Cameroon Throws Out 16 Poll Petitions, Kamto Fights 'Biased' Council

Cameroon throws out 16 poll petitions, Kamto’s fight against ‘biased’ council flops

Cameroon’s Constitutional Council yesterday, October 16, dismissed as many as sixteen of eighteen post-poll petitions presented before it by aggrieved opposition members and parties.

Among those whose applications were dismissed were Cabral Libii. Self acclaimed poll winner, Maurice Kamto, leader of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement, CRM, was himself present in court to make submissions.

Kamto had advanced an argument of partiality on the part of the Council as he sought the disqualification of six members. He accused them of being persons who had the interest of the ruling CPDM at heart and thus unfit for the exercise.

Cameroon Throws Out 16 Poll Petitions, Kamto Fights 'Biased' Council

He was ruled as not having a strong enough basis to demand for another judicial body to sit on the issue. The sitting which took place in Yaounde was suspended at a time Kamto’s party was to adduce evidence on irregularities in areas it wanted results cancelled.

Leader of the Council, Clement Atangana, has long been accused of been a loyalist of incumbent Paul Biya. Biya is seeking a seventh term in office, his fourth under the multi-party era.

No-show on ‘ghost observers’ presser, poll petition starts

Today is the day elections petitions – 18 in all – are expected to be heard by the Constitutional Council sitting in the capital Yaounde.

Individuals and parties are seeking partial and in some cases total cancellation of the October 7 presidential polls.

Yesterday, there was a no-show despite widely publicized news that the government through information minister, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, was to explain the “ghost observers,” who claimed to be from Transparency international, TI.

The said observers had given top marks to the election process last week but also attracted a disavowal by TI who said they had no observers dispatched to Cameroon for such reasons.
The camp of self-acclaimed poll winner Maurice Kamto has also been buzzing. Kamto’s camp were barred from holding a press conference in Yaounde yesterday even though he issued a statement on Facebook dismissing reports of a Biya victory of 71%.

Kamto’s also received his party’s treasurer who was released from jail after over a week. The CRM Treasurer, Okala Ebode, had been behind bars for 8 days because he denounced electoral fraud, local portals said.

Source - www.africanews.com