In brief
Following the presidential election held in Cameroon, vote counting is currently underway. Incumbent Paul Biya, the world's oldest head of state at 92, seeks to extend his lengthy rule amidst opposition allegations of suppression and unrest in certain regions. The final results are expected within 15 days.
Vote counting is under way in Cameroon following Sunday's presidential election in which incumbent Paul Biya is seeking to extend his 43 years in power.
Biya, who at 92 is the world's oldest head of state, is being challenged by nine candidates. If he wins, it will be his eighth consecutive term in office, with the next election due in 2032.
Interior Minister Paul Atanga Nji said that voting took place hitch-free across the country. But there was a call for a boycott in the English-speaking regions in the west and there were reports of clashes in the north.
The final result should be known within 15 days of the vote.
In the run-up to the election, there were complaints from the opposition of attempts to suppress their support.
In August, the Constitutional Council barred 71-year-old Maurice Kamto, widely viewed as the main challenger, from taking part.
On Sunday, angry supporters of leading opposition candidate and former Biya ally Issa Tchiroma Bakary, 76, took to the streets in his stronghold of Garoua. They clashed with security forces, who fired tear gas after his residence was cordoned off.
Despite this, Interior Minister Nji maintained that the polls were held without major incidents in all 10 regions of the country. He did not, however, comment on the situation in Garoua, reiterating previous claims that some candidates were planning to publish election results prematurely, which he deemed unlawful.
In the two restive Anglophone regions, where separatists attempted to block voting, some citizens did turn out to polling stations, but many others stayed away out of fear of retaliation.
