President Paul Biya convened an emergency cabinet meeting this Monday, July 8, as several voices in the political field disapprove of the draft legislation seeking to extend the mandate of Parliamentarians and Municipal Councillors, which expires in 2025.
Ministers were summoned at short notice at the Prime Minister’s Office to examine the legal provisions of the Constitution and the Electoral Code in relation to the mandate extension for lawmakers and local representatives.
The cabinet meeting, MMI learned, lasted less than an hour.
Presidential, Parliamentary, Regional, and Municipal Council elections are, under normal circumstances, expected to hold in 2025.
Addressing cabinet members, Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute said, “Organising the four elections within the current context of budgetary constraints will be an uphill task for Cameroon given the logistics and funds needed.”
On the constitutionality of the draft bill, he added, “The extension of the mandate of MPs and Councillors is previewed in the Electoral Code and the Constitution when circumstances so warrant.”
According to the Prime Minister, competent institutions have been consulted to initiate the process.
OPPOSITION CASTIGATES DRAFT BILL
Opposition politicians have been voicing against the draft bill since it was tabled before Parliament for adoption.
One of the Parliamentarians of the PCRN party, Nourane Foster, disapproved of the draft bill stating, “I will vote NO because I believe that political cards must be redistributed and allow Cameroonians to elect new Parliamentarians and mayors in 2025.”
Another opposition MP, Jean Michel Nintcheu, claims the bill violates the Constitution.
The ally of prominent opposition figure, Maurice Kamto, added, “The extension of the mandate of Parliamentarians is contrary to Article 15 (4) of the Constitution, which requires a ‘serious’ crisis, or when circumstances require it for such an extension.”
Meanwhile, the SDF’s Shadow Cabinet Minister of Justice, Senator Ngam Honore, stated: “The habitual extension of the mandate of MPs of the National Assembly and municipal councilors runs against core election principles, notably according to which elections have to be sporadic. Respect for the electoral calendar has to be the norm.”
The draft bill tabled at the National Assembly is yet to be adopted.
However, its adoption is obvious as the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) commands a crushing majority.
