Yaounde - Cameroon's opposition leaders on Tuesday demanded that a weekend presidential election, widely expected to return Paul Biya for a sixth term, be nullified due to widespread irregularities.
“We are favourable to the vote's annulment,” said Joshua Osih, vice-chairperson of the Social Democratic Front, whose leader John Fru Ndi was seen as Biya's main challenger in Sunday's ballot.
“This election cannot give the winner any legitimacy,” said Osih, who described the poll as a “complete mess”.
Anicet Ekane, who ran for the Manidem party on Sunday, also said the election should be declared null and void.
“We are asking for this ballot to be nullified. In fact, we intend to file a request with the supreme court tomorrow,” he told AFP.
Another of the 22 candidates who were challenging Biya's 29-year-old rule, Albert Dzongang, said he would make a similar move.
Sunday's vote was marked by widespread voter apathy, with Biya's re-election never in doubt, but was also marred by the killings of two policemen and an opposition official.
The opposition, which claimed even before the vote that Biya had locked down the electoral system to ensure his re-election, listed several irregularities.
Former colonial power France saw nothing deeply wrong with the poll and said Tuesday it had apparently been held in “acceptable conditions”. - Sapa-AFP