Cameroon: Political actors fear witchcraft, corruption may mar 2018 elections

Political actors, especially of the opposition parties in Cameroon have expressed worries to board members of Election’s Cameroon (ELECAM) that witchcraft, corruption and intrigues may mar the 2018 elections in Cameroon, if the board members fail to pre-empt the situation.

They were speaking in the South West Region recently, during a consertation meeting with officials of the elections organising body.

According to the political actors, some political parties used witchcraft to deter voters from voting their preferred choices during the 2013 elections.

 “We saw witchcraft practised on the eve of elections. When we reported to those concerned, nothing was done,'' one of the political actors, Agbor Ayukeagbor averred.

To him, rotating ELECAM officials will greatly mitigate the effect.  

Speaking at the event, an ELECAM Board Member, Christopher TambeTiku, said ''ELECAM cannot be involved in issues of witchcraft.

According to him, anybody who thinks he or she is a victim of witchcraft should make a formal complaint to the legal department.

“Witchcraft is an offense, but it is not ELECAM to start investigating issues of witchcraft; we don't have that competence, '' he said.

The ELECAM Board Member said they might have been some electoral hitches in 2013, but asserted that the electoral management body has recorded significant improvement in the past few months.

He reiterated ELECAM’s neutrality; ‘‘we are neutral and want to make sure that there is a level field for all political parties to compete. We have no interest to support any political party. That is why I invoked the penal provisions of the Electoral Code that people can be prosecuted for electoral fraud and this year we will not only end at handing over people to the police, but see that they are prosecuted. In fact, some fraudulent militants were prosecuted in the Northwest,” TambeTiku said.