Joe Dinga Pefok (Uncle Joe)
In Senegal With A Good Electoral Code, The Official Result Of The Presidential Election Comes From The Compilation Of Authentic Results From Polling Stations. In Cameroon, With A Bad Electoral Code, The Official Result Of A Presidential Election Comes From So called Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, Where Genuine Results From Polling Stations Are Changed To Favour The Incumbent.
As The Mentor News has repeatedly been singing, the current Cameroon Electoral Code cannot ensure the holding of a free, fair, transparent, and thus credible and acceptable presidential election. The Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, for example, that exists in the current controversial Electoral Code as regard the organization of presidential elections, are normally not supposed to exist. They are supposed to be scrapped from the current Electoral Code, if there has to be any democratic election.
These Divisional Vote Counting Commissions are not supposed to exist at all. Why bring in the so called Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, after votes or ballot papers have been transparently counted publicly at polling stations, and the return reports (PVs) duly signed by representatives of the different presidential candidates, Elections Cameroon (ELECAM), and the Ministry of Territorial Administration (MINAT)? At the Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, the polling agents, Chairpersons of polling stations (ELECAM), as well as representatives of MINAT Who all take part in the vote counting exercise at polling stations and sign the return reports commonly known in Cameroon as PVs, are not even there.
What is supposed to exist in a democratic process is that, after the vote counting exercise at the polling stations that is opened to the public, and thus is done transparently and acceptable to all, there follows a national commission or whatever, in charge of the compilation of those results from polling stations. In a country that embraces democratic elections or genuine democracy, the real vote counting in a presidential election takes place at polling stations, when the polls close. The Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, as exist in Cameroon, do not have a place in a real democratic process.
The Case Of Senegal
At the October 12, 2025 presidential election, many Cameroonians that were for change cited the case of Senegal. At the last presidential election in Senegal which held on Sunday, March 24, 2024, the result trend was known within 24 hours after voting day, and within 48 hours the outgoing President, Macky Sall, tweeted to congratulate one of the opposition candidates, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, whom the credible result trend projected as the winner of the election. This was some five days before the official result was due to be declared. This was made possible by the good Electoral Code that Senegal has. In Senegal, the Electoral Code does not prohibit the publication of result trends, following the compilation of authentic results from different polling stations across the country, by different interested parties.
With the Senegalese Electoral Code, the official result of the election is obtained from the compilation of the authentic results that come out of the polling stations. So the different candidates or parties that take part in the presidential election, possibly get to know the real result trend within 48 hours after polls are closed, by compiling the results on return reports (PVs) from the polling stations across the country, rapidly sent in by their polling agents. In Senegal, there is no other vote counting commission after the polling stations. Thus institution or body that, declares the official result of the election, only compiles the results from the polling stations. In Senegal, there is no so called Divisional Vote Counting Commissions. Suffice to say that the current Electoral Code of Senegal is one that guarantees the holding of democratic elections.
Strong Resistance By Senegalese People, Against Any Undemocratic Reform
The Electoral Law in Senegal also limits the mandate of the President of the Republic to a maximum of two terms, which is a total of 10 years. in 2022 and 2023, right up to the beginning of 2024, the then President of Senegal, Macky Sall, who was heading to the end of his second and last mandate, tried to modify the Constitution or Electoral Law, to increase the maximum mandate of the President of the Republic, so as to enable him to run for a third mandate. But the Senegalese people, especially the youths, stood up firmly against such a modification of the Law. There were several deadly clashes between security forces deployed by the President, and the Senegalese youths that so valiantly put up a strong resistance, against the attempt by the President to modify the Constitution, so to run for a third mandate
, Many civilians were killed, but the resistance did not weaver. Suffice to say at the end, President Macky Sall was forced to respect the will of the people, against his attempt to modify the Constitution for his selfish interest. He thus did not run in the 2024 presidential election for a third mandate, as he had wanted to do.
The Case Of Cameroon
Meanwhile, the current Cameroon Electoral Code that was adopted by CPDM MPs, in 2012, does not create room for a democratic process like that of Senegal. In Cameroon, Article 113 of the Electoral Code states that after vote counting at each polling station, the result at each polling station is made public. But at the same time, it is stated in another article that only the Constitutional Council has the authority to proclaim the official result of the election. It should also be noted that the English and French versions of Article 113 of the Electoral Code, which raised a strong dispute at the October 12, 2025 presidential election, are not exactly the same. The English version states that after vote counting at each polling station, the result is proclaimed, which in another sense means that it is the official result.
But the French version which is what the Constitutional Council and the Administration or Government follows, says that after the vote counting at each polling station, “le resultat acquis dans chaque bureau de vote est rendu public”. That is, after the vote counting at each polling station, the result that comes out from each of the polling stations is made public. The difference is that while the English version talks of “Proclaim”, the French version talk of “Made Public”, which do mean exactly the same thing. To proclaim the result of something means making public the final result, while to make public a result, does not necessarily means that it is the final result. It can be a temporal thing, while waiting for the final one.
More Controversies In The Electoral Code
Meanwhile, worst of all is the existence of the Divisional Vote Counting Commission, after real vote counting has been done at polling stations. It is at the Divisional Vote Counting Commissions that the ruling CPDM and its ally, ELEAM, present falsified return reports (PVs). And the Electoral Code protects that fraud, by stating that in case of a dispute over statistics in return reports, the report or PV of ELECAM takes precedence over others. And of course, the CPDM and ELECAM, as partners in crime, jointly falsify their return reports. So if the PV of the CPDM from a polling station is falsified at the level of the Divisional Vote Counting Commission, it is the same with that of ELECAM.
And so the controversial results of the presidential election that, come out of the so called Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, are different from the authentic results that come from polling stations. And these controversial or contested results from the 58 Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, in the country, are the results that the National Vote Counting Commission receive and compile, to get the official result of the presidential election. As so, the tendency is that the official result of the presidential election proclaimed by the Constitutional Council is different, from the authentic result of the election from the polling stations.
There is also the fact that, probably because of the long process from the polling day with vote counting at polling stations, to the Divisional Vote Counting Commissions, to the National Vote Counting Commission, and then finally to the Constitutional Council, the Electoral Law in Cameroon gives the Constitutional Counci as many as 15 days after election day proper, to proclaim the official result ofa presidential election. It should as well be noted that in Cameroon, the publication of the result trend of the presidential election, is prohibited.
Comparing Two Things That Are Different
As aforementioned, at the October 12, 2025 presidential election, many Cameroonians that yean for change, were very angry that the institutions in the electoral process, in Cameroon, were not doing things like happened at the 2024 presidential election in Senegal, another African country. But as seen above, the fact of the matter is that Cameroon and Senegal do not have the same, or even similar, Electoral Code.
Attempt By A Group To Declare Election Result Based On Vote Counting At Polling Stations
Before the October 12, 2025 presidential election in Cameroon, a group emerge in the country led by Barrister Michellle Ndoki and a number of other personalities, and declared that they would within 24 hours after polls closed, compile authentic results from polling stations and declare the winner of the presidential election. But without any surprise, the group soon ran into trouble with the Minister of Territorial Administration, Paul Atanga Nji, as the CPDM regime really panicked. Minister Atanga Nji warned that only the Constitutional Council, according to the Electoral Law, has the authority to declare the result of the presidential election. He issued serious threats to the group that was planning to declare the result of the October 12 presidential election, describing such a declaration as illegal. He also accused the group of incitement to insurrection. With the threat of arrest looming, Barrister Michelle Ndoki had to sneak out of Cameroon to neighbouring Chad by road, where she took a flight to Ivory Coast, to prevent arrest.
Issa Tchiroma Declared Himself Winner Of October 12 Presidential Election
On the social media, and even in political debates over TVs and Radios after the October 12 presidential election, many Cameroonians unfortunately wrote or talked as if they were ignorant of the country’s controversial Electoral Code. Many people for example, supported the fact that the FSNC leader and presidential candidate, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who self- proclaimed himself winner of the October 12, 2025 presidential, was the real President – Elect. Tchiroma’s victory allegedly came from the compilation of results that were obtained, from vote or ballot counting at polling stations across the country. But even if that was the case, Tchiroma was according to the Law, not supposed to declare himself President –elect, given that the Cameroon’s Electoral Code or Electoral Law, states that only the Constitutional Council has the authority to proclaim the official result of the presidential election. But many of Issa Tchiroma’s supporters did not see anything wrong with what their ‘President – Elect’ did, though the current controversial Electoral Code is clear that only the Constitutional Council has the authority to proclaim the official result of the presidential election.
Other Controversies
There were also people who questioned why the Constitutional Council could not declare the result of the October 12, 2025 presidential election, within five days as happened in some countries like Senegal. But the current Electoral Law of Cameroon, gives the Constitutional Council a maximum of 15 days. More so, the works of the controversial Divisional Vote Coming Commissions, as well as the work of the National Vote Counting Commission, take place within those 15 days.
What about those that were making incessant calls, that the President of the Constitutional Council, Clement Atangana, should ensure that the Council declares nothing but the authentic result of the October 12 presidential election. But in the electoral process or the current Electoral Code, the result of the presidential election which is proclaimed by the Constitutional Council, is what the Council receives from the National Vote Counting Commission.
The Fight For Electoral Reforms
What The Mentor News have been trying to point out, is in support of those that hold the view, that the first major focus of Cameroonians in the fight for change through the ballot box, should be on the Electoral Code. The Cameroon Electoral Code should be such that can guarantee the organization of free, fair and transparent elections, or better still, democratic elections. If Cameroonians can mobilize in the fight for electoral reforms, with the same force that they mobilized to fight in defense of Tchiroma’s alleged victory at the October 12, presidential election, this regime will definitely give in. The problem with the fight that was put up in defense of Issa Tchiroma’s victory, was that the fight itself was in violation of the provisions of the current controversial Electoral Code, which states that it is the Constitutional Council that proclaims the official result of the presidential election, and that the declaration by the Constitutional Council is final. The former member of Government, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, definitely knows this so well.
Also, many people, including Issa Tchiroma himself, called on the international community to recognize Tchiroma’s victory. But there is no country or international organization that can do such a thing, because Tchiroma participated in the presidential election, with an Electoral Code which clearly states that it is the Constitutional Council that proclaims the official result of the presidential election. If somebody accepts to go in for an election with a bad Electoral Code, you should be prepared to accept the outcome, or better still, you should respect what that Electoral Code says. Worth noting, that Issa Tchiroma also ended up sneaking out of the country, to avoid a possible arrest.
Possible Support By International Community
On the other hand, if the Cameroonian people mobilize and join the opposition in a no –nonsense fight for electoral reforms, that is when the international community can support, in the name of promoting democracy in the world. If the Cameroonian people massively mobilize to fight for electoral reforms, in an effort to get an Electoral Code that can guarantee or ensure the organization of democratic elections, or better still, the holding of free, fair, transparent and thus credible elections, it will be difficult for the CPDM regime to resist for long, especially if the international community seriously gets involved. This is because it will among other things become embarrassing to the CPDM regime, that it is resisting good electoral reforms, or that it is against democratic elections. When the Breton Woods Institutions (World Bank and IMF), joins the international community to support the fight for electoral reforms in Cameroon, and starts threatening to tie the granting of loans to the promotion of democratic principles like good electoral code, the CPDM regime will likely not resist for long.
