Bishops Exchange Jabs Over Biya’s Victory

Jean Mbarga, Yaoundé Metropolitan Archbishop has countered utterances made by his peer of the Douala Archdiocese, Samuel Kleda after President Paul Biya was proclaimed winner of Cameroon’s October 7 presidential elections.

Kleda had wondered how Biya would have got massive votes from the Far North, North West and South West regions.

Jean Mbarga, described by critics as a “career bishop” said in an interview on state run CRTV Midday News this October 26 2018 that Cameroonians should accept the winner of the polls.

To him, the 2018 Presidential Election met all democratic standards.

He added that what all Christians and the clergy should do at this point, is continue to pray to the Holy Mary and Joseph for more peace.

In what sounded like a sharp counter to the Douala Archbishop’s declaration casting doubts on the 7 October 2018 polls, Jean Mbarga called on Cameroonians to throw their weight behind the winner and stay within the law.

This is not the first time the Yaoundé Archbishop and the President of the National Episcopal Conference Samuel Kleda are holding conflicting views on Issues of national interest.

The last case was the death of Bishop Jean-Marie Benoit Bala whom to Samuel Klada was brutally assassinated.

At the time when the national episcopal conference was calling for thorough investigations, the Yaoundé ArchBishop said that the matter should be laid to rest and call for Christians to pray for the repose of his soul.

They have consistently held diverging views on the Anglophone Crisis.