Cameroonians were on Monday casting their ballots in a presidential election that many ordinary citizens believe long-time leader Paul Biya is certain to win, either through fraud or because he is up against a divided opposition.
When polling stations opened at 8am (7am GMT), officials did their best to assuage fears that the vote would be marred by cheating and urged those who were registered to do their duty as citizens and vote.
At a school in the centre of the capital, Yaounde, that was serving as the polling station for many high-ranking government officials, a list of registered voters was posted outside, while transparent, sealed urns, supplied by Japan and Britain, were waiting to receive their completed ballots inside.
Before that polling station opened, the official in charge gave vote assessors and observers a final briefing on how to ensure the polls went off freely and fairly.
At many of the 20 600 polling stations around the country, the scene was the same: lists of registered voters posted outside and transparent, sealed urns inside — the latter a first in the Central African country’s election history.
In addition, officials said that more than 4 500 observers — including 192 from abroad, sent by the Commonwealth, the International Francophone Organisation and foreign embassies, with the remainder from Cameroon — were accredited for the vote and were on Monday deployed around the country, which is roughly twice the size of Poland.
”For the moment, everything is going ahead as planned — normally, in other words,” Biya told reporters just after voting at a school in Yaounde shortly after noon.
But even the apparently vast effort to ensure a fair election had, by the end of the morning, not succeeded in convincing Cameroon’s 4,6-million registered voters to get out and cast their ballot.
Residents of Yaounde and the economic capital, Douala, questioned earlier this month were unanimous in predicting that Biya, who has run the Central African country since 1982, would be back in the driving seat after the vote, with some saying his party would cheat if need be to ensure he returns to power.
”Everybody knows that the outgoing president will win, the dice are loaded,” said Loveline Tayo, a television and radio producer.
”Everything’s set for Biya to win, by fraud if need be,” said Michel Koung, who is unemployed. ”So why bother to vote?”
Three of the 16 candidates in the running pulled out at the weekend, with one of them, Djeukam Tchameni, saying he was quitting the vote because its outcome was a foregone conclusion in favour of Biya, in power for the past 22 years.
Government officials made a last-minute rallying cry to voters, with Prime Minister Peter Mafany Musonge appealing to Cameroonians to fulfil their civic duty and choose the right leader.
”I have just done my duty as a citizen and I am proud,” he said as he left a polling station in Yaounde.
”Above all, however, I invite Cameroonians to vote wisely by choosing the candidate who is most capable of leading Cameroon during the next seven years,” he said.
Biya came to power in 1982 and is currently Africa’s third-longest-serving leader.
He is the heavy favourite to win the single-round election, largely because, once again, the opposition has failed to put up a united front against him.
A coalition for national reconstruction set up last year with the sole aim of posing a united challenge to the long-time leader crumbled three weeks ago, when John Fru Ndi, head of the main opposition party, the Social Democratic Front (SDF), pulled out because he was not selected as the coalition candidate.
Polling stations are due to close at 6pm, with initial results expected overnight on Monday. — Sapa-AFP