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BBC News
3 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Maurice Kamto: Police surround home of opposition firebrand in Cameroon
Cameroon's main opposition leader Maurice Kamto says police have surrounded his home for the past two days since he returned from France, where he had held a political rally that inflamed the ruling CPDM Sunday law enforcement officers blocked the 71-year-old from leaving his lodgings in the main city of Douala for a meeting with members of his Cameroon Renaissance Movement (CRM) later called off plans to hold the meeting on Monday because of the strong police plans to contest Cameroon's presidential election later this year, hoping to end 92-year-old Paul Biya's four-decade grip on power. Biya has not yet declared whether he will stand for re-election. Kamto spent nine months in detention after contesting the 2018 poll, when the authorities accused the former law professor of insurrection following protests by his supporters who claimed that the poll had been rigged in favour of Biya. The government denied the in Paris last month, Kamto promised to protect Biya and his family if he wins October's election. "When you do me the great of honour of entrusting me with the reins, you can be sure that nothing will happen to Mr Biya and his family. Nothing. I guarantee it, I have no time for hatred. I [only] have time to build Cameroon with you," he told thousands of Cameroonians living in the diaspora who had turned up to his rally on 31 did not go down well with ruling party officials, with one calling his comments "pathetic"."What protection do they need? Which family are we talking about?," asked Labour Minister Grégoire Owona in a Facebook post, adding, "Cameroon is not in danger."Following Kamto's return, security has been tightened in parts of officers on the ground told the BBC on Monday that they had been instructed to watch the neighbourhood where Kamto was staying, and the media was not allowed to film. Footage filmed in the city on Sunday evening showed Kamto telling supporters "as I speak, I'm still sequestered". "Go home in calm and dignity," he told chanting supporters who had gathered at the and gendarme officers had also restricted access to the CRM party building that Kamto was trying to reach, saying the meeting was not Kamto denies this, saying local authorities and law enforcement officials were informed that he was coming to the city for a the election approaches, rights groups have condemned the government's crackdown on dissent in the Central African elections that were also supposed to take place earlier this year have been delayed until 2026. Biya has been in power for 42 years and is one of the world's oldest heads of state. Last year the country banned reports on the president's health, following rumours that he had died. Kamto's eligibility to run for the presidency is in question, because Cameroonian law demands that any political party must already have elected representatives in place if its leader wishes to run for the last presidential election Kamto's CRM party had one senator, but going into this election it has no elected Kamto could run as an independent candidate, for which he would need 300 signatures from designated personalities from across the Kamto insists there is "no legal obstacle" stopping his bid for the presidency, and CRM representative Guy Tassé told the AFP news agency that there was "a political manoeuvre by the regime to try to block the candidate they fear because he embodies real change".The country is also in the throes of a separatist insurgency - with rebels demanding independence for Cameroon's two English-speaking provinces, which are home to 20% of the the near-decade since the conflict began, at least 6,000 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands forced from their homes. You may also be interested in: 'Nowhere is safe' - Cameroonians trapped between separatists and soldiersArt curator Koyo Kouoh dies at height of careerThe lawyer risking everything to defend LGBT rightsPaul Biya: Cameroon's 'absentee president' Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
Zawya
20-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
United Arab Emirates (UAE) leaders congratulate President of Cameroon on National Day
President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has sent a message of congratulations to President Paul Biya of the Republic of Cameroon on the occasion of his country's National Day. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, dispatched similar messages to President Biya and to Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Arab Emirates, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Al Etihad
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Etihad
UAE President, VPs congratulate President of Cameroon on National Day
20 May 2025 09:01 ABU DHABI (WAM)UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has sent a message of congratulations to President Paul Biya of the Republic of Cameroon on the occasion of his country's National Day. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE and Chairman of the Presidential Court, dispatched similar messages to President Biya and to Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Young Cameroonians face prospect of new bid by 92-year-old leader
Young Cameroonian voters hoping for change in this year's elections still face the possibility that 92-year-old President Paul Biya could announce a bid to extend his more than four decades in power. Biya, who took the reins in 1982, has remained tight-lipped on whether he plans to stand again in October. But with just a month to go before candidates have to officially register, some of the party faithful have been calling for him to do so. Younger voters who have never known another leader in their lifetimes are sceptical about another mandate for the man who is already the world's oldest head of state. "It would be one candidacy too many," said Ange Ngandjo, 35, a banking consultant. "He's given what he could. Our generation, trained and competent, also wants to build this country." Tweaking a motorbike engine at his workshop in Mokolo, a district of the capital Yaounde, 29-year-old Ibrahim Baba echoed the sentiment. "A new term for Paul Biya? I don't think so," he said. Law student Celestine Mbida, 24, who attends the University of Yaounde II, will be voting for the first time. She stopped short of openly criticising the outgoing president but said: "This election represents a lot... It's the future of the country that is at stake. I want to participate by giving my vote." - Ruling party divided - After highly contested elections in 2018, Biya tightened his grip on power, cracking down on dissenting opinions with arrests and prison terms, rights activists say. But even within his Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (RDPC), of which he is national party president, support is no longer unanimous. While some members have called for continuity, others complain that the party has not held a congress to choose its candidate since 2011. Among them is Leon Theiller Onana, a municipal RDPC councillor for Monatele, a town north of Yaounde. He has lodged a legal complaint to contest the "legality and legitimacy" of his party's ruling bodies. Supporters of the president have sought to win over the younger generation. A gathering under the banner "100,000 youth united behind Paul Biya in 2025" recently took place in the town of Maroua, a presidential stronghold in the poverty-hit Far North. Organisers said the aim was to unite around Biya for "a resounding victory" in the forthcoming vote. "He deserves our support," said Mohamadou Atikou Kalda, coordinator of a regional youth platform. Biya was behind several projects that supported development in the north, he added. "To continue on this path is essential." - A 'charade' - But not everyone is happy; some critics even accuse the organisers of stage-managing the event. "They rounded up children to make people believe he still has support in the Far North," one young man said in a video widely shared on social media. "It's false, it's a charade," he added. Political analyst Aristide Mono of Yaounde II University said whoever wins the presidency faced high expectations from voters. "Whether you're young, old, a woman or a man, the concerns are the same," he told AFP. "Persistent insecurity in the Far North, anglophone (separatist) crisis, high unemployment, cost of living, tribalism." "Young people, like other social groups, are asking themselves about the post-Biya era -- because one day or another, in one way or another, Paul Biya will no longer be in power," he added. "So we have to anticipate and organise the succession to avoid succession crises that have often led to civil wars." - 'Lack of succession plan' - The uncertainty weighs on Cameroon's international standing. In a November report, Fitch Ratings confirmed the country's "B negative" rating, putting the chance Biya might run for another term in its "Political Risks" list. "The lack of a succession plan and political divisions exacerbate the risk of a disorderly transition of power," it noted. At 71, Maurice Kamto, leader of the main opposition Movement for the Renaissance of Cameroon (MRC), is hardly the youth candidate, even if he has tried to appeal to them. "If our country is to survive and achieve a certain rank tomorrow, the youth must be prepared," he said. In a country where 60 percent of the population is aged under 25 and youth unemployment is close to 74 percent, the vote will likely be decisive for a generation looking for opportunities and change. str-emp/kjm-jj/phz
Int'l Business Times
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
Young Cameroonians Face Prospect Of New Bid By 92-year-old Leader
Young Cameroonian voters hoping for change in this year's elections still face the possibility that 92-year-old President Paul Biya could announce a bid to extend his more than four decades in power. Biya, who took the reins in 1982, has remained tight-lipped on whether he plans to stand again in October. But with just a month to go before candidates have to officially register, some of the party faithful have been calling for him to do so. Younger voters who have never known another leader in their lifetimes are sceptical about another mandate for the man who is already the world's oldest head of state. "It would be one candidacy too many," said Ange Ngandjo, 35, a banking consultant. "He's given what he could. Our generation, trained and competent, also wants to build this country." Tweaking a motorbike engine at his workshop in Mokolo, a district of the capital Yaounde, 29-year-old Ibrahim Baba echoed the sentiment. "A new term for Paul Biya? I don't think so," he said. Law student Celestine Mbida, 24, who attends the University of Yaounde II, will be voting for the first time. She stopped short of openly criticising the outgoing president but said: "This election represents a lot... It's the future of the country that is at stake. I want to participate by giving my vote." After highly contested elections in 2018, Biya tightened his grip on power, cracking down on dissenting opinions with arrests and prison terms, rights activists say. But even within his Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (RDPC), of which he is national party president, support is no longer unanimous. While some members have called for continuity, others complain that the party has not held a congress to choose its candidate since 2011. Among them is Leon Theiller Onana, a municipal RDPC councillor for Monatele, a town north of Yaounde. He has lodged a legal complaint to contest the "legality and legitimacy" of his party's ruling bodies. Supporters of the president have sought to win over the younger generation. A gathering under the banner "100,000 youth united behind Paul Biya in 2025" recently took place in the town of Maroua, a presidential stronghold in the poverty-hit Far North. Organisers said the aim was to unite around Biya for "a resounding victory" in the forthcoming vote. "He deserves our support," said Mohamadou Atikou Kalda, coordinator of a regional youth platform. Biya was behind several projects that supported development in the north, he added. "To continue on this path is essential." But not everyone is happy; some critics even accuse the organisers of stage-managing the event. "They rounded up children to make people believe he still has support in the Far North," one young man said in a video widely shared on social media. "It's false, it's a charade," he added. Political analyst Aristide Mono of Yaounde II University said whoever wins the presidency faced high expectations from voters. "Whether you're young, old, a woman or a man, the concerns are the same," he told AFP. "Persistent insecurity in the Far North, anglophone (separatist) crisis, high unemployment, cost of living, tribalism." "Young people, like other social groups, are asking themselves about the post-Biya era -- because one day or another, in one way or another, Paul Biya will no longer be in power," he added. "So we have to anticipate and organise the succession to avoid succession crises that have often led to civil wars." The uncertainty weighs on Cameroon's international standing. In a November report, Fitch Ratings confirmed the country's "B negative" rating, putting the chance Biya might run for another term in its "Political Risks" list. "The lack of a succession plan and political divisions exacerbate the risk of a disorderly transition of power," it noted. At 71, Maurice Kamto, leader of the main opposition Movement for the Renaissance of Cameroon (MRC), is hardly the youth candidate, even if he has tried to appeal to them. "If our country is to survive and achieve a certain rank tomorrow, the youth must be prepared," he said. In a country where 60 percent of the population is aged under 25 and youth unemployment is close to 74 percent, the vote will likely be decisive for a generation looking for opportunities and change.
