CameroonOnline.ORG | On 14 October 2025, Cameroon witnessed a bold declaration. Issa Tchiroma Bakary — long known as a former government spokesman and now a key opposition voice — publicly claimed victory in the recent presidential election. He delivered his message in a video from Garoua, his hometown, calling on President Paul Biya to concede and respect “the truth of the ballot box.”
What makes this moment striking is less the claim itself — official results have yet to be declared — and more what it signals for Cameroonians who watch their country’s future with hope and caution. Under Cameroon’s electoral law, the Constitutional Council is the only body authorized to validate and publish final results. Any unilateral declaration, some officials warn, risks being viewed as overreach or even “high treason.”
For decades, President Biya has held a secure grip on power. At 92 years old and after more than forty years in office, his dominance has been supported both by institutional strength and the fragmentation of the opposition. When Tchiroma broke away from the government in June, he struck a bold tone — and has since drawn large crowds and critical endorsements.
In his address, Tchiroma asked institutions — especially the military and state bodies — to side with the “people” and “the republic.” He framed this moment as the start of a “new era,” a shift away from old power dynamics. Yet the heavy machinery of state — and the legal framework governing elections — remain in place. Many Cameroonians now wait, uncertain, for the Constitutional Council to issue the final word by October 26.
For citizens across the nation — from Yaoundé to Bamenda, Douala to the Far North — the declaration by Tchiroma is more than a political gambit. It is a test: of democratic institutions, of public confidence, of whether “the will of the people” can be asserted beyond slogans. Whether this moment becomes a turning point or another chapter in Cameroon’s long political story depends on what comes next.