Twin Elections: Not So Free & Fair

The much parrotted July 22 twin Municipal and Parliamentary elections finally took place yesterday, against a backdrop of confussion, intimidation, protests, outright rigging, arrest and in a few cases violence.

Fisrt, to run afoul of the rules was Head of State and Chairman of the ruling CPDM, Paul Biya, who went campaigning in the streets of the national capital just before he and his wife cast their votes at the Government Bilingual Primary School in Bastos. This was said to be offensive to the spirit of the electoral law, which prohibits any form of campaigns on the election day proper.

Then there was the issue of disenfranchised voters, who were duly registered but refused voting rights by individuals, believed to be agents of the ruling party, and the chasing away from certain poling stations of agents of opposition parties.

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In Buea, brief,but serious violence erupted at the DO's office after an irate crowd of militants loyal to the opposition seized score charts and other elctoral paraphenalia from officials and set them on fire. In all, ballot boxes and score charts, popularly known in french as proces verbale from some seven polling stations were reportedly set on fire.

The militants, who were crying bare-faced fraud, were dispersed with teargas by security operatives, giving room in the process for CPDM thugs who were on stand-by with machetes and other deadly weapons to attack.

In Kumba, a lady who was allegedly caught with 800 voters' cards was reportedly molested by opposition sympathisers. And as we went to press, news reached us that the maverick Ferdinand Asapngu, SDF Chairman of the Kumba Urban Council has been picked up by security forces.

Our Reporters meanwhile, reported the trends as showing huge victories for the ruling CPDM in most of the constituencies in the Centre, South,Littoral, East and certain parts of the Southwest Provinces. Similarly, the SDF was reportedly doing well in most of the Northwest,West and parts of the Southwest Province, including Mundemba and Meme Divisions.

Comments

[KWIFON]

Just a disgrace and full of masquarading!
You can't expect La Rep Francaise du Cameroun to Organised elections and don't win ...! Rexon, only our SCNC can secure a true anglophone course.
We need to immancipate our comrades at every level.

[Shalom]

Hi Everyone,
I have carefully gone through the article and all what you have posted. Here are my comments:

1) Ni John Fru Ndi and Co. must realize they are being used and ridiculed by La republique to achieve and perpetrate oppression on the Cameroonian people. Can they have the guts to refuse to go to that Assembly? Of course not. When through fraud their number was reduced from 45 to 22 in 2004, those SDF members who lost the elections fraudulently advised the party to stay out of the assembly, but greedy people like the Mbah Ndams and the Yoyos could not stand seeing their MP stipend go. They thought of their interest first before the interest of the militants who were maimed and killed for them. Of what good was that?

2) WHen this same Fru Ndi bluffed at the onset of these elections and talked of defending votes, I told you on this forum that he is a traitor. He betrayed the military in 1992 that had put all in place to defend his victory. He has since betrayed more and more Cameroonians. He says they will challenge the results in court. What courts? the same courts before which they have gone all these years or there are new courts in Cameroon?

3) The SCNC has a herculean if not impossible task to unite Southern Cameroonians to see the direction they are taking and to follow especially when these self-seeking individuals are there greedy of stipends from the Assembly of la republique. It does not matter whether they come from the SDF or CPDM, they are the black legs and the real problem the SCNC has at hand. How can the 5 million or so Southern Cameroonians speak together in one loud voice that will be irresistible both within and without? Door-to-door sensitization is more required now than international campaigns. For if the international community were to come in and run a poll and find out that less than 10% know what SCNC stands for, then you will be all considered jokers.

4) SCNC should put up a government that will start defining the policies of the new country so that people should know where to address their questions. This government will be required to present these concrete policies not only to the Southern Cameroonians but to the international community and prove that they can better cater for the welfare of these poor 5 million trampled lot than what La republic and the Achidi Acus, the John Fru Ndis and the Inonis are doing.

5)Let those who have been elected to the assembly (together with those who contested but lost) boycott Yaounde and start meeting in Buea to formulate legislature and let those who are in the Diaspora commit themselves to canvassing financial support for them.

6) Let the NW and SW chiefs start having an annual or biannual come together to concretely discuss the issues affecting the populace and give their proposals to the legislature and government.

Hey Guys does that sound concrete enough to you as a way forward?
To keep it short, I will continue with this reflection next time.

[shiningstar]

maybe our dear country needs to upgrade to electronic voting and then we can have free and fair elections. After every elections, there is always trouble, fights here and there. We kill our own brothers and sisters without looking to see who the main person/enemy is. We all know why people support CPDM, because they want to be eating free money and using the country's funds to make themselves rich. Why do people go to opposition parties? Because they want another opportunity, they want their voices heard. The questions we need to ask ourselves are," do we really want change? and if we do, why not team up as one big opposition party and fight against the CPDM? Teaming up here, will mean we are fighting for a common goal and course. As a southern Cameroonian, I believe to avoid all the conflicts we need to come as one and as southern Cameroonians not as SDF or ADP or whatever.We need one voice not many voices. Many voices will be like throwing water on a ducks back. common people, Do NOT FIGHT AMONG YOURSELVES, lest the common enemy will watch you and laugh and say; "look at those fools. They are fighting and arguing and killing themselves while I am enjoying their money."

[painter of the white dove]

CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN TO ME HOW THE ALLEDGED ELECTORAL FRAUD WAS CARRIED OUT INSPITE OF TRANSPARENT BALLOT BOXES

[faarman]

SCNC Bull shit
Someone made a good statement a time ago requesting Raxon and his sheep battalion on this forum aim to at uniting the North and South West provinces before talking of any division. If I remember very well, the southern Cameroons they are talking of will be made up of these two provinces and how will we do that when the devil has eaten deep into our hearts.

I wonder why you guys are focusing on the SDF mean while more than ¾ of the true inhabitants of southern Cameroons are giving 100% victory to the CPDM. There is clear evidence that the two provinces have divided Ideas. How can you explain the 100% victory of the twin elections from the south west? Participating could be a stronger reason for the exposure of the inefficiency of democracy in cameroon. Therefore don’t concentrate on sabotaging the SDF, but try to pull the southern Cameroonians from the CPDM to join the struggle.
I think I better be with the opposition than with these bandits. I am forced to think that the people perpetrating this SCNC bull shit are connivers with the bandits to disrupt the functioning of the opposition system in that fatherland. I wonder what would happen if the elections where boycotted, it would simple give 100% of the votes from the whole country to the CPDM. Electoral fraud has been a talk of the day for decades, the international community has heard all that crap, and they know there is no democracy in Cameroon. What have they done? It is not boycotting elections that will mean something to them or that will change anything.

You have read already how the international media are acknowledging electoral fraud. What do you think they will do? Cameroon has already been declared a monarch regardless of whether the SDF participated in the elections or not.

Take note that there are more than a 100 parties in Cameroon and SDF taking part or not does not keep the other parties out from taking part. When you vomit nasty wards about the SDF taking part in the elections and promoting Biya’s in existing democracy, you should also ask why the other parties are taking part. The people you need to convince in joining this aimless ambition of yours are not found in the SDF now. They have all moved to the CPDM. Please chase them there and live the SDF alone
Wake up

[mk the southerner]

Faarman pleas just be far like that because if u come nearer u might become mad. Seat there and talk like some one already going crazy instead of going out there to protect ur votes as ur chair man said before the elections.

Some of u will never reason.

[UnitedStatesofAfrica]

The results should not come as a surprise, they should instead be a reminder of how much work Cameroonians have to do to oust the dictatorship fo Buea. SDF and Fru Ndi have made uncountable mistakes but I will totally brand them as bad and evil. Eventhough they have shortcomings, they made an effort and I will applaud them for that. Any other party criticizing should also provide solutions and present alternative ideas to the ones the SDF proposed.
PEACE UPON THE LAND OF AFRICA
The hypocrites shall be exposed in due time.

[simplice]

United States of Africa, you're a great leader; a very thoughtful gentleman. The last time I came to this forum and expressed my opinion, I was dosed with bitter pills of insults, one-sided synthesis.. you name it. I'm tired of this talking ,,talking,, talking,,,. Please let Rexon and co, give us a road map. Let them tell us what they've done hitherto.As far as I'm concerned, I know, the SCNC is as corrupt as "la Republique". Which asylum seeker under the barner of SCNC truely diserves that quality.Do leaders of the SCNC not collect money for from fake asylum seekers all over?. Please creat an SCNC web-site for this talking show. We want action,...Please just tell us what you've done. Stop telling us what NJFN ought to do. In a sentence; what sort of a pragmantic angel is the SCNC.