Politics

From flight attendant to Parliament Speaker’s Chair: Marlyse Soppo Toute’s unusual path

12, March 2026

From flight attendant to Parliament Speaker’s Chair: Marlyse Soppo Toute’s unusual path 0

From a seat overlooking Cameroon’s National Assembly chamber, lawmaker Marlyse Soppo Toute presided on March 10 over the opening plenary session of the legislative body. The veteran member of the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (RDPC) is familiar with heights. Long before entering politics, she built her career in civil aviation as a flight attendant.

A native of the Bell canton in Douala, Soppo Toute was among the first winners of Cameroon Airlines’ inaugural recruitment competition for flight attendants in 1971. She was then 24 years old. That marked the start of a long career in air transport, during which she served as a flight attendant, later becoming cabin chief and eventually senior cabin chief.

After graduating from France’s National School of Civil Aviation in 1976, she left the cabin to join the administration of the air transport sector. Her career in the field culminated in 2004 when she became a senior administrative officer, after holding positions as an administrative executive and head of high-value customer service.

A later training program in local government management appears to have encouraged her move into politics. The mother of one child was elected municipal councilor and first deputy mayor of Douala’s 2nd district during the 2007–2013 term.

Already serving since 2004 as chief executive of the real estate firm Société civile immobilière Lek, Soppo Toute then set her sights on national politics. She was elected to the National Assembly in the February 2020 elections. Once in parliament, she joined the Defense and Security Committee and was appointed by the president to the Supreme Council of the Judiciary as a representative of the National Assembly.

Since 2020, she has served as rapporteur on several parliamentary committees. Following the death of Laurentine Koa Mfegue, she became the Assembly’s senior member. In that role, she presided over the opening plenary session of the March parliamentary sitting and will oversee the election of the Assembly’s leadership in the coming days.

Source: Sbbc

Kim Jong Un re-appointed leader of North Korea’s ruling party

23, February 2026

Kim Jong Un re-appointed leader of North Korea’s ruling party 0

North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party has again chosen Kim Jong Un to be its general secretary, state media report.

The announcement by the rubber-stamp party congress on Sunday comes as little surprise given the Kim family has ruled the dictatorship since the late 1940s.

State-run KCNA said that under Kim’s leadership North Korea “radically improved” its “war deterrence”, “with the nuclear forces as its pivot”.

Despite long-standing international sanctions, North Korea has continued to build its nuclear capabilities, regularly testing banned intercontinental missiles. But the secrecy of the regime makes it harder to evaluate how much progress the military has made.

Kim, who took over control of the regime after his father’s death in 2011, has invested heavily in the nuclear weapons programme, turning Pyongyang into a far bigger challenge for the West, and especially the US.

He is expected to announce the next phase of the country’s weapons programme during the congress, which is now in its fourth day. Before it started, North Korea unveiled what it said was a range of nuclear-capable rocket launchers.

The congress, which has been held once every five years in the last decade, began on 19 February.

With some 5,000 party members in attendance, according to KCNA, it offers a rare glimpse into the structure of political power in North Korea, which remains quite opaque even to the keenest watchers.

The meetings are considered to be the most important political event and provide insight into where the country’s priorities lie, from foreign policy to its nuclear ambitions.

While Kim has remained at the top of North Korean leadership, the party congress’ presidium, or executive committee, has been reshuffled since the last meeting in 2021. More than half of its 39 members have been replaced, according to state media.

In his opening speech last week, Kim vowed to boost the country’s economy and people’s standard of living, which he described as “heavy and urgent historic tasks”.

And all eyes are on whether Kim’s daughter, Ju Ae, will make an appearance.

Earlier this month, South Korea’s spy agency said that Kim had chosen Ju Ae as his heir. Kim Ju Ae, believed to be 13 years old, has become an increasingly prominent figure at official events – inspecting missiles and attending Beijing’s military parade with her father.

Source: BBC

Joshua Osih: going, going, gone!!

16, February 2026

Joshua Osih: going, going, gone!! 0

The Social Democratic Front (SDF) faced open internal dissent within its governing bodies. Stéphane Rivel Nguemalieu and Charlie Tchikanda, respectively shadow cabinet ministers for water and energy, and for social affairs, sports, and youth development, signed on January 26, 2026 a “motion calling for the resignation of the national president of the SDF for poor results and opaque party management.”

The two officials blamed Joshua Osih for what they described as a “derisory result” in the 2025 presidential election and for “multiple failures” during the campaign. They summarized their assessment: “In October 2025, our candidate-president secured only 1% of the vote, a derisory result that reflects a lack of strategy, preparation, and lessons learned from the 2018 failure.”

According to the signatories, the result confirmed the failure of a commitment Joshua Osih made in October 2023 during the party’s 10th Congress. At that time, he pledged to “build a strong, conquering SDF capable of winning the 2025 presidential election, or at least improving on the 2018 result.”

Campaign Described as “Approximate”

Stéphane Rivel Nguemalieu and Charlie Tchikanda first criticized a gap between assurances and operational reality. They recalled that the candidate-president claimed that “everything was fully ready in terms of logistics, resources, and human capacity,” but they pointed to operational failures during the campaign.

They cited the late formation of the campaign team, partial coverage of polling stations, and unfulfilled promises to polling station representatives, whom they said leaders “abandoned at the mercy of regional presidents.”

They also cited the absence of large rallies to test popular support and described a campaign director limited to an administrative role at headquarters.

The criticisms extended to political positioning. They cited a lack of solidarity with opposition parties “victims of regime abuses,” insufficient support for victims of arbitrary arrests and detentions, ambiguous messaging on the party’s opposition stance, and a narrative rejecting coalitions that they said resulted in lost votes.

Allegations of Opaque Financial Management

Beyond strategy, the signatories targeted internal management, which they described as opaque. They denounced the absence of a formal budget and administrative and financial procedures manual, as well as repeated violations of the separation between authorizing officers, cash handlers, and spending executors.

They also questioned the transparency surrounding the use of state subsidies, among other governance-related “failures.” Based on these elements, they called on Joshua Osih “to take responsibility and resign from the leadership of the party.”

Failing that, they urged the National Executive Committee (NEC) “to adopt a resolution declaring you ineligible for the 2032 election, as well as for any potential early election.” This move revived the debate over succession at the head of the SDF, which opened after the death in June 2023 of John Fru Ndi, the party’s founding president. That period already led to the exclusion and voluntary departure of several senior party figures.

Source: Sbbc

Yaoundé: Biya delays elections once again

11, February 2026

Yaoundé: Biya delays elections once again 0

President Paul Biya announced on Tuesday evening a “slight readjustment” of the timing of legislative and municipal elections that were expected at the start of February.

Originally scheduled for 2025, the elections had already been postponed once until early 2026. No new date was set.

In his televised address on the occasion of the 60th Youth Day, a rare public appearance by the nearly 93-year-old head of state, Biya justified the postponement by citing “certain compelling constraints”, while assuring that “the relevant provisions of the laws, and particularly the Constitution, would be respected”.

He also promised to form a new government, having announced its dissolution in his annual speech on New Year’s Eve.

In his speech, he acknowledged the difficulty many young Cameroonians have in finding work, but also called on them to avoid “delinquency, alcohol abuse drug use, and excessive use of social media”.

Cameroon’s Youth Day is traditionally one of the few times the president addresses the nation directly.

Biya, the world’s oldest head of state, has been in power since 1982 and was re-elected in October to an eighth term, leading to protests that were violently suppressed.

Source: Africa News

Cameroon has reached the first 100 days of Biya’s latest term amid ongoing repression

5, February 2026

Cameroon has reached the first 100 days of Biya’s latest term amid ongoing repression 0

Cameroon has reached the first 100 days of President Paul Biya’s latest term in office, but the period has been marked more by political tension than reform.

Geopolitical Analyst, Aaron Nga’mbi described the early months of Biya’s tenure as largely “uneventful” with little progress on domestic reforms or regional policy initiatives.

 Aaron Nga’mbi painted a stark picture of the political climate, highlighting the ongoing repression of opposition figures. Several opposition leaders have fled the country, citing threats to their safety, while supporters of political challengers have reportedly faced arrests, imprisonment, and, in some cases, violence.

“The President, who is nearly 93, seems to be influenced more by those around him than fully steering the country’s future,” Nga’mbi said.

While Western nations, including the United States, have expressed concern over Cameroon’s political trajectory, Nga’mbi criticized the absence of tangible action. Opposition voices have called for targeted sanctions against Biya and senior government officials, arguing that diplomatic statements alone are insufficient to address the country’s deteriorating political environment.

Source: ChannelAfrica

Paul Biya: the clock is ticking—not on his power, but on his place in history

20, January 2026

Paul Biya: the clock is ticking—not on his power, but on his place in history 0

For more than four decades, President Paul Biya has stood at the center of Cameroon’s political universe, defying time, pressure, and political gravity. Few African leaders have ruled as long, survived as many internal and external shocks, or maintained such tight control over the levers of power. Today, however, as Biya embarks on another seven-year mandate in his 90s, the central question confronting Cameroon is no longer whether he can govern—but how history will ultimately judge him.

The President has reaffirmed his vision. But time, not power, has become the decisive variable.

A Familiar Vision in an Unfamiliar Moment

In his New Year address and post-election speeches, President Biya framed his renewed mandate as a solemn moral obligation. Recalling the oath taken at his inauguration, he described his mission to build a “united, stable and prosperous Cameroon” as sacred, personal, and enduring. He emphasized continuity, loyalty, and resilience—values that have defined his long reign.

The speech catalogued achievements and aspirations: economic reforms supported by international partners, investments in infrastructure, energy expansion through the Nachtigal hydroelectric dam, solar power projects in the North, improved electricity transmission, road rehabilitation programs, expanded access to drinking water, and renewed focus on education, health, industrialization, digital development, and agro-food processing.

He spoke optimistically of macroeconomic stability despite global turbulence, highlighted increased public investment, and announced the takeover of electricity distributor ENEO as a decisive move toward restoring national energy sovereignty. Youth employment featured prominently, with 50 billion CFA francs allocated in the 2026 budget to finance youth-led projects.

Above all, President Biya returned insistently to one theme: unity. In a polarized political climate, he warned against hate speech, identity politics, indiscipline, and attacks on state authority. Cameroon’s diversity, he said, is not a weakness but its greatest strength.

The vision was coherent. The tone was confident. Yet the moment in which it was delivered is unlike any Biya has faced before.

A Mandate Secured, Authority Questioned

The October presidential election, though officially won by Biya, marked a political rupture. For the first time in his career, his victory margin barely crossed the 50 percent threshold. Gone were the overwhelming landslides that once symbolized invincibility.

More unsettling was the challenge from Issa Tchiroma Bakary—a longtime regime insider who defected from government barely months before the vote and emerged as Biya’s main challenger. Tchiroma’s outright rejection of the results sent shockwaves through the political establishment, revealing fractures within the ruling elite itself.

The election result carried a message that could not be ignored: President Biya remains in power, but the political contract between ruler and ruled is under visible strain.

 For many Cameroonians, Biya’s new term inspires little optimism

Renewal Promised, Continuity Entrenched

Nowhere is the tension between promise and reality more evident than in the composition of Cameroon’s ruling class.

President Biya, now in his 90s, presides over a state architecture dominated by leaders of similar age. The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the National Assembly—second and third in the constitutional order—are themselves drawn from the same generational cohort. Their absence from the recent traditional ceremony of presenting New Year wishes to the Head of State was not merely logistical; it was symbolic.

To many Cameroonians, it reinforced the image of an aging political elite increasingly disconnected from a country whose median age is under 20.

While Biya speaks of merit, balance between youth and experience, and renewal, key institutions remain anchored in permanence. Ministers have occupied the same portfolios for decades. Some positions remain vacant even after the death of officeholders. Others are held by officials widely perceived as ineffective, invisible, or more concerned with self-preservation than public service.

In this context, the promised government reshuffle—announced in Biya’s New Year speech—has taken on outsized importance. For many, it is no longer a routine administrative act but a defining test of seriousness.

Warning Signs from Within the System

The erosion of authority is not coming solely from the opposition. Increasingly, it is visible within the ruling CPDM itself.

Regional council elections that followed the presidential poll offered an opportunity for internal renewal. Instead, party leadership appeared more focused on preserving the status quo. Yet in a striking act of defiance, CPDM grassroots members in Biya’s own South Region rejected the party’s official candidate and voted for an alternative figure they considered more competent and visionary.

It was a rare public rebellion from within the president’s traditional stronghold—and a second wake-up call after the presidential vote.

Football and the Fracturing of National Identity

Perhaps the most powerful illustration of Cameroon’s fragmentation lies outside formal politics—in football.

For decades, football was Cameroon’s great unifier. The Indomitable Lions transcended ethnicity, region, language, and party affiliation. Victories were national catharses; defeats collective grief.

Today, that consensus has fractured.

When Cameroon plays, parts of the country openly root for failure. For some, the reason is partisan—hostility toward the regime. For others, it is personal and political—support or opposition to FECAFOOT President Samuel Eto’o or the Minister of Sports in their bitter and highly publicized feud.

Football, once the last neutral ground, has become another proxy battlefield in a divided nation. That a segment of citizens would prefer national defeat to symbolic victory speaks volumes about the depth of alienation.

The irony is painful: a sport that once federated the nation now reflects its fractures.

 Issa Tchiroma Bakary, National President of the FSNC still disputes the results of the October 12 presidential election that gave Biya victory

Institutional Paralysis and Governance Fatigue

The Eto’o–Sports Ministry saga exposed more than sporting politics—it revealed institutional paralysis. As ministries clashed publicly, as authority was contested rather than coordinated, the absence of decisive arbitration from the top reinforced a growing perception that the system no longer self-corrects.

This dysfunction is echoed across governance. Presidential directives are routinely ignored. Accountability is selective. Impunity is normalized. Cameroonians increasingly hold President Biya responsible—not merely as Head of State, but as the designer and guardian of the system itself.

In his speech, Biya acknowledged that despite “appreciable progress,” living conditions have not improved enough. It was a rare admission, and perhaps an unintended indictment of the machinery beneath him.

Unity as Rhetoric and as Test

The closing passages of President Biya’s address were deeply personal. He reaffirmed his determination to remain worthy of the people’s trust, expressed confidence in Cameroon’s future, and insisted that “the best is yet to come.”

Yet unity, invoked so often, now demands more than words.

It demands reconciliation—through political gestures that heal long-standing wounds. It demands a sincere and courageous approach to the Anglophone crisis, where years of militarization have shown their limits. It demands trust-building, justice, and dialogue.

It demands institutional renewal, generational transition, and credible elections that command belief rather than compliance.

Legacy No Longer Deferred

President Paul Biya already holds what many leaders crave: longevity, authority, and historical stature. What he no longer has is the luxury of delay.

His final mandate has transformed legacy from a future abstraction into a present reckoning. The question is no longer how long he ruled, but whether he used this final chapter to repair institutions, renew leadership, and reunite a nation drifting apart.

History will not judge him by speeches alone.

It will judge him by whether unity was restored beyond rhetoric—whether in parliament, in government, in elections, and even on the football pitch.

The clock is ticking—not on his power, but on his place in history.

Culled from panafricanvisions

Issa Tchiroma denies talks with Biya regime

16, January 2026

Issa Tchiroma denies talks with Biya regime 0

Issa Tchiroma is not in talks with veteran ruler Paul Biya’s government, his spokeswoman said Thursday, despite claims of negotiations after last year’s disputed presidential elections.

Biya, 92, is the world’s oldest head of state and has been in power since 1982. He was re-elected for an eighth term of office in October. But Tchiroma, who fled into exile in The Gambia, maintains he was the real winner of the vote.

In recent days, rumours have swirled online that Tchiroma’s camp was in talks with the government. Biya promised in a New Year’s address that he would appoint ministers “in the coming days” but has so far failed to do so.

Tchiroma’s spokeswoman, Alice Nkom, wrote on Facebook that “no discussion, no compromise, no participation in any electoral process whatsoever can be envisaged”.

The opposition leader said in the statement that he “never intended to negotiate my electoral victory, neither before, nor during, nor after the vote”.

His Front for the National Salvation of Cameroon (FSNC) is boycotting upcoming parliamentary and municipal elections.

“Any political party that takes part in them endorses the wrongdoing and makes itself complicit,” Nkom said.

Source: AFP

Ugandans vote amid internet blackout and police repression

15, January 2026

Ugandans vote amid internet blackout and police repression 0

Voting began Thursday in Uganda’s presidential election despite a days-long internet shutdown that has been criticised as an anti-democratic tactic in a country where the president has held office since 1986.

Crowds gathered and long lines formed in some areas as polling station openings were delayed and voting materials were seen being delivered after the scheduled 7am opening time.

President Yoweri Museveni, 81, faces seven other candidates, including Robert Kyagulanyi, a musician-turned-politician best known as Bobi Wine, who is calling for political change.

The East African country of roughly 45 million people has 21.6 million registered voters.

Polls are expected to close at 4pm Thursday, according to the electoral commission. Results are constitutionally required to be announced in 48 hours.

Impatient crowds gathered outside polling stations expressing concerns over the delays Thursday morning. Umaru Mutyaba, a polling agent for a parliamentary candidate, said it was “frustrating” to be waiting outside a station in the capital Kampala.

“We can’t be standing here waiting to vote as if we have nothing else to do,” he said.

There have been concerns about transparency, the possibility of hereditary rule, military interference and opposition strategies to prevent vote tampering at polling stations.

Uganda’s internet was shut down Tuesday by the government communications agency, which cited misinformation, electoral fraud and incitement of violence. The shutdown has affected the public and disrupted critical sectors such as banking.

There has been heavy security leading up to voting, including military units deployed on the streets this week.

Amnesty International said security forces are engaging in a “brutal campaign of repression”, citing a November 28 opposition rally in eastern Uganda where the military blocked exits and opened fire on supporters, killing one person.

Museveni urged voters to come out in large numbers during his final rally Tuesday.

“You go and vote, anybody who tries to interfere with your freedom will be crushed. I am telling you this. We are ready to put an end to this indiscipline,” he said.

The national electoral commission chairperson, Simon Byabakama, urged tolerance among Ugandans as they vote.

“Let us keep the peace that we have,” Byabakama said late Wednesday. “Let us be civil. Let us be courteous. Let’s be tolerant. Even if you know that this person does not support (your) candidate, please give him or her room or opportunity to go and exercise his or her constitutional right.”

Authorities also suspended the activities of several civic groups during the campaign season. That Group, a prominent media watchdog, closed its office Wednesday after the interior ministry alleged in a letter that the group was involved in activities “prejudicial to the security and laws of Uganda”.

Veteran opposition figure Kizza Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate, remains in prison after he was charged with treason in February 2025.

Source: AP

CPDM Crime Syndicate and the cost of an aging political class

6, January 2026

CPDM Crime Syndicate and the cost of an aging political class 0

The failed Biya regime in Yaoundé has entered 2026 with a political structure that does not reflect continuity but a growing fragility. Many senior cabinet ministers and top government officials including Prime Minister Dion Ngute, Laurent Esso and Maigari Bello Bouba have held office for decades, well past the age when most public servants elsewhere have retired. Biya and his ruling CPDM gang have always claimed that experience is an asset. However, prolonged reliance on aging leadership carries unavoidable risks for governance, stability, and national planning.

Nature is very impartial. Old age naturally brings health challenges, reduces performance, and increase the possibility of absences from public life-a situation that the Cameroonian nation has long been witnessing with President Biya. When state affairs are heavily concentrated in the hands of a living corpse, any unexpected loss can create disruption, uncertainty, and power struggles.

Yet the ruling CPDM party has been slow to institutionalize succession. In Cameroon, government departments revolve around individuals rather than a proper administrative system, and younger professionals are rarely groomed to step into senior roles. This leaves the cursed triangle very vulnerable, not because of the 92 year-old Mr. Biya alone, but because of a structure that resists renewal.

The issue is not about disrespecting elderly states men like Justice Minister Laurent Esso who recently could not afford money for his medical bills abroad. It is about realism. Countries that plan for continuity do not wait for crises to force change. They create pathways for mentorship, orderly transition, and generational balance long before vacancies arise.

Our nation’s population is young, educated and very dynamic. But the corrupt leadership remains disproportionately old. This disconnect is greatly fueling frustration among young citizens who see limited opportunities for participation and innovation. A government that does not renew itself risks losing legitimacy in the eyes of the very people it governs. The Biya regime is already on this path.

As 2026 unfolds, the question is not whether time will assert itself—it always does. The real question is whether Cameroon will continue to react to change, or finally prepare for it. Responsible governance demands foresight, not denial. Leadership renewal is not a threat to stability; it is the foundation of it.

By Chi Prudence Asong

Guinea: Gen Mamady Doumbouya  wins presidential election by landslide

31, December 2025

Guinea: Gen Mamady Doumbouya  wins presidential election by landslide 0

Guinea’s junta chief Gen Mamady Doumbouya has won the presidential election by a landslide, getting 86.7% of the vote, according to provisional results published by the election commission.

The general is hoping to legitimise his rule after seizing power in a coup in 2021.

A civil society group calling for the return of civilian rule has condemned the election as a “charade” after Gen Doumbouya’s main rivals were barred from contesting, while opposition candidates said the poll was marred by irregularities.

The Democratic Front of Guinea’s flagbearer, Abdoulaye Yero Balde, came a distant second with 6.6%, followed by the Liberal Bloc’s Faya Lansana Millimono with 2%, provisional results show.

On Monday, internet monitoring group NetBlocks reported that access to social media platforms TikTok, YouTube and Facebook had been restricted as Guineans waited for the full results.

There has been no official comment on the restrictions, but opponents see it as an attempt by the junta to stifle criticism of the results.

The 41-year-old general’s victory gives him a seven-year mandate. Should the results be challenged, the Supreme Court has eight days to validate them.

Millimono said on Monday that the election was marred by “systematic fraudulent practices”, citing the expulsion of poll observers, ballot stuffing and intimidation.

The ruling party and the government have yet to comment on the complaints.

After overthrowing then-83-year-old President Alpha Condé in 2021, Gen Doumbouya promised not to seek election and to hand power to a civilian.

“Neither I nor any member of this transition will be a candidate for anything… As soldiers, we value our word very much,” he said at the time.

The junta leader broke his promise by putting his name on the ballot after a new constitution, implemented in September, permitted him to run for office.

Djenabou Toure, the country’s top election official who announced the provisional results, put the voter turnout at more than 80%.

However, a civil society group, the National Front for the Defence of the Constitution, said in a statement on Monday that the turnout was low.

“A huge majority of Guineans chose to boycott the electoral charade,” the National Front for the Defence of the Constitution was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.

Eight other candidates took part in Sunday’s election, but with the exclusion of main opposition parties RPG Arc en Ciel and UFDG, none of the participants have a solid political footing.

According to the provisional results, six of them got less than 2% of the vote, with Mohamed Nabe getting 0.8%.

Although he is popular with many of Guinea’s youth, Gen Doumbouya has been criticised for restricting opposition activities, banning protests and stifling press freedom in the run-up to the elections.

The general justified deposing Condé on similar charges – including rampant corruption, disregard for human rights and economic mismanagement.

Guinea has the world’s largest bauxite reserves and some of its richest iron ore. Last month, authorities launched the gigantic Simandou iron-ore mine to widespread anticipation.

However, over half of the population lives in poverty, according to World Bank figures.

Source: BBC

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