He is burning fears of anxiety over the West African country, excluding President Paul Biya’s main rival, Maurice Kamut.
Cameroon’s election commission has rejected the candidacy of President Paul Biya’s major rival, Maurice Kamuto, in the upcoming presidential election, promoting fear of anxiety and increasing the chances of another victory for the incumbent who has led for decades.
Elecom, chief of the Election Commission, announced the decision at a press conference on Saturday. There was no reason to exclude it. Those not listed will have two days to appeal the decision.
Kamuto, 71, officially submitted his candidacy last week, was considered Biya’s strongest rival in past elections. He came in second in the last presidential election in 2018 with 14% of votes, but Biya, who appears on the election list, won over 70% in elections plagued by allegations of fraud and low voter turnout.
Kamut tried to run as a candidate for the Communist African movement for the new Independence and the Democracy (Manidem) Party. In the 2018 election, Kamuto confronted the Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC), his own party, which he founded in 2012.
In this year’s election, Kamut was nominated for Manidem.
The fear of protest and anxiety surged over Saturday’s release of the list of approved candidates. 83 names have been submitted to the Election Council.
Security forces were deployed around Elecom Headquarters and along the main roads in the capital Yound and along Douala, Economic Hub.
The UN Department of Security warned on Friday that the announcement could trigger protests in the capital.
The decisive list of candidates will be announced in the coming days after the challenges to the provisional list have been considered.
The 92-year-old Biya, the world’s oldest head of state, said last month that he would seek re-election on October 12 despite rumors that his health was failing. He has been in power since 1982 for almost half of his life.
Biya’s rules have left a lasting impact on Cameroon. His government faces a variety of challenges, including allegations of corruption and a deadly separatist conflict in English-speaking states in the country that have driven thousands out of schools.
Among the candidates approved for election management are Prime Minister Belo Bouba Maigali, a ally of Biya for nearly 30 years, and Issa Chiloma Bakari, who resigned as Minister of Employment in early June and submitted his candidacy.
