Cameroon’s long-serving President, Paul Biya, has secured a controversial eighth term in office after winning 53.7 percent of the votes in the country’s October 12 election, according to official results announced by the Constitutional Council on Monday.
Rival candidate and former government minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary finished second with 35.2 percent, the council said. However, Tchiroma had earlier declared himself the winner, claiming he secured 54.8 percent of the votes compared to Biya’s 31.3 percent, and called for nationwide demonstrations.
Tensions escalated over the weekend as protests broke out in the economic capital, Douala. According to regional authorities, four people were killed in clashes between security forces and opposition supporters. Witnesses told AFP that police initially used tear gas to disperse the crowd before resorting to “live ammunition.”
At 92, Biya remains the world’s oldest serving head of state. His re-election for another seven-year term comes amid widespread accusations of electoral manipulation and political repression. Critics argue that Cameroon’s political system has been systematically rigged to keep Biya in power.
Biya has ruled the Central African nation since 1982, becoming only the second president since independence from France in 1960. His decades-long rule has been marked by authoritarian control, suppression of dissent, and ongoing separatist conflicts that continue to divide the country.
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