Judges in Cameroon have dismissed calls for the partial or total cancellation of the heavily disputed presidential election, stating that the results will be announced on Monday.
Major cities in the country have experienced protests, with opposition supporters alleging irregularities in the election held on October 12, including ballot-stuffing.
The Constitutional Council rejected eight petitions, citing insufficient evidence of irregularities and a lack of jurisdiction to annul the election results.
Opposition candidate Issa Tchiroma Bakary has declared himself the winner, a claim rejected by supporters of 92-year-old President Paul Biya, who is seeking another seven-year term.
Biya has been in power for 43 years and conducted only one campaign rally ahead of the election.
Tchiroma Bakary, aged 76 and a former government spokesman, broke ranks with Biya to run for the presidency but chose not to file official complaints with the judges he deemed biased, instead proclaiming himself the legal and legitimate president.
In a social media statement, Tchiroma Bakary claimed he won the election with about 55% of the vote based on what he alleged were returns reflecting 80% of the electorate.
If the Constitutional Council announces results that he believes are falsified, he warned that the council would be complicit in a breach of trust, urging citizens to take their destiny into their own hands.
Accusations have intensified, with the ruling party dismissing Tchiroma Bakary’s claims, stating that only the Constitutional Council can proclaim official results. The influential Catholic Church has called on the judges to ensure their ruling reflects the voters' will.
The escalating tensions have sparked fears of post-election violence in a country already dealing with a separatist conflict in the Anglophone regions and a Boko Haram insurgency in the Far North.
