EDITORIAL : CPDM, a fool at forty!

The adage goes, “A fool at forty is a fool for life,” the same could be said of the low-achieving Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) party. March 24, 2025, marks the CPDM’s fortieth year since its creation in the Grassfields town of Bamenda. For the last four decades, Cameroon’s ruling party has been monopolizing power and entrenching an autocratic system under its long-time leader, Paul Biya.
Forty years down the line, the party claims to have achieved much, but many remain dissatisfied, desiring more from the CPDM.
Under Biya’s watch, Cameroon has plunged into an era of severe governance decay, marked by corruption, human rights violations, and economic stagnation. The party’s commitment to democracy, a term that ironically forms part of its name, remains questionable. The CPDM has never experienced a democratic transition of leadership at the top. Paul Biya, now 92, has clung to power, refusing to step aside even as calls grow louder for generational change. His leadership has been characterized by fraudulent elections, the use of state resources to maintain power, and an increasing reliance on military repression.
The CPDM’s methods of securing election victories have remained controversial. Over the years, reports of voter suppression, ballot stuffing, and intimidation have become commonplace. ELECAM lacks independence, and opposition voices are systematically silenced. Many observers argue that Biya’s rule is maintained through coercion rather than popular legitimacy.
The high rate of human rights violations, as documented by international organizations, further taints the last forty years in a grim light. In June of 2023 alone, at least 25 people were killed, 20 houses burnt down, and 2,500 people displaced due to armed violence in the village of Kedjom Keku, North-West region, according to the OCHA. Political opponents, journalists, and activists have been imprisoned, tortured, or even assassinated for daring to speak against the regime. Amnesty International reports that at least two journalists were murdered in 2023. Press freedom is almost non-existent, and CRTV – the state-controlled media, continues to peddle government propaganda while independent outlets are shut down or censored by the National Communication Council (NCC), another government censorship mechanism.
Meanwhile, corruption thrives, with Cameroon frequently ranking among the most corrupt countries in the world in almost every index. In 2024 Cameroon ranked amongst the 40 most corrupt nations out of 180, according to the Corruption Perception Index of Transparency Internationally. Public funds disappear into the pockets of political elites, while essential services such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure development suffer.
For Anglophones, the CPDM’s forty years in power have been a tale of betrayal and suffering. Ironically, the party was founded in Bamenda, the largest Anglophone city, yet the town and its people have borne the brunt of the regime’s failures and repression. The ongoing Anglophone Crisis, which escalated into an armed conflict in 2016, is a direct result of decades of political and economic marginalization under the CPDM. Rather than addressing the root causes of the crisis, Biya’s government and his CPDM opted for militarization, leading to the killing of at least 6,000 by both government and armed groups says a 2024 Human Rights Watch report. The displacement of over half a million people asserts the Norwegian Refugee Council, and the destruction of villages in the North West and South West regions. Bamenda, the CPDM’s birthplace, now lies in ruins, a stark metaphor for the party’s legacy in Anglophone Cameroon.
Under the CPDM’s watch, Anglophones have remained an unheard and suppressed minority. Superficial measures such as the so-called “special status” for the English-speaking regions have done little to address deep-seated grievances. Instead, the continued crackdowns on Anglophone activists and civilians have only fueled calls for secession. Today, the idea of a united Cameroon seems more fragile than ever, with the country more divided along linguistic and regional lines than when the CPDM took power.
This same conflict has paralyzed the education sector in the Anglophone regions, keeping thousands of children out of school for years. Several school campuses have either been abandoned or repurposed into military bases, making it clear that under Biya’s leadership, war and repression take precedence over education and youth empowerment.
As CPDM members gather across the country to mark forty years of their party’s existence, their celebrations in the English-speaking regions will, as always, be attended by disconnected elites who do not reside in their constituencies. These officials will make brief appearances before retreating to the safety of Yaoundé, escorted by military convoys. The gap between the ruling elite and the suffering masses has never been wider.
Meanwhile, unemployment continues to rise, standing at 3.65% in 2023 as the CPDM recycles the same aging elites in government, leaving no space for younger, competent leaders. Cameroon’s youth, despite their high educational achievements, see no future in a system where meritocracy is ignored in favor of nepotism and tribal favoritism.
In the end, Cameroonians yearn for basic amenities: good roads, clean cities, access to potable water, and a stable electricity supply. The fortieth anniversary of the CPDM is not just a moment for celebration—it is a time for critical reflection on four decades of broken promises. Anglophones, in particular, have little to commemorate. The much-publicized Limbe Deep Sea Port, along with numerous other pledges made to the Anglophone community, remain unfulfilled. The CPDM’s legacy is one of division, economic hardship, and institutionalized oppression.
At forty, the CPDM has solidified its reputation as an incompetent and oppressive regime, incapable of fostering national unity or genuine development. As the saying goes, “A fool at forty is a fool for life”—a statement that rings truer than ever for Biya’s party and his crumbling dictatorship.