Cameroonian president postpones municipal elections

YAOUNDE, July 24 (Xinhua) — Cameroonian President Paul Biya on Wednesday evening signed a decree postponing municipal elections scheduled for February next year.
The decree extended the mandate for current municipal councilors for a year from its expiry date of Feb. 25, 2025 to May 31, 2026.
The decree came barely two weeks after the country’s National Assembly, or the lower house of parliament, approved a bill extending the mandate for its current lawmakers for a year.
Biya did not say why the elections have been postponed but officials of the ruling party, Cameroon People Democratic Movement (CPDM), explained that it was part of efforts by the government “to lighten a congested” electoral calendar.
“Cameroon is expected to hold four major elections next year, namely presidential, parliamentary, municipal and regional council elections. This is a real heavy burden. That is why it was necessary to postpone the municipal and parliamentary elections for a better organization of all the four elections throughout 2025 to 2026,” CPDM senior official Elvis Ngolle Ngolle told Xinhua. ■