DOUALA: Tensions flared in Cameroon’s economic capital, Douala, on Wednesday as supporters of opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary took to the streets to protest President Paul Biya’s reelection.
The demonstrations came after Bakary vowed to resist until final victory,
rejecting Biya’s claim to an eighth term in office.
The 92-year-old Biya the world’s oldest sitting head of state has ruled Cameroon since 1982.
His victory in the October 12 presidential election has been met with widespread criticism and allegations of manipulation of state institutions to retain power.
Violent clashes have erupted across parts of the Central African nation following the Constitutional Council’s confirmation of Biya’s win, a ruling that is final and cannot be appealed.
Witnesses reported that at least 10 people have been killed in several days of unrest, with streets littered with debris and burnt tyres.
By Wednesday morning, parts of Douala began to return to a semblance of normalcy as some shops reopened and limited traffic resumed, though the city remained tense.
Biya’s continued rule has deepened divisions in the cocoa and oil-producing nation, where opposition leaders and civil society groups are calling for political reforms and an end to decades of authoritarian governance.
