Tchiroma Challenges Biya’s Rule One Year After Disputed Election

Issa Tchiroma Bakary has renewed his demand for a transfer of power in Cameroon, declaring that a year after the disputed October 12, 2025, presidential election, he will accept no political settlement that sets aside his claim to victory.

In a statement issued from Banjul, The Gambia, on October 12, 2026, the opposition figure accused President Paul Biya’s government of remaining in office against the will of voters. Speaking from exile, he pledged to continue pursuing legal, diplomatic, and political pressure on the authorities in Yaoundé.

His anniversary message comes as Cameroon awaits a new government and the appointment of a vice-president under constitutional changes adopted earlier this year.

The Constitutional Council declared Biya the winner on October 27, 2025, awarding him 53.66 per cent of the vote against Tchiroma’s 35.19 per cent. Tchiroma rejected that outcome and has continued to maintain that he won.

Rejecting a transition that bypasses the election dispute

Tchiroma criticised a proposal for a constitutional transition which, according to his statement, was advanced by Cameroonian civil society figures in an opinion piece published in the French newspaper Libération on October 5.

He argued that any arrangement which failed to recognise what he considers the electorate’s decision would deny voters the change they demanded.

His position leaves little room for a negotiated transition that treats the disputed election as a closed chapter. He insists that the starting point must be recognition of his claimed mandate and the departure of the current government.

“Our victory is beyond doubt and it is near,” he declared.

Despite that assurance, the statement did not set out a timetable or explain how his campaign would secure a transfer of power.

Pressure through courts, diplomacy and the diaspora

Tchiroma said efforts to challenge alleged abuses by state authorities were continuing beyond Cameroon’s borders.

He cited criminal complaints filed in France and Switzerland, diplomatic engagements and initiatives directed at international financial institutions. He presented these measures as part of a continuing campaign to hold those responsible for abuses accountable and increase pressure on the government.

The statement did not provide case numbers, identify the procedural stage of the complaints or include decisions from the institutions concerned.

He also pointed to demonstrations outside Cameroon’s embassy in Paris on October 10 as evidence that his supporters remained mobilised a year after the vote.

For Tchiroma, exile has not ended the confrontation. His message sought to reassure supporters that the campaign was continuing, even as Biya retained control of the presidency.

Accusations over the economy and succession

The opposition figure accused the government of economic mismanagement, alleging that public finances were deteriorating while Cameroon’s natural resources continued to be exploited.

He also described a struggle between competing factions seeking to influence the succession to Biya, including the possibility of power passing through family or political networks.

These were allegations made in his statement, which supplied no financial records or other supporting documentation.

Tchiroma paid tribute to Anicet Ekane and others who, he said, had died in the struggle for political change. He expressed solidarity with civilians affected by the conflict in the North-West and South-West regions, displaced people and those he described as political prisoners.

An election dispute that continues to shape the succession debate

Tchiroma’s challenge has complicated the political situation facing Biya by keeping the question of electoral legitimacy alive alongside the debate over who will eventually succeed him.

The dispute extends beyond competing declarations of victory. In its assessment following the election, the International Crisis Group said polling-station tally sheets published by opposition parties and civil society groups appeared to show Tchiroma winning by a convincing margin. It warned that the disagreement over the results risked further unrest.

A year after the vote, Biya has still not appointed a new government. In his December 31, 2025, address, he said he would form one “in the coming days”. The continued wait has left that public commitment unfulfilled.

Meanwhile, a constitutional amendment promulgated on April 14, 2026, restored the office of vice-president. The reform allows Biya to appoint and dismiss the office-holder, who would assume the presidency and complete the remaining term in the event of the president’s death, resignation or permanent incapacity. The government presented the change as a measure to ensure institutional continuity; opposition figures criticised the concentration of succession powers in the presidency.

That appointment also remains awaited. Biya has yet to name a vice-president, months after the office was restored.

The delays do not, by themselves, establish that Tchiroma has prevented either appointment. They nevertheless form the backdrop to a presidency facing an unresolved election dispute and an unsettled succession.

Biya retains state power. Tchiroma continues to challenge the mandate on which that power rests, and his latest statement makes clear that he will resist attempts to settle the succession question without addressing the disputed vote.