How prepared is ELECAM prepare for October 7, 2018 presidential elections in Cameroon
4 min readIs mad rush for Etoudi a fiction? Many ask this rhetorical question across the country but have failed to provide a reasonable answer to the question. For the first time in the Republic of Cameroon where election environment is cloudy due to sociopolitical cataclysm in its English speaking part. Many are in the bushes, in other countries seeking refuge there while some have uncomfortably wandered to neighboring towns for fear of being killed. Hence is ELECAM (Election Cameroon) prepared?
It is worthy to note that since 2016, the Anglophone part of Cameroon has been in total political, economic and social palaver till date in 2018. The government is doing nothing serious to bring the crisis to an end but at the same time is trying to conduct presidential elections in the country. The question is, how will people vote in bushes? How will refugees vote in Nigeria and other countries? If you are the one whose rights to peaceful resident in your homeland was breach by the neglect of authorities, will you vote in a bush or in a place which you have forcefully been travelled to? How prepared is ELECAM prepare for elections come October 7 2018?
Because of this crisis, many citizens are disable either by bullets or wounds taken on their way running into bushes, there are many disable persons in our country who are not always taken into consideration by ELECAM before situating the pulling stations like citizens who have lost their site, who cannot walk on foot, who do not have hands or legs, the old, and people who always take a long walk before casting their votes because of lack of administrators to conduct elections in their area of jurisdiction. The question is, how prepared is ELECAM prepare for October 7?
How can there be election in the country where part of its citizens is politically imbalance and at war that was declared by the president of Cameroon against the citizens whom the government claimed to be part of its governance. When war is declared against a people, the people becomes an enemy of the person who declared war till cease fire. Therefore, if the government of Cameroon want to conduct an election in Anglophone Cameroon and Cameroon as a whole, they should quickly call for cease fire and Initiate a chance for dialogue or negations with the separatist activist. As an opinion, the government should direct their negotiations toward the idea of referendum in this part of the country, which will determine the future of this country by giving two options to choose, that is two state federation or outright independent else one will run Cameroon come 7th October 2018 because of insecurity which we pray should not. How prepared is ELECAM prepare for elections come October 7 2018?
If the rights of citizens are being violated everyday in Cameroon, for example, the violation of the citizens rights by illegally incarcerating them, killing them, torturing them, burning their villages and by causing psychological trauma to them. What will be the outcome of it? Normally, citizens Will not be happy at all and they will seek for change of the rule of law. When the center cannot longer hold, things will fall apart nor matter how many pillars supporting things from falling. Hans Kelson, (a great legal philosopher) in what he called “grundnorm”, clearly stated that when there is revolution and gradual fall of the rule of law pertaining to grundnorm, care should be taken because the rule of law will lose value and there will be a need for a change of government or the rule of law before any other activities within the state. There, the rule of law need to be change in Cameroon before any activity if at all the authorities cares for the respect and protection of human rights. Thus, is ELECAM prepared for October 7?
We urge the constitutional council if at all it exist in Cameroon, to exercise its powers and do something reasonable as far as this presidential election is concern in Cameroon. This is because the environment is note conducive for elections in Cameroon since citizens of one part of the country are not and will not be able to vote. Thus, presidential elections cannot be conducted while our rights to choose a worthy leader is in breach, the Anglophone community cried to the international community to come to their aid. How prepared is ELECAM prepared for 7 October?
What is ELECAM (Elections Cameroon)? A reader may ask, it is a body which was created on the 29 of December 2006 by law No 2006/011 to lay the functioning of Elections Cameroon. The body started functioning in 2010 when the documents were transferred officially from the ministry of territorial administration and decentralization to Elections Cameroon. Thus, it conducted the first ever elections in 2010
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Berinyuy Cajetan is the founder and publisher of Human Rights and Legal Research Centre (HRLRC) since 2017. He has intensive experience in strategic communications for Civil Society Organizations, campaign and advocacy, and social issues. He has an intensive experiencing in human rights monitoring, documentation and reporting.
