Biya Declared Winner Amid Fraud Allegations

According to the Council, Issa Tchiroma Bakary of the National Salvation Front (FSNC) came second with 35.19%, followed by Anicet Ekane with less than 5%. The official figures were read in a packed hall filled with regime loyalists, ministers, and senior officials, whose smiles and applause stood in stark contrast to the fury outside the building.

Independent tallies gathered from original procès-verbaux (PVs) across Cameroon tell a completely different story. Verified figures compiled by observers and citizens show Issa Tchiroma leading with 58.4% of the national vote, while Paul Biya trailed at 32.7%. The discrepancies, widespread reports of missing voter cards, ballot stuffing, intimidation by security forces, and closed polling stations in opposition strongholds point to what observers are calling “a coordinated electoral robbery.”

In an address to the nation shortly after the announcement, Issa Tchiroma Bakary denounced the ruling as “a coup against the will of the people.”

“This is not an election result — it’s an insult to democracy,” he declared. “The people voted. Their will has been stolen. We will not recognize this fraud. The world must know that Paul Biya has lost the election, and Cameroon’s future now belongs to its citizens, not to a dying regime.”

Tchiroma urged Cameroonians to mobilize peacefully to defend their votes, calling for national unity in the face of what he described as a “criminal manipulation of the electoral process.”

From Douala to Garoua, Maroua to Bafoussam, spontaneous protests erupted within minutes of the proclamation. Crowds flooded major intersections chanting “We know who we voted for!” and waving signs reading “Biya Must Go” and “Tchiroma Is Our President.”

The security situation remains tense. Reports from Douala indicate that gendarmes have opened fire on demonstrators in the New Bell neighborhood, resulting in casualties. In Garoua, citizens have surrounded the residence of Issa Tchiroma, forming a human shield to prevent security forces from attempting an arrest.

Analysts see this as a turning point for Cameroon. “The regime has lost its last ounce of legitimacy,” said one political observer in Yaoundé. “For the first time in 40 years, the people voted for change, and the state is refusing to let go.”

As night falls over a country divided between anger and defiance, the question now facing Cameroon is not whether Biya has won — but whether his government can survive the storm it has just unleashed.