Cameroonians of voting age who missed the first round of biometric registration on voters' lists are expected to have another chance as from today, May 22, 2013 according to a press release by the Director General of Elections, Mohaman Sani Tanimou signed on May 16, 2013. The release specifies that all council branches across the country will restart the exercise that will only fold up with the convening of the Electoral College for upcoming Municipal and Parliamentary elections.
Council branches on May 21, 2013 were upbeat about the success of the exercise. The Yaounde III ELECAM Council Office showed a rather serene atmosphere. Workers went on with daily chores while waiting for their boss to come back from a meeting with sufficient information as to how the exercise is going to look like. At the Centre Regional Branch Office of the country's independent electoral commission, Elections Cameroon (ELECAM) things were taking shape. A fleet of registration kits welcomed visitors to the main hall of the building. Cartons of voters' cards were also on hand as Council Office Heads and collaborators received briefing on the distribution of cards and at the same time ensured that registration kits and cards were transported to their various branches.
Information garnered talked of a general mobilisation for smooth registration. "We do not have time to waste," Aboubakar Garba, Council Head for ELECAM VI around the Municipal Lake in Yaounde noted. He explained that his aides have been briefed on the start of the exercise and as of now had only two worries; that of making sure that remaining potential voters have their names on voters' registers and that cards available are distributed. Bearing in mind the challenge, the Council Branch Head for Yaounde I Subdivision at Rue Draggages, Mballa II, Yves Bertrand Pierre Zanga, said things were almost set. He however noted that registration operators will no longer go to the field like before. "Registration will henceforth be carried out only in our council branch offices," he emphasised.
As at press time, other Council branch Heads like Marie-Claire Bipan of the Yaounde V Subdivision in Nkolmesseng and Hyacinthe Ambela of Mengang Council area in the Nyong and Mfoumou Division of the Centre Region, uploaded kits and cartons for onward transportation. Joseph Ambah of the Yaounde VII Subdivision at Monté Camp Sonel, Oyomabang had sent his material and was ready for today's exercise. The card distribution exercise for the Centre Region will be launched at the premises of ELECAM Regional Office for the Centre.
Registration kits re-deployed to council branch offices have been cleared of all data. The first round of registration that started in October 2012 and curtains drawn on March 29, 2013 after benefiting from a one month period of grace, had 5,454,459 Cameroonians registered. Out of the number, figures from the Directorate General of Elections show that men took the lead with over 2,857,161 and 2,597,298 women.
