Cameroon’s long political suspense took a dramatic twist on Sunday after opposition candidate Issa Tchiroma Bakary declared himself winner of the October 12 presidential election, telling President Paul Biya, who has ruled the country since 1982, that “the people have finally retired him through the ballot.”
Tchiroma, 76, a former loyalist-turned-critic of Biya’s government, made the audacious declaration in Yaoundé, proclaiming that “Cameroonians have spoken loudly enough to end four decades of political sleepwalking.” “The people of Cameroon have voted for change, and no one, not even a man who has ruled for 43 years can stop it,” Tchiroma said, urging Biya to “summon the courage to leave history with dignity, not disgrace.”
The declaration sent ripples through the capital, where many still wondered whether President Biya, now 92 and one of the world’s oldest and longest-ruling heads of state, will even acknowledge the challenge. Biya, who once promised to retire “when the people no longer want me,” has spent much of the last decade proving that the people’s desire is irrelevant to his calendar.
Tchiroma, backed by a coalition of opposition parties and civic groups, claimed victory “by a margin that reflects the people’s hunger for renewal.” But official channels remain silent.
The Minister of Territorial Administration, Paul Atanga Nji, quickly reminded the nation that only the Constitutional Council, a body critics often describe as “the choir that sings Biya’s victory anthem every election cycle” can announce the results.
“Any declaration of victory outside the Constitutional Council is illegal,” the minister warned on state television.
The council, composed largely of Biya’s appointees, has until October 26 to validate results that many Cameroonians already suspect were decided long before the first ballot was cast.
For now, the streets of Yaoundé and Douala are quiet and a familiar silence that often precedes disappointment. In the markets, conversations drip with both hope and cynicism. “If Biya loses, who will tell him?” one vendor asked wryly. “Even the Constitution fears him.”
Tchiroma’s declaration is the boldest challenge to Biya’s authority in decades, echoing a growing frustration with what critics call “a democracy that never grows old because its leader never leaves.”
Political analysts say the coming days will test the durability of Biya’s regime and the patience of Cameroonians who have lived through 43 years of recycled promises. “This is not just an election,” said one political commentator in Douala. “It’s a referendum on whether power in Cameroon still belongs to the people or to one man and his memory.”
Whether the Constitutional Council will certify a new dawn or simply recycle the old order remains to be seen. For now, Issa Tchiroma has thrown the first stone and Cameroon’s political fortress is trembling, even if ever so slightly.
