Léopold Bessiping, leader of the Rassemblement des Forces Écologiques pour la Relance de l’Économie (RFERE), arrived at the Palais des Congrès in Yaoundé determined to defend his place on the ballot for Cameroon’s 12 October presidential election. By the end of Monday’s session, his hopes had been dashed.
The Constitutional Council dismissed his petition, ruling it inadmissible. For Bessiping, the decision was less a surprise than a confirmation of what he had long suspected.
“I was expecting it… I was unfairly suspended because I created a political party. They reinstated me late, which ruined my chances. I even filed a complaint against the State for this abuse. I knew this appeal would be dismissed,” he said shortly after leaving the chamber.
Bessiping’s troubles began when he was suspended from political activity in what he claims was retaliation for forming his own party. By the time the suspension was lifted, he says, the damage to his presidential ambitions was irreversible. His attempt to convince the Constitutional Council to overturn his exclusion was his final card and it did not play in his favour.
Despite the setback, Bessiping’s profile as an ecological and economic reform advocate has grown in recent months. His party, RFERE, champions a platform centred on environmental protection, sustainable resource management, and a green‑driven economic revival. Supporters say his exclusion robs the race of a voice committed to an alternative vision for Cameroon’s development.
For now, Bessiping remains defiant. He has filed a separate legal action in the Mfoundi Court, challenging the State over what he calls abuse and wrongful exclusion from the race. While that battle unfolds, the Constitutional Council’s ruling means he will not be on the ballot this October — a political blow that underscores the high stakes and harsh realities of Cameroon’s pre‑election legal wars.
By Bakah Derick for Hilltopvoices Newsroom
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