The National Assembly of Cameroon adopted on March 23, 2026, a bill extending the mandate of deputies until December 20, 2026. This decision comes despite protests from the opposition, which denounces a violation of the laws. The Speaker of the Assembly, Théodore Datouo, formalized the adoption at the end of a plenary session in the presence of deputies and the Minister Delegate to the Presidency in charge of relations with the assemblies, François Bolvine Wakata. The latter defended the text, relying on Article 15(4) of the Constitution.
According to François Bolvine Wakata, this extension is justified by the events that occurred during the presidential election of October 12, 2026, in particular the destruction of public buildings, including the premises of Elections Cameroon (Elecam). The extension aims to allow Elecam to reorganize for the next elections and to reduce the financial burden related to the elections for the state budget.
However, this justification did not convince some members of the opposition. MP Jean Michel Nintcheu called the government's explanatory memorandum an "insult to national intelligence," pointing out that it was a copy-paste of the one used to justify the extension of the previous year. He accuses the government of fancifully interpreting Article 15(4) of the Constitution for electoral purposes and of taking advantage of the post-election situation to extend its mandate.
Politician Abdouraman Hamadou Babba also challenged the constitutionality of this extension and seized the Constitutional Council to obtain clarification on the reasoned opinion that led to this decision. He wants the Constitutional Council to communicate to him the reasoned opinion by which it declared to the President of the Republic that the reasons for the second extension of the mandate of the deputies comply with the Constitution.
Despite these challenges, the bill was adopted in the National Assembly and is expected to be endorsed by the Senate, largely dominated by the ruling party, before being promulgated by the Head of State. This extension of the deputies' mandate comes after a first extension voted in July 2024, initially postponing the end of their mandate from March 2025 to March 30, 2026. The deputies were elected in January 2020 for an initial five-year term.
