🔗 Share this article

The world's most aged head of state - 92-year-old Paul Biya - has promised the nation's voters "the best is still to come" as he pursues his 8th consecutive term in office this weekend.

The 92-year-old has already been in power since 1982 - an additional seven-year term could keep him in power for half a century reaching almost a century old.

Campaign Controversies

He resisted numerous appeals to resign and drew backlash for only showing up for one rally, spending most of the campaign period on a week-and-a-half personal visit to Europe.

A backlash over his dependence on an artificial intelligence created election advertisement, as his rivals courted supporters in person, saw him rush north on his return home.

Young Voters and Joblessness

It means that for the large portion of the people, Biya has been the exclusive ruler they remember - more than sixty percent of the nation's 30 million people are below the age of 25.

Youthful advocate Marie Flore Mboussi is desperate for "different faces" as she thinks "longevity in power inevitably leads to a sort of inertia".

"Following four decades, the people are weary," she says.

Youth unemployment remains a particular talking point for the majority of the candidates participating in the political race.

Nearly 40% of youthful residents between 15 to 35 years are jobless, with 23% of young graduates experiencing problems in securing formal employment.

Rival Candidates

Apart from young people's job issues, the electoral process has generated controversy, notably concerning the exclusion of a political rival from the presidential race.

The disqualification, confirmed by the Constitutional Council, was widely criticised as a strategy to stop any serious competition to the incumbent.

12 aspirants were cleared to contest for the leadership position, including Issa Tchiroma Bakary and Bello Bouba Maigari - each ex- Biya associates from the northern region of the country.

Voting Challenges

In Cameroon's English-speaking North-West and Southwest regions, where a extended separatist conflict continues, an election boycott closure has been enforced, paralysing commercial operations, movement and learning.

Rebel groups who have imposed it have warned to attack individuals who casts a ballot.

Since 2017, those seeking to create a separate nation have been battling official military.

The fighting has so far killed at least six thousand individuals and forced almost 500,000 people from their residences.

Election Results

Following the election, the legal body has 15 days to declare the findings.

The security chief has earlier advised that no aspirant is allowed to claim success in advance.

"Candidates who will try to reveal findings of the presidential election or any unofficial win announcement in violation of the regulations of the republic would have broken rules and should be ready to face retaliatory measures commensurate to their offense."