Fru Ndi also seized the opportunity of the anniversary celebration to make certain pertinent requests to the government as well as to deplore some of the ills of the Biya regime that continues to retard the development of Cameroon.

Cameroon’s leading opposition party, the Social Democratic Front, SDF, will hold its 9th national congress in February next year. This decision, made by the National Executive Committee, NEC, of the party, was made public by party chairman, John FruNdi, on the occasion of the celebration of the 26th anniversary of the SDF that held in its Ntarikon headquarters recently.

Speaking on the occasion, FruNdi said the party was launching a vast reorganization process that would culminate in the holding of the said national congress. He said that decision was a strategic one that came about as a result of the current sociopolitical climate in the country. Said he:

“After a detailed review and analysis of the socioeconomic situation in our country, the National Executive Committee has adopted a vast reorganization programme of all the structures of the party all over the national territory to prepare for any eventuality. This reorganization will end before the end of the month of July so that regional conferences could be held.”

The chairman added that at the end of this vast and tedious exercise, they would move straight on to the activities and processes that would lead to the national congress. Pundits believe that it is in the congress that the candidate of the party in the 2018 presidential election would be chosen. Observers are also expecting to see what has been described as the aging NEC rejuvenated during the congress.

Furthermore, Fru Ndi seized the occasion to reiterate his party’s exigencies concerning the electoral process in Cameroon. He invited the government to put in place a true independent electoral commission and a consensual electoral code to enable it to function well. Also, he called for the institution of an integral biometric system that would cover the period from the time of the registration of voters to the proclamation of results.

The chairman also said that his party wished to see the following: an electoral calendar that is not manipulated and that is known to all and sundry, a two-round presidential election, a five-year presidential term of office renewable once, the reduction of the voting age to 18 years, the putting in place of a constitutional council as provided for by the 1996 constitution, as well as the application of article 66 of the constitution which stipulates that those appointed to posts of responsibility should declare their property at the time of assuming service and when they are leaving office.

Talking about other worrying issues in the country, FruNdi said: “The social situation in Cameroon is very preoccupying; the poverty level for the majority of Cameroonians is unprecedented whereas less than 1% of the population lives in ostentatious and provocative abundance”

That was not all. The Ntarikon strongman equally decried the shortage of potable water in Cameroon, chronic electricity outages, the absence of a good road network in the country that retards growth and causes fatal road accidents, the high and frightful rate of employment and underemployment, especially of the Cameroonian youth, whom he said are a sacrificed generation.