(Part 1) Attempts That Were Made By Regime To Block Prof MAURICE KAMTO From Returning To Post Of National President Of MRC

The CPDM Regime Banned The Extraordinary Convention Of MRC That Was First Scheduled To Hold In Yaounde On November 29, 2025, Under The Pretext That It Posed A Threat To Public Order.  But Many Observers Thought The Real Reason For The Ban Was That, The Regime Did Not Want KAMTO To Return To The Post Of National President Of MRC. 

   The CPDM regime, which on August 5, 2025, was definitely behind the controversial decision that was taken by the Constitutional Council to reject the candidacy of Prof Maurice KAMTO for the October 12, 2025 presidential election, was also certainly behind the controversial decision that was taken by the DO of Yaounde IV,  to ban the Extraordinary Convention of the MRC, which was scheduled to hold at the party headquarters at Odza in Yaounde, on November 28, 2025. The DO of Yaounde IV, AKONDI Elvis MBAHANGWEN, advanced the monotonous claim of “Threat To Public Order” by the event, as the reason for the decision to ban the MRC Convention.

But many political observers were unanimous on the fact that the real reason why the Extraordinary Convention of the MRC was banned, was that the CPDM Regime did not want Prof Maurice Kamto, to return to the post of National President of MRC. It should be noted that the main highlight of the November 29 Extraordinary Convention of MRC, was supposed to be elections to some tops posts in the party, which included that of National President.

Election By A List System

It  would be recalled  that according to a communiqué that was signed in October 2025 by the Secretary General of MRC, Barrister NDONG Christopher NVEH, the Extraordinary Convention of the party that was scheduled to hold on November 29, 2025 in Yaounde, was supposed to start with elections to a number of top or key posts in the party. They included the post of National President, 5 Vice Presidents, the Secretary General, and the Treasurer General.  The Secretary General explained that in conformity with Article 28 of the party’s statute, the election of the top officials of MRC would hold at the beginning of an Extra –Ordinary Convention of the party convened for November 29, 2025. He explained that the election would be by a list system.

Meanwhile, in another communiqué signed on November 22, 2025 by Barrister Ndong Christopher Nveh,, this time around as President of the Electoral Commission, for the election that was scheduled to hold at the Extraordinary Convention of the MRC, on November 29, disclosed that at the time of deadline for the reception of lists for the election, which was 6 pm on November 20, only one list had been deposited with the Electoral Commission. He said the lone list which was headed by Prof MAURICE KAMTO, had been validated by the Electoral Commission for the November 29 election.

DO Of Yaounde 4 Ban MRC Convention

Meanwhile, two days to the Extraordinary Convention of MRC, that is, on Thursday, November 27, 2025, the then outgoing Secretary General of the  of MRC, Barrister Ndong Christopher Nveh, presented the party’s declaration for the holding of the Convention, to the DO of Yaounde 4, AKONDI ELVIS MBAHANGWEN, in line with the text.

But later on that same November 27, the DO of Yaounde 4, Akondi Elvis Mbahangwen, issued a communiqué banning the holding of the Extraordinary Convention of MRC on Saturday, November 29, 2025. The ban was on the pretext that ‘a Founding Member’ of the MRC, OKALA EBODE Joseph Thierry,  had  addressed a correspondence to  the DO,, saying that the Extraordinary Convention of the MRC scheduled to hold on November 29,  posed a risk to public order, as there was likely to be trouble at the Convention. The official motive or reason for banning the Extraordinary Convention of the MRC, according to the DO of Yaounde 4, was: “Menace grave de trouble a l’Ordre Public”, that is, “Serious threat (of trouble) to Public Order”.

For the DO to have just rushed to ban the Extraordinary Convention of the MRC, because a ‘Founding Member’ of the party had said there was the risk that trouble would spark off at the event, and that the event thus posed a risk to public order, was really ridiculous.  It was in fact too weak a reason to advance, to ban the Congress or Convention of a major political party in the country like the MRC.   More so, MRC says Okala Ebode, that the DO referred to, in his banning order as “Founding Member” of the MRC, is no longer a member of the party, as he had been expelled. Being a ‘Founding Member’ of a party, does not gives somebody immunity from sanction, if the person violates the text of the party. The SDF for example, over the years fired a number of Founding Fathers of the party, on charges of anti – party activities.

The Press Release By The Acting President Of MRC, Did Not Help Matters

Meanwhile, a press release that was issued by the Acting President of MRC, MAMADOU MOTA, after the DO of Yaounde IV came out with his controversial order banning the Extraordinary Convention of his party, did not in fact help matters.  The problem was not with the fact that he issued a press release, but rather that some of the statements in the release, were like a lecture to the DO of Yaounde IV on the Law. And of course knowing the mentality of the Cameroon administration, it is certain that the DO of Yaounde IV, considered the press release as arrogant, and a challenge of the authority of the State.

Part of the English version of the press release that was issued by the Acting President of MRC, read: “The Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC), as matter of republican courtesy, informed the police and administrative authorities of Yaounde 4 Sub –division, of the holding of its Extraordinary Convention on Saturday, November 29, 2025 at its headquarters, which is an enclosed location with an entrance gate. The internal MRC meeting provided for by the statutes is neither a public meeting nor a public demonstration. Consequently, it does not require a declaration to any administrative authority.

On Thursday, November 27, the Sub –divisional Officer of Yaounde 4, whom MRC had courteously informed about the holding of this Extraordinary Convention, used the pretext of an alleged report from a former MRC executive, Thierry Okala Ebode, who was expelled from the party by the competent party body following a regular procedure, to send us a ruling prohibiting the holding of our Extraordinary Convention.

Upon receiving the ruling, a press release was immediately signed to postpone the said Extraordinary Convention to a later date.

Then following a more extensive consultation, it was decided that since the meeting is statutory, and moreover is being held at our party headquarters, the DO’s ruling is not an administrative act, but a political one.

Consequently, it is not enforceable against the MRC. In other words, the MRC’s Extraordinary Convention will indeed be held on Saturday, November 29, 2025 at the headquarters as planned”.

Forces Of Law And Order, Deployed At MRC Headquarters, And Kamto’s Residence

It was the press release that the Acting President of MRC, Mamadou Mota, issued, insisting that the Extraordinary Convention of the party would go ahead on Saturday, November 29, 2025, that probably provided a pretext to the CPDM regime to deploy the Forces of Law and Order (police and gendarmes) to block the MRC headquarters from Friday, November 28, an throughout Saturday, November 29 when the Extraordinary Convention of the party was supposed to hold. Delegates to the MRC Convention that poured into Yaounde from all parts of the country, as well as from the diaspora, could not have access into the party headquarters for their party’s Extraordinary Convention.

It should also be noted that the residence of Prof Maurice Kamto at Santa Barbara quarter in Yaounde, was also encircled during the same period, by elements of the Forces of Law and Order.

There was no doubt that the main objective of the one day Extraordinary Convention of MRC,  that was scheduled to hold on Saturday, November 29, 2025, was to enable the party’s real leader, Prof Maurice Kamto, to officially return to the post of National President of MRC, through the election that was scheduled to hold at the  party’s headquarters.

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