Election campaigns underway

Campaigning in Cameroon's parliamentary and municipal elections due to be held on 23 June, began on Saturday with President Paul Biya appealing for an orderly and disciplined campaign. Biya who spoke on national TV the day before campaigning began, urged Cameroonians to ensure that "this electoral period takes place in a calm and serene atmosphere to show the entire world that we are one unified and strong nation, despite diverging ideas that have to be expressed through the ballot box." The ruling party, Rassemblement democratique du peuple camerounais (RDPC- Democratic Rally of the people of Cameroon) is among 48 political parties vying for the 180 seats in the National Assembly. It is also among the 26 competing for the 384 municipal seats in the country. The RDPC currently holds 116 seats in parliament. The opposition Social Democratic Front party, led by Ni John Fru Ndi criticised Biya's speech, describing it as an attempt "to prepare the population for an eventual sweep of the ruling party". Other parties contesting the polls, including the National Union for Democracy and Progress led by Bello Bouba Maigari, and the Democratic Union of Cameroon of Adamou Ndma Njoya, expressed concern about possible irregularities in the voter lists in some areas of the country. The ministry of territorial administration which is in charge of organising the elections, however said that the elections would be transparent. Last week, the Southern Cameroon National Council called on people in the country's two English-speaking provinces, Southwest and Northwest, to boycott the upcoming elections saying "the die has already been cast". The council has since its creation in the mid 1990s, advocated for the separation of the two provinces from the rest of the country on grounds that English-speaking Cameroonians have suffered discrimination.