2025 presidentials: Jean Nkuete slams political parties calling for insurrection.

Though he did not call names, Nkuete was apparently replying to statements made by the National President of Cameroon Renaissance Movement, MRC, Prof Maurice Kamto, recently during a rally in Paris, France. 

He said the CPDM “remains attentive and vigilant in the face of developments in the national political arena, marked in recent times by the rise of acts of hatred and threats of violence, which we have constantly denounced in the past, emanating from certain leaders of political parties who are determined to weaken our democracy by undermining our living together and tarnishing the image of our country”.

“We note that in the run-up to the presidential election, a number of political parties, some of which are confronted with their own contradictions, are feeding public opinion with false debates that sow confusion in people's minds. They have the audacity to irreverently question His Excellency Paul Biya, President of the Republic, about his age,” Nkuete noted. 

He added that: “They are multiplying calls for the preparation of a sacrificial and murderous insurrection by referring to the situation in a brotherly and friendly country, which is incomparable to the situation in Cameroon. In the same vein, they call for communal and inter-tribal confrontations as a means of achieving political change in our country and call for foreign pressure on the government and even the demobilisation of CPDM militants”.

Denounces… incitement to hatred, violence…

The CPDM Central Committee SG went ahead to denounce what he referred to as “speeches of defiance of the institutions, intimidation, incitement to hatred and violence, and attacks on the person of President Paul Biya”. 

These, he said, “are absolutely incomprehensible and unjustifiable in view of the level of freedoms, democracy, the high degree and speed of development of our country throughout the national territory, trends which inspire, on the contrary, to those who love Cameroon, peace, unity and serenity as primary behaviours”.

He, nonetheless, saluted “patriotism and political maturity” of some Cameroonians “in their great majority” whom he said are attached to ancestral values, notably respect for elders.

Nkuete called on political parties, especially those with representatives in parliament or in regional and municipal councils, to portray responsibility. 

He said some of these political parties are actively and peacefully preparing for the presidential election, “with full knowledge of the facts and in compliance with the provisions of the electoral law, on the basis of which they took part in the last presidential election in October 2018”.

CPDM’s irreversible attachment to peace…

He also reaffirmed CPDM’s irreversible attachment to the principles of peace, tolerance, democracy, respect for fundamental freedoms and republican order. 

He noted that “democracy is expressed within the framework of laws, civilised debate and mutual respect”, reiterating CPDM’s commitment “to a peaceful, transparent and law-abiding electoral process, respectful of individual freedoms and based on the best interests of the Nation”.

“… Cameroon is a mature nation, whose people, who are fundamentally republican, have been marked by the traumas of the violence of the war of independence…and, more recently, the atrocities in the North West and South West regions. The people of Cameroon have had enough of violence and atrocities. They, who know more than anyone else the price and value of peace, cannot accept that personal ambitions should endanger the lives of our compatriots and jeopardise the peace, stability, tranquility and togetherness so dearly won,” he avowed.

He thus appealed to the sense of responsibility of all…especially opinion leaders, the media, influencers, social networks, etc., “whose role, at this sensitive time in our common history, is to advocate peace, tolerance and mutual respect and not to fan the embers of hatred, violence, distrust of institutions, tribalism and, ultimately, chaos”.

Nkuete also welcomed “the spirit of discipline, restraint, resilience and high sense of country shown by CPDM militants and sympathisers across the country”, urging to be vigilant and to show solidarity around the values of peace, responsibility and unity. 

He called on CPDM supporters to shun any form of provocation or manipulation and “to defend, with calm and serenity, the person of President Paul Biya…as well as the image of a strong, stable Cameroon that respects its institutions”. 

He also enjoined CPDM supporters and sympathisers abroad as well as Cameroonians in the Diaspora, “to be much more vigilant and resilient in the face of evil forces who seek, through various manipulations, to cloud the general climate with the aim of compromising the active and faithful participation of our compatriots in the forthcoming presidential elections”.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3471 of Thursday June 12, 2025