Cameroon's Election Farce: A Deception in the Face of War

It's truly astonishing, and frankly, deeply insulting, that Cameroon is even talking about holding elections this year when large swaths of the country are gripped by a brutal, devastating war. To claim that all is fine, to parade the idea of a democratic vote while the North West and South West regions bleed, isn't just a misrepresentation – it's a cruel deception aimed squarely at the international community. 

It's a blatant disregard for the thousands of lives being lost, the families torn apart, and the widespread suffering that has become a daily reality for so many.

The idea that a genuinely free and fair election could take place under these circumstances is preposterous. How can any political party, let alone the opposition, truly campaign in the heart of these war-torn regions? We're talking about areas where armed separatists and government forces are in constant conflict, where fear and intimidation are rampant, and where the very act of gathering in public can be a death sentence. Reports from past elections in these regions confirm this grim reality, with extremely low voter turnout due to threats and insecurity, effectively denying people their political choice.

And then there's the almost mythical figure of the President himself. Paul Biya, who has been in power for over four decades, is hardly a visible presence in public life. His prolonged absences from the country and from the public eye have become a running concern, fueling rumors and highlighting a leadership that feels disconnected from the populace. How can a nation truly engage in a democratic process when its leader is so rarely seen or heard, particularly during a time of such profound national crisis?

This lack of presence is compounded by a profoundly uneven playing field. It's a widely acknowledged fact that in Cameroon, the ruling CPDM party enjoys an almost absolute monopoly on public rallies and access to state resources. Opposition parties face constant hurdles, including frequent prohibitions on their gatherings, harassment, intimidation, and even arrests of their leaders and supporters. This stifles any real political discourse or competition.

Furthermore, the very institutions meant to ensure a fair election are deeply compromised:

• ELECAM (Elections Cameroon) and the Constitutional Council: These bodies, ostensibly independent, are largely seen as extensions of the ruling power. Their members are appointed by the president, leading to a strong perception of bias. They have a history of rejecting credible allegations of fraud and consistently ruling in favor of the incumbent.
• A "One-Party Dominance" Reality: Despite a multi-party system on paper, Cameroon operates as a de facto one-party state. The CPDM's organizational advantages, control over electoral bodies, and superior access to media and public resources create an environment where opposition parties, often fragmented, struggle to gain any meaningful traction.
• Lack of Transparency: Past elections have been plagued by irregularities like voter suppression, ballot stuffing, and a lack of transparency in vote tabulation. The long delay between voting and result proclamation by the Constitutional Council has been criticized as an opportunity for "gymnastics" away from public scrutiny.

When you put all these pieces together – the ongoing war, the inability to campaign freely in conflict zones, the invisible president, the suppression of opposition, and the compromised electoral bodies – the claim of organizing credible elections doesn't just sound hollow, it sounds like a bad joke. It’s a cynical move that not only aims to deceive the international community but, more tragically, further undermines the democratic aspirations and human rights of the Cameroonian people. It screams of a regime more interested in maintaining its grip on power than in genuinely addressing the cries of distress from its suffering citizens.