Allegations of electoral fraud have emerged from Momo Division in Cameroon’s North West Region, with growing scrutiny on Mbah Acha Rose Fomundam, Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of the Supreme State Audit, and head of the Momo Divisional Permanent Delegation of the CPDM.
She is being accused of allegedly influencing votes in favour of the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) during the October 12, 2025 presidential election.
A Minister’s Campaign Under Scrutiny
During the campaign period, Minister Mbah Acha Rose led multiple rallies across Momo, notably in Batibo, where she urged militants to “demonstrate loyalty through voter turnout,” portraying President Paul Biya as “the guarantor of peace and stability.”
“We have come here in continuation of our campaign trail to sensitise our people, to encourage them that despite the ghost town, we are with them and encourage them to come out and vote massively for our champion, President Paul Biya, who is the president of the party of development, a party that unifies,” she told cheering supporters in Batibo.
However, critics say the numbers don’t add up. Despite reports that her rallies attracted fewer than 500 attendees, official results credited the CPDM with over 5,000 votes from Batibo alone — a gap civil society groups have called “statistically impossible.”
A History of Electoral Controversy in Momo
This is not the first time Momo Division has been tainted by electoral controversy. In March 2018, during Cameroon’s senatorial elections, a hidden surveillance camera was discovered inside the Government Nursery School Mbengwi polling station, in direct violation of the electoral code, which guarantees the secrecy of the vote.
The lens, camouflaged with pink cardboard, was reportedly mounted above the voting booth and connected to a server concealed in the ceiling. It was exposed only after a vigilant councilor noticed irregular wiring, prompting chaos at the scene and a temporary suspension of voting.
Among the senior officials who rushed to Mbengwi were Governor Adolphe Lele Lafrique, the late Chairman Ni John Fru Ndi, the late Hon. Mbah Ndam, and notably, Minister Mbah Acha Rose, who was present as tensions flared.
Although voting later resumed, no official explanation was ever provided. To date, no public report has identified who authorized the installation of the surveillance device.
A Pattern of Manipulation Alleged
Local political actors and observers are now drawing parallels between the 2018 incident and the 2025 election, suggesting a pattern of manipulation and control within Momo’s electoral system.
Civil society organisations have renewed calls for an independent investigation into both events, arguing that trust in the electoral process cannot be restored without full transparency and accountability.
Electoral Irregularities Amid Crisis
Momo Division remains one of the regions most affected by the Anglophone crisis, where insecurity and ghost town lockdowns have created conditions that observers say were ripe for voter manipulation.
In such an atmosphere, voter turnout is believed to have been severely suppressed, yet the CPDM reportedly recorded overwhelming margins in several polling stations — a result many find implausible.
The lack of credible oversight, coupled with the lingering legacy of unaddressed irregularities, continues to raise pressing questions about the legitimacy of the vote and the role of powerful political figures in shaping its outcome.
