COMMONWEALTH EXPERT TEAM
CAMEROON PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
9th October 2011
PRESS
RELEASE
by
Mr.
Frederick A. Mitchell MP
Chair
of the Commonwealth Expert Team
A peaceful election: some benchmarks
for democratic elections have been met, although the playing field needs to be leveled
to increase confidence in the electoral process
The
Commonwealth was invited by the Ministry of External Relations to observe the 9th
October Presidential Election, and the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth constituted
a six person Expert Team supported by a professional staff team from the
Secretariat in London. I am honoured to
have been invited to Chair the Team which has been present in the country since
3 October 2011.
This
statement is our initial view of the election.
It reflects largely our observations in the run up to the election, the
polling day itself and the counting process. The Commonwealth Expert Teams were
based in five regions in the country. We exchanged our findings with a number
of other international and domestic observers, as well as the diplomatic community. These exchanges corroborated most of the
impressions which we formed during the course of our observations.
The
election, thus far, has met some democratic benchmarks such as freedom of
association, expression, as well as universal suffrage and the right to vote.
This
is an interim statement and it is issued prior to the formal declaration of the
election results. We will issue a final
report containing our conclusion and recommendations on the entire process at a
later stage.
KEY
FINDINGS
ELECAM must affirm its independence and must be supported to
do so
We
laud the establishment of ELECAM as a significant first step.
This
election is the first one organised by an independent election management body.
We commend ELECAM’s efforts in establishing key structures at the local level
in a relatively short period of time; in collaborating with political parties
and other stakeholders; and, in the organisation of Diaspora Voting, for the
first time in the country’s history.
It
was, however, our impression that public confidence in ELECAM was limited. We noted serious concerns raised that ELECAM
was not wholly independent of the government.
We felt that this was due, in part, to the past political affiliations
of some of the Electoral Board Members. ELECAM needs to do more to demonstrate
its neutrality and inspire the confidence of the electorate in future
elections. In this connection, it would be helpful if steps are taken in
earnest to enhance the institutional autonomy of ELECAM.
ELECAM
was constrained in its performance by the prevailing legal framework: we had
the opportunity to discuss some of these constraints - such as the use of
multiple ballot papers rather than a single ballot - with some of its board
members. In this technical matter, as in others we will highlight in our final
report, we are of the view that as the body mandated to manage and supervise
elections, ELECAM must influence and drive the process of reform through the
legislature and other relevant institutions. It must be supported and
encouraged to do so.
The
Voter register needs to be refined
In
the polling stations we visited, we observed that some voters had their voter
identification cards, or receipts evidencing their application for voter cards,
and in some cases, their National identification cards. However, their names
were absent from the register and therefore they were unable to vote.
We
also observed that while at some polling stations, provision was made for the
collection of voter cards, many remained unclaimed.
In
our assessment, the current voter register requires substantial refinement. We
recognize the efforts made by ELECAM to this end, but would strongly encourage
ELECAM to consider measures to significantly improve the voter register ahead
of the 2012 legislative elections.
The
election campaign: separating the role of party and state
We
commend the provision of state funding for political parties’ activities during
elections.
However,
we noted repeated complaints from some stakeholders and members of the opposition
about the lack of distinction between the state and the ruling party when it
came to the use of state resources for campaigning. An example highlighted was
the disproportionate coverage accorded to the ruling party’s campaign by the
state media as compared to that of the Opposition.
We
appreciate the natural advantages that accrue to an incumbent government.
However, the magnitude of resources that appeared to us to have been deployed
by the ruling CPDM party and its overwhelming advantage of incumbency
challenged the notion of a level playing field in the entire process.
It
is therefore important that the existing laws on election campaign financing,
and media coverage during the campaign period be reviewed with the aim of strengthening
accountability and transparency.
In
the Commonwealth’s election observation reports of 2004 and 2007 the pervasive
influence of the ruling party in all aspects of the electoral process was
highlighted as a major area of concern. If Cameroon is to further progress in
the consolidation of its democracy, reforms in this area should be of top
priority.
We
also heard allegations from the main Opposition leader of the SDF, Mr John Fru
Ndi at a political rally on Saturday 8th October, that he was
prevented on two occasions from moving about the country to campaign because
the ruling party’s candidate had already been granted precedence to campaign in
those particular areas.
The
campaign of the ruling party’s candidate should not be conducted to the
detriment of other candidates. For future elections equitable arrangements
should be put in place for election campaigns.
Polling
Day
On
the whole, the election was peaceful. We
note an improvement to preparations for these elections, as compared to
previous ones. Voters who could vote expressed
their will freely. The process was
generally transparent. We commend the
inclusion of large numbers of women in the local polling commissions.
We
regret, however, that turnout appears to have been low in the areas that we
observed. This, in our view, reinforces
the repeated complaints about a pervasive sense of public apathy. We wish to
highlight the following observations which will be further elaborated upon in
our Final Report.
Generally
polls opened on time, though we received some reports that in a number of areas
there were delays. In some instances, this was attributed to a lack of
preparedness on the part of election officials. In another case, the delay was
caused by preparations being made for senior government officials and other
personalities to vote.
The
use of multiple ballots interfered with the smooth flow of the voting process
and led to different procedures from station to station on how voters collected
the ballot and disposed of them.
There
were complaints about the ink and the inconsistent manner of its application.
We also observed instances where the ink was washed off soon after its
application. We would encourage the use of, and consistent application of
indelible ink for future elections to safeguard the integrity of the process.
We
also wish to underscore that it is considered best practice to apply the ink
immediately upon issuance of a ballot paper to a voter.
The
Commonwealth’s partnership with Cameroon
In
some cases, ordinary citizens approached the Team to express various concerns
regarding the overall management of the electoral process, the campaign period
and seemed to suggest that the Commonwealth and other international organisations
could resolve these issues.
The
Commonwealth has engaged with Cameroon to deepen its democracy since it joined
the organisation in 1995. We will continue to engage by making constructive
recommendations and assisting the people and government of Cameroon to
implement them. However, the people of Cameroon must play a central role in this
process.
We
believe that this country has to examine in the future how the issues that were
brought to our attention, and those we have highlighted can be addressed to enhance
the democratic credentials of Cameroon.
It
is our hope that improvements will be effected in time for the next elections.
In
the meantime, it is our fervent hope that the results process will be managed
in a transparent manner and without undue delay.
