Tensions are rising in Cameroon as two prominent opposition leaders have been arrested amid mounting unrest following the country’s October 12 presidential election.
According to a statement from the Union for Change political platform, Anicet Ekane and Djeukam Tchameni were taken from their homes by armed security forces on Friday. Both men had publicly endorsed opposition candidate Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who claims to have defeated longtime President Paul Biya in the recent vote.
The African Movement for New Independence and Democracy (MANIDEM) also reported that several of its members have been kidnapped by local security operatives, accusing the government of attempting to intimidate opposition voices and suppress dissent.
Tchiroma has declared victory based on results allegedly collated by his party, while the ruling party has dismissed his claims, accusing him of trying to disrupt the electoral process. The country’s electoral commission is expected to announce the official results on Monday, but opposition supporters have already taken to the streets, warning against what they describe as plans to manipulate the outcome.
On Saturday, protests erupted in Bafoussam, the capital of Cameroon’s West Region, as motorcyclists and residents flooded major roads demanding a credible and transparent election. Clashes were also reported earlier in the week in several cities, leading to multiple arrests and at least one civilian death in the northern city of Garoua.
The victim, Zairatou Hassana, a 30-year-old schoolteacher, was reportedly caught in the crossfire while searching for her sister. “Her death makes me keep a bad souvenir of this regime like all other Cameroonians,” her uncle, Amadou Adji, told the Associated Press.
Meanwhile, authorities in northern Cameroon have banned the sale of contraband fuel, a move that some believe is aimed at disrupting protest logistics but which is also hurting local economies.
Tchiroma, in a Facebook post on Friday, warned that any attempt to arrest him would be “an assault against the entire Cameroonian people.” He has since **called for nationwide protests on Sunday to defend what he calls “the people’s victory.”
