The Archbishop of Douala, Samuel Kleda, has said the possibility of President Paul Biya contesting for the 2025 presidential elections is not feasible.
The prelate made the pronouncement in an interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI) on Christmas Day.
He also addressed issues bordering President Biya’s health.
Cameroon is expected to hold its presidential elections next year and 91-year-old Paul Biya is likely to seek another mandate.
He has ruled Cameroon for 42 years, and is rarely seen in public.
According to Archbishop Samuel Kleda, no human being will live forever, and Cameroonians should prepare for any eventuality.
“We are human beings. At some point we will leave this world. That’s why I’m talking about transition. Let everything go well and that now, if there are elections, let’s prepare, let’s not wait to be surprised by something,” said Samuel Kleda.
President Biya’s supporters have been making a case for Biya’s re-election.
This, to the Catholic Prelate, is not feasible.
“I would simply say that it’s unrealistic,” he told RFI on the question of Biya’s candidacy.
Talking about the Anglophone Crisis, he reiterated dialogue as the way out of the deadly armed conflict.
“We have always prayed for the return of peace and called on the leaders to find a peaceful solution. The first step to ending this violence is to agree to talk to each other. You need to sit around a table or under a tree to talk and understand each other,” he declared.
After the Archbishop’s interview, two government Ministers have responded, suggesting why Biya should seek another mandate.
Both of them hold influential positions in the ruling CPDM party, where Biya has been Chairman since its creation.
Jacques Fame Ndongo, the Communications Secretary of CPDM and Higher Education Minister, said it is Biya’s constitutional right to seek re-election.
“Since the Constitution allows President Paul Biya to run for president, on what legal basis can a citizen ask him not to exercise this right?” Fame Ndongo bemoaned in an epistle justifying Biya’s candidacy.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Secretary General of the CPDM, Gregoire Owona, said it’s up to Biya to seek re-election or not.
Owona, who is the Minister of Labor and Social Security, criticized Archbishop Samuel Kleda, accusing him of taking political sides.
“He has taken his position as a citizen. His followers who want to follow him can do so but we in the CPDM are confident.
“We are waiting for the end of the mandate and at the end of the mandate, President Paul Biya has said he will decide on his candidacy or non-candidacy,” Gregoire Owona said.
The Labour Minister said Samuel Kleda’s statements were “outside his functions as a prelate and unfortunately he is not an accomplished politician”.
President Paul Biya has received reelection calls from several CPDM grassroots militants.
Meanwhile, some militants of the party have also asked him to withdraw from the 2025 elections.
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