With the presidential election looming in October 2025, the ruling party, Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM), seized a key opportunity to rally support for its national president, Paul Biya.
Jean Nkuete, the CPDM's Secretary General, addressed a large gathering in Bafoussam, the capital of the Western Region, on April 24, 2025, during the installation ceremony of Hamidou Komidor Njimoluh as head of the party's permanent delegation for the region. Nkuete used the platform to emphasize the importance of unity behind Biya.
"A great victory for Paul Biya in 2025 guarantees Cameroon lasting peace—this peace that is so precious and so fragile," Nkuete declared to the assembled crowd. His emphasis on peace was particularly significant, given the Western Region's proximity to the Northwest, a region grappling with a security crisis stemming from the Anglophone separatist conflict, marked by deadly incursions from armed groups.
Nkuete went further, urging supporters to deliver "a clear, transparent, and flawless victory" for President Biya. This strong appeal comes despite the fact that Biya, 92 and in power since 1982, has yet to officially declare his candidacy for another term, contrary to a commitment he made during French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Yaoundé in July 2022.
For the CPDM's number two, Biya remains the central figure, despite his advanced age and questions about his capacity to lead. "Faced with global challenges, Cameroon imagines its own solutions, guided by the rigor and determination of Paul Biya," Nkuete stated. Addressing the youth specifically, he warned, "To you all youth in the West, I say do not let illusion peddlers shatter your dreams. Trust in Paul Biya is the assurance of a stable future."
This mobilization speech, however, hinted at a degree of unease within the ruling party in this strategically important region. "Despite 33 municipalities and 1 urban community, 10 senators, 19 deputies, and 73 regional councilors, the CPDM shows signs of nervousness in the West," observed one political analyst.
This apparent anxiety was underscored by the conclusion of Nkuete's speech, in which he implored supporters not to repeat past electoral missteps: "The West must not slip twice on the same banana peel."
Thierry Christophe Yamb