Human rights lawyer Barrister Agbor Nkongho, popularly called Agbor Balla, has asserted that President Paul Biya’s government is nearing its end and is now employing desperate means to bully citizens and opposition political parties.
In a recent statement, Barrister Balla said the government is limiting freedoms and weakening the population’s resolve for change, in the run-up to next year’s presidential, legislative and municipal elections.
The statement came days after the Minister of Territorial Administration, Paul Atanga Nji, threatened to sanction opposition leaders like Maurice Kamto of the CRM party and Cabral Libii of the PCRN, if they used a certain phrase that he claimed exclusively belonged to the the Head of State, Paul Biya.
He said only President Biya “is authorized to address the People according to the formular: ‘Cameroonians, Cameroonians, my dear compatriots’” and that politicians who use this phrase in addressing Cameronians “should be careful”.
While Cabral Libii and Maurice Kamto have strongly challenged Atanga Nji’s instructions, terming them unlawful, Agbor Balla says such a desperate move from the government signals the end of the Biya regime, which has ruled Cameroon for four decades.
“In their desperation, they will ban political alliances, discourage citizens from registering in the electoral register and even threaten those encouraging citizens to register, they will clamp down on freedom of assembly, violate our freedom of expression and proscribe citizens from using certain words,” said Barrister Balla.
“Their reaction is a strong signal that the Champagne party is coming to an end. The people will triumph and there will be euphoria and joy in the land,” he added.
Minister Paul Atanga Nji has made statements this year that the opposition as well as political observers say are meant to stifle freedom of speech and association and guarantee the success of the regime in next year’s elections.
These actions span from banning a political coalition to fueling leadership discord within Cabral Libii’s PCRN party and then threatening opposition leaders against using certain words.
Last month, Minister Atanga Nji also tried to dissuade political leaders from calling on citizens to register on the electoral registers amid calls for massive voter mobilization in view of next year’s polls.
