of the Republic,” the ministry said in a statement.

“But the Vice-President has to be appointed by the Head of State to ensure the continuity of power.

“Till date, no one has been appointed to that position.”

Cameroonian media also did not report Franck’s alleged appointment, neither did the country’s presidency nor the national assembly.

The vice presidency was previously part of Cameroon’s governance structure but was abolished in 1972 following a constitutional referendum.

Source: The Cable

6, April 2026

Yaoundé: lawmakers revive vice presidency, handing aging Biya sweeping control over the post ⁰

Cameroon’s parliament overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to reintroduce the vice president position, a move the opposition says will further strengthen President Paul Biya’s grip on power.

Biya, 93, is the world’s oldest leader and has led the central African nation since 1982. He won a widely disputed election last year, his eighth term in office.

The widely criticized bill, which Biya is expected to sign into law, was approved Saturday in a joint session of the National Assembly and Senate and boycotted by the main opposition party; 200 voted in favor, 18 against and 4 abstained.

The newest amendment gives the aging president absolute authority over the office of the vice president, as he can appoint and dismiss them at will and the deputy can only exercise powers delegated by Biya. If the president dies, resigns, or becomes incapacitated, the vice president will serve as interim president for the remainder of the seven-year tenure.

Members of the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) hailed the legislation as a measure to ensure institutional stability. Critics, however, said the new law undermines democratic principles by replacing electoral legitimacy with presidential appointment.

The opposition Social Democratic Front (SDF) said in a statement that the amendment “fails to guarantee democratic legitimacy, inclusiveness, and proper institutional balance.”

Fusi Namukong, an SDF member of parliament, told The Associated Press that the law paves the way for a monarchy. “It’s not democratic. This is a republic, and in a republic, those who wield power at the highest level of the state should be elected and not appointed,” Namukong said.

The Cameroon Bar Association also warned the amendment “erodes the democratic legitimacy (of) the presidential office” and undermines the country’s constitution.

The office of the vice president was scrapped in 1972 following a constitutional referendum.

Biya’s health has been a topic of speculation as he spends most of his time in Europe, leaving governance to key party officials and family members. His reelection in 2025 sparked widespread protests that left at least four people dead, signaling growing tensions between the mostly young population and its aging leader.

Source: AP

3, April 2026

Etoudi plans constitutional reform to create vice president role ⁰

A proposed constitutional reform to create a Vice President position in Cameroon is triggering sharp debate among lawmakers and raising questions about governance and legitimacy.

The draft bill, submitted to parliament on April 2, 2026, seeks to amend key provisions of the constitution. President Paul Biya has called for an urgent congress bringing together both the National Assembly and the Senate to fast-track the changes.

Supporters of the reform say the move would strengthen institutional stability and ensure continuity in leadership.

Tabouli Célestin, a ruling party lawmaker, defended the proposal, saying it would enhance governance.

“There will be modifications to certain articles of the constitution which, according to what we have been told, will allow the President to establish a Vice President post. This would, of course, contribute to the proper and harmonious functioning of institutions.”

However, opposition figures have criticized both the timing and the process, arguing that such a significant reform requires wider consultation.

Ndam Njoya Hermine Patricia Tomaino questioned the legitimacy of the move, especially given concerns over extended parliamentary mandates.

“Regarding this amendment, a broad consultation should really have taken place… submitting the text to elected officials whose mandates are supposedly extended raises questions about the legitimacy of these men and women.”

Under the proposed changes, the Vice President would be appointed and would take over in the event of a vacancy in the presidency.

The initiative, which until recently had circulated only as speculation, has now become a focal point of political tension, with critics warning it could reshape the balance of power in Cameroon’s political system.

Source: Africa News

26, March 2026

Anglophone Vice President: a deeply counterproductive idea ⁰

The Biya regime’s recent proposal to create an Anglophone Vice President in Cameroon appears to be a very appetizing and conciliatory gesture toward a long-marginalized people. But in reality, this monstrous political suggestion is a deeply counterproductive idea. It is a plan that is designed to entrench divisions, trivialize legitimate Anglophone grievances and above all, substitute symbolism for the substantive reforms that Cameroon as a nation urgently needs.

The crisis in Southern Cameroons known popularly today as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia has never been a problem of representation at the very top of the executive hierarchy in Yaoundé. It is rooted in decades of structural inequities including the erosion of the common law system, the marginalization of English in public administration, uneven development and a persistent sense of cultural and political exclusion. For some Anglophone comedians from the South West Region to suggest on social media that appointing an Anglophone Vice President would resolve or even meaningfully address these issues is to misunderstand the nature of the crisis itself. For those who do not know, English speaking Cameroonians need policy positions NOT political positions.

The so called Anglophone Vice President proposal risks reducing a very complicated national question into a matter of identity tokenism. It sends the wrong message to the international community that the concerns of English speaking Cameroonians can be appeased by elevating a single individual, rather than by reforming institutions and policies that affect millions of Southern Cameroonians. This approach has failed in countless contexts. Even the common man on the streets of Southern Cameroons is aware that representation without power, without structural change and without accountability does little more than create the illusion of progress.

A regime that divided the nation again by going back to both the Francophonie and the Commonwealth is now on the path of institutionalizing an explicitly Anglophone vice presidency that would formalize the very linguistic divide that Cameroon should be striving to overcome. By embedding the Anglophone identity into the constitutional architecture of executive power in Yaoundé, the ruling CPDM crime syndicate would be fanning the flames of Francophone-Anglophone divide and by extrapolation acknowledging and perpetuating a binary that fuels mistrust and political fragmentation. Biya and his men should get this straight into their heads: nation-building requires bridging divides, not codifying them into permanent features of governance.

The leaked plan is already creating new tensions rather than resolve existing ones. Questions are already being asked as to what powers would this so called Anglophone Vice President hold? Is the role going to be merely ceremonial like that of the Prime Minister? Who is going to select the officeholder and to whom would he be accountable? From every indication, the position will not have any meaningful authority and will eventually become a political ornament with little real impact on the ground. To be more accurate, it will be an ill disguised scheme fabricated to continue hiding the weak and aging President Biya from the public eye.

The timing of this CPDM proposal is also worrying. In the midst of an ongoing war in Southern Cameroons marked by violence, displacement and deepening resentment, what is needed in Anglophone Cameroon is not a constitutional gimmick but a credible inclusive dialogue process. Progressive forces deep within English speaking Cameroon territories affected by the Ambazonia crisis have repeatedly called for a federal structure or some form of genuine decentralization with respect for legal and educational systems within a united Cameroon. These demands cannot be met through symbolic appointments; they require political courage and systemic reform.

Frankly speaking, a call for an Anglophone Vice President is distracting the nation from more urgent priorities which includes restoring trust in public institutions, ensuring justice and accountability, rebuilding war-torn communities in Southern Cameroons and creating a framework for sustainable peace. We of the Cameroon Concord Group are of the opinion that the Anglophone Vice President is now becoming a convenient talking point for those inside the Unity Palace unwilling to engage with the harder, more consequential work of national reconciliation.

Cameroon as a nation does not need a cosmetic fix. Cameroon badly requires a reimagining of the social contract—one that guarantees equality, respects diversity, and empowers all its citizens through strong, inclusive institutions. Until those foundations are addressed, proposals like an Anglophone Vice President will remain what they are: well-intentioned, perhaps, but ultimately inadequate and counterproductive.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

24, March 2026

Denmark votes in close election overshadowed by Trump’s Greenland bid ⁰

Danes vote Tuesday in general elections that opinion polls suggest will be close, with Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen seen as the favourite after standing up to US President Donald Trump over Greenland.

Frederiksen, a Social Democrat who has been in office since 2019, has been praised for her leadership after fending off Trump’s repeated demands to annex Greenland, a Danish autonomous territory he claims the United States needs for national security reasons.

The row over the vast Arctic island has however not been central in the campaign, which has focused more on such issues as the cost of living, immigration and the environment.

Recent opinion polls credit the centre-left bloc with a slight lead over the right, but neither were seen garnering a majority in the 179-seat parliament.

“The future composition of the (coalition) government is very uncertain, but it is likely that we will end up with (Frederiksen) as head of government,” said Elisabet Svane, political analyst at Danish newspaper Politiken.

“People may not really like her, but they see her as the right leader,” she said.

Frederiksen “is a unifying figure in a world full of insecurity, and Danes are quite anxious – there’s Greenland, Ukraine, (and mystery) drones” that flew over the Scandinavian country last year, Svane said.

In addition, “it’s hard to imagine a right-wing government because it would have to unite such a broad swath, from the far right to the more centrist parties, which are not on very good terms with the far right”, said Ole Waever, a political science professor at the University of Copenhagen.

Polling stations open at 8:00am (0700 GMT) and close at 8:00pm, when exit polls will be published, with final results expected around four hours later.

The four overseas seats held by Denmark’s two autonomous territories – two for Greenland and two for the Faroe Islands – could tip the balance if the election result is very close.

The centrist Moderate party, led by Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, a two-time former prime minister, could also prove decisive if things go down to the wire.

Interest in Greenland

In Greenland’s capital Nuuk, the campaign has generated more interest than usual, with more than 20 candidates standing.

“I think this election will kind of show us the direction going forward,” said Juno Berthelsen, a member of Greenland’s local parliament and leader of the Naleraq party, which wants to cut ties with Denmark as soon as possible.

Several of the party’s members have met with the Trump administration.

Greenland’s main political parties all want independence from Denmark, but Naleraq’s rivals favour a more measured process.

Greenland’s Business Minister Naaja Nathanielsen, a candidate for the left-wing IA party, said fear of the United States had been central to the campaign in Greenland.

“Due to the fact that the US has shown such aggression, you would find a bigger interest in really trying to push the Greenlandic narrative in the Danish parliament,” she said.

‘No place here’

In metropolitan Denmark, Greenland did not get much attention in the campaign.

“Greenland is part of Denmark and we need to take care of it, but it’s not something I think about when I go to vote,” 21-year-old voter Clemens Duval Thomsen said.

In the wealthy nation of six million people, the campaign has instead focused on domestic issues, including inflation, the welfare state and high nitrate levels in water from agriculture.

In a country where the far right has heavily influenced policy since the late 1990s, immigration has also been a hot topic, with the Social Democrats advocating even tighter regulations.

The far-right Danish People’s Party, which slumped in the 2022 election but has seen an upswing in opinion polls, is meanwhile in favour of ending permanent residence permits.

Frederiksen has also defended as “fair” a proposal to deny non-essential health care to people of foreign origin who threaten medical personnel.

“It has to be this way: in addition to the formal punishment in the judicial system, we’re saying, ‘You have no place here’,” she said.

Source: AFP

21, March 2026

CPDM Crime Syndicate: regime delays parliamentary elections, lawmakers to stay until end 2026 ⁰

Cameroonian lawmakers yet again voted on Thursday to extend their mandate, according to official media.

Originally set to be dissolved on March 10, 2025, the central African country’s current parliament will now sit until December 20, 2026, according to the Cameroon Tribune.

Lawmakers, elected in the January 2020 ballot for what was meant to be a five-year-long mandate, had already voted to prolong their stay on the parliament benches for a one-year period.

President Paul Biya, the world’s oldest head of state at 93 years of age, had already hinted on February 10 at a “slight readjustment” of the timetable for parliamentary and local elections expected at the beginning of that month.

By law, the parliamentarians’ mandates can be extended for a maximum of 18 months.

Having held power with a firm grasp since 1982, Biya’s re-election last October for an eighth term sparked protests in several large cities, which the authorities brutally repressed.

Source: Africa News

18, March 2026

Changes in the Senate and National Assembly: who becomes next head of state? ⁰

Cameroon as a nation now stands at a very quiet but consequential crossroads. The recent changes in the leadership of both the Upper and the Lower House have not merely reshuffled the Senate and the National Assembly hierarchies but they have subtly altered the geometry of succession in a Francophone dominated system where constitutional order and political reality do not always move in lockstep.

At the heart of the so called political changes in Yaoundé lies a 60 million dollar question: who becomes the next head of state?

Under Cameroon’s present constitution, the head of the Senate is first in line to assume interim leadership in the event of a vacancy. This provision was designed to guarantee President Biya’s continued stay in power and not to ensure continuity and institutional stability. With new figures now presiding over both the Senate and the National Assembly, the predictability of that succession has become even more complicated. Change is not only needed in both the Senate and the National Assembly but also in the Unity Palace and the Star Building.

Having a new leadership in the Senate is of course significant. In theory, the President of the Senate is a transitional political figure in a caretaker presidency with limited powers tasked with organizing elections. But in practice, Senator Aboubakary Abdoulaye occupying that seat becomes the face of the nation in a moment of potential uncertainty. Correspondingly, Senator Aboubakary Abdoulaye’s political alliances, administrative competence and perceived neutrality matters far more than the constitution suggest.

The National Assembly’s leadership shift from the 86 year old Cavaye Djibril to Theodore Datoua adds another layer to the puzzle. Though not directly in the line of succession, the National Assembly plays a vital role in shaping the political environment in which any transition unfolds. The Speaker of the National Assembly can influence parliamentary priorities, manage consensus and perhaps most importantly signal where the balance of power truly lies within the ruling CPDM institution.

What has emerged from these two changes in both the Upper and Lower House is not a clear successor, but a more fluid and possibly contested pathway to power. Political power in Cameroon revolves around a strong presidency, with the Senate and the National Assembly including the Central Committee of the ruling CPDM party often seen as supportive rather than autonomous. But as Cameroon approaches its moment of transition, these same establishments can become arenas of political negotiation or even rivalry.

The wahala here is not simply “who” will be the next head of state, but “how” that person will emerge. Will the constitution be followed allowing Senator Aboubakary Abdoulaye to step in smoothly and elections organized without friction? Or will political realities such as CPDM party dynamics, tribal and regional considerations and elite bargaining reshape the process behind the scenes?

Added to this very complicated scenario is also a generational undercurrent. Frankly speaking, recent changes in parliament may reflect a cautious attempt to recalibrate the Cameroon political system for the future. If so, the next president of the republic—whether interim or elected—could mark a departure from entrenched patterns.

For now, Cameroon remains in a state of watchful anticipation. The coming of Senator Aboubakary Abdoulaye and Hon. Theodore Datoua has not answered the succession question; they have instead sharpened it. And in doing so, they remind political commentators that in Cameroon, the formal rules are only part of the story. The rest unfolds in the quieter, less visible spaces where power is negotiated, alliances are forged and futures are decided.

The coming weeks and perhaps months will very much reveal whether these institutional adjustments were merely routine or the early signals of a more significant transition.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai