Elections in Cameroon: the crucial issue of participation

Text by: RFI Follow

Nearly seven million voters are called to the polls this Sunday, February 9 in Cameroon, for the legislative and municipal elections. Part of the opposition called for boycotting the elections.

Publicity

A clip broadcast regularly on television and even reminders by SMS. Elecam, the electoral commission, has been working hard in recent days to encourage Cameroonians to vote.

Authorities and the ruling party have a " dual interest " in wanting to avoid heavy abstention, says Arrey Elvis Ntui, researcher for the International Crisis Group. First, limit the impact of the boycott of the MRC of Maurice Kamto on the legitimacy of the ballot - this is the main figure of the opposition, since the presidential - but also try to show that the security situation would now be " under control ”in the English-speaking areas where only between 5 and 15% of the inhabitants had voted in the presidential election.

Will they be more numerous this time? Authorities assure him, several observers doubt it, knowing that the separatists imposed several days of " dead cities " threatening with reprisals for those who went to vote and that the NGO Amnesty International has alerted in recent days about an " outbreak of violence " as the election approaches.

A ballot played in advance

In the rest of the country, the campaign did not generate enthusiasm either . Many consider that this double election and especially the legislative ones are " played in advance ", further explains researcher Arrey Elvis Ntui, the ruling party being the only one to be in the running everywhere. He even finds himself without a competitor in 17 legislative districts and is already assured of the gain of 35 seats at the next National Assembly.

Thirty-five political parties are in the running. They will compete for 180 seats of deputies and control of 360 municipal executives for nearly 11,000 seats of municipal councilors.

According to figures from Election's Cameroon Elecam, 25,000 polling stations will be opened across the country for an electoral body of 6.8 million voters.

The ruling CPDM goes to these elections with the status of favorite. The main opposition party in parliament, the SDF initially threatened to boycott the elections, but the party leadership finally resolved to participate.

Among the other parties in the running, we find the Cameroonian Party for National Reconciliation, PCRN, of the young opponent Cabral Libii, third in the presidential election in October 2018. This party has real chances of gaining some seats in Parliament and in the municipal councils, especially with the withdrawal of the MRC of Maurice Kamto, absent from this double electoral meeting.

The MRC will certainly monitor the participation rate in these elections, which called for a boycott of these due in particular to the crisis in the English-speaking regions and the non-revision of the electoral code.

Observers report "obstruction"

In addition, several civil society organizations deplored not having received the badges they had requested to observe the election. The national human rights commission said it had received only a third of the authorizations requested and denounced an " obstruction ". None for the NGO Un Monde Avenir which, even without being accredited, still plans to deploy the 1,300 observers it coordinates. RFI was unable to contact the Minister of Territorial Administration on this subject, responsible for issuing these accreditations.

These elections take place in a context marked by the persistence of security challenges in the north of the country with the fight against the jihadist sect Boko Haram and especially the independence slingshot in the English-speaking regions of the North West and South West.

Newsletter With the Daily Newsletter, find the headlines directly in your mailbox

Download the app

• Cameroon
• Paul Biya

On the same subject

Legislative in Cameroon: last day of the CPDM campaign

Cameroon: one day before the vote, residents flee the resumption of violence

Legislative in Cameroon: Cabral Libi PCRN is campaigning in Yaoundé