| Cameroun, Conseil constitutionnel, 19 décembre 2019, 18/SRCER/G/SG/CC/2019

RULING N° 18/SRCER/G/SG/CC/2019 OF 19” DECEMBER 2019 Between:
1.CAMEROON PEOPLE’S AG
AX (CPDM)
2.ABE MICHAEL NDRA —eccoccceccecec00. PETITIONERS
AND
1) ELECTIONS CAMEROON (ELECAM)
2) SOCIAL AG AO (SDF)
3) CHENU EUGENE WACHU
4) MANU ROSELINE MWABE —eccococeccacececcncncccncacecencec00u000 RESPONDENTS
The Ao Bh,
Mindful of the Constitution;
Mindful of law n° 2004/004 of 21/04/2004 to lay down the organization and functioning of the Constitutional Council, as amended by law n° 2012/015 of 21/12/2012;
Mindful of decree n° 2018/104 of 7/02/2018 to lay down the organization and functioning of the Ah Ba of the Constitutional Council;
Mindful of decree n° 2018/105 of 7/02/2018 appointing the Members of the Constitutional Council;
Mindful of decree n° 2018/106 of 7/02/2018 appointing the President of the Constitutional Council;
Mindful of decree n° 2018/170 of 23/02/2018 appointing the Ah Ba of the Constitutional Council;
Mindful of decree n° 2019/612 of 10/11/2019 to convene the electoral college in view of the election of Members of the National Be;
Mindful of the Petition of ABE MICHAEL NDRA;
Upon listening to the report of Ad AY Z, the Rapporteur;
Considering that this ruling is premised on a petition dated 11/12/2019, received on the 12/12/2019, and registered under n° 047/G/SG/CC at the Registry of the Ah Ba of this Ag Bh, wherein one Mr ABE As AQ, a candidate of the CPDM for Ab Bd Al An Ao (AKO- MISAJE) for the Am 9, 2020 Legislative Elections seized the Constitutional Council for the disqualification of the list of the SOCIAL AG AO (SDF) Party in Donga-Mantung West Special Constituency (AKO-MISAJE) for the Am 9, 2020 Legislative Elections by virtue of section 151 (3) of the Electoral
Considering that the petition is in the following words:
“BEFORE THE CONSTITUTIONAL COUNCIL
HOLDEN AT YAOUNDE
AR AT’S AG AX (CPDM)
ABE MICHAEL NDRA —eccocccessecccc000 PETITIONER
AND
1. ELECTIONS CAMEROON (ELECAM)
2. SOCIAL AG AO (SDF)
3. CHENU EUGENE WACHU
4. MANU ROSELINE MWABE..... RESPONDENTS
PETITION FOR THE DISQUALIFICATION OF THE LIST OF THE SDF
PARTY IN DONGA-MANTUNG WEST SPECIAL CONSTITUENCY, BY
VIRTUE OF SECTION 151 (3) OF LAW NO. 2012/001 OF 19" APRIL 2012
RELATING TO THE ELECTORAL CODE AS AMENDED BY LAW NO.
2021/017 OF 21°" DECEMBER 2012.
MAY IT PLEASE YOUR LORDSHIPS I, Mr. ABE MICHAEL, candidate of the AR AT's AG AX (CPDM) from the Ab Bd Al An Ao (AKO-MISAJE) for the Am 9” 2020 Legislative Elections is the petitioner before this Honourable Constitutional Council.
Your Lordships, I ask that this Honourable Constitutional Council should disqualify the Social AG AO (SDF) list validated by Elections Cameroon (ELECAM) in our constituency, for flagrantly violating the extant provisions of Section 151 (3) of the Electoral Code which states emphatically that:
Section 151 (3): “Each list shall take into consideration the various sociological components of the constituency. It shall also take into consideration gender aspects.”
Your Lordships, a close look at the persons in the list submitted by the SDF, to wit, CHENU EUGENE WACHU (substantive candidate, indigene and resident of Ako Sub-Division) and MANU ROSELINE NWABE (alternate candidate, indigene and resident of Ako Sub-Division), reveals that both of the candidates are from the same sociological and geographical location.
This is a serious abnormality and first of the kind in our special constituency, which is made up of two (02) sub-divisions, namely Ako Sub-Division and Misaje Sub- Division.
Your Lordships, since the inception of the two Sub-Divisions, there has never been a such a situation whereby the substantive and alternate members of parliament have come from one Sub-Division.
Your Lordships, such a list was poorly confectioned, and deliberately took two candidates from Ako Sub-Division, leaving Misaje Sub-Division in the cold.
In fact, we call on this Honourable Constitutional Council to review the Certificate of Residence that was issued to the said candidates by the Bf Ap of Ako Sub-Division, before they subsequently submitted same to ELECAM.
Your Lordships, I submit that such a situation is a violation of the electoral law, is incurably bad and should be sanctioned immediately.
Consequently, Your Lordships, I Mr. ABE MICHAEL, candidate of the AR AT's AG AX (CPDM) and the CPDM party, is hereby requesting the disqualification of the Social AG AO (SDF) list on the basis of the manifest and flagrant violation of the spirit and letter of our subsisting electoral law.
AM AL
Au, 11” day of December 2019
ABE MICHAEL NDRA”;
Considering that the Respondents were duly served with the petition as required by law and they waived their rights to reply accorded them by Section 133(3) of the Electoral Code;
Considering that this left this Ag Bh to base its findings on the admissibility and merits of the petition only on the wordings ex facie the petition;
On the admissibility
Considering that for a petition pertaining to the election of Members of Parliament to be admissible, the mandatory provisions of Section 129 of the Electoral Code must be fulfilled;
Considering that Section 129 of the Electoral Code states:
“Objections or petitions relating to the rejection or acceptance of candidates, as well as those relating to the colour, initials or emblem adopted by a candidate may be brought before the Constitutional Council by any candidate or political party taking part in the election or any person serving as a Government representative in the said election, within a maximum period of 2 (two) days following the publication of the list of candidates”;
Considering that the Petitioner in the instant case is a candidate of the AR AT’s AG AX (CPDM) for the Ab Bd Al An Ao (AKO-MISAJE) for the Am 9th 2020 Legislative Elections and had filed this petition within the ambit of Section 129 of the Electoral Code. There is no doubt that he has fulfilled these provisions, thus, his petition is admissible;
On the merits
Considering that the Petitioner alleges that there’s a flagrant violation of the extant provisions of Section 151(3) of the Electoral Code which states:
“Each list shall take into consideration the various sociological components of the constituency. Ît shall also take into consideration gender aspects”,
Considering that the Petitioner says CHENU EUGENE WACHU and MANU ROSELINE MWABE respectively substantive and alternate candidates of the Social AG AO (SDF) for the Ab Bd Al An Ao (AKO- MISAJE) for the Am 9th 2020 Legislative Elections are indigenes and residents of Ako Sub Division, thus, of the same sociological and geographical location whereas the constituency is made up of two sub divisions, namely, Ako and Misaje. Grounds on which he urges this Ag Bh to disqualify the list for violating the sociological component of the constituency;
Considering that Section 130(4) of the Electoral Code obliges the Petitioner to tender proof of his allegation under pain of rejection of his petition;
Considering that in effect, this section states: “Under pain of rejection, petitions shall specify the alleged facts and means”;
Considering that the Petitioner has not tendered any document to support his allegations before this Council and has thus failed to meet the mandatory provisions of Section 130(4) of the Electoral Code ubi supra;
Considering that his allegation is therefore considered gratia dictum and his petition is consequently rejected for want of evidence;
UPON THESE GROUNDS
The Constitutional Council, after a full hearing in open Court on pre-electoral petitions, with the unanimous vote of its Members;
4. Declares the Petition of ABE MICHAEL NDRA admissible;
5. Rejects the Petition on the merits for want of evidence;
6. Orders service forthwith of this Ruling to the At Aj and to the parties concerned, and its publication in the Aq Ak
Bg decided and pronounced in open Court the same day, month and year as above in the Court Hall of the Constitutional Council.
Mr. Clément ATANGANA,
President;
Messrs:
C X Ac
Ad AY Z
Ai Af B Y
Bi AS
Mrs: Ax Aw AW Messrs:
Bb Aa A AV
AN AJ
Ay Az AI
Ae AK
Councillors/Members
And with the assistance of Mr. HAMADJODA, Interim Registrar-In-Chief and Mrs Ar Av AU épouse Bc AZ, Registrar-In- Attendance;
In the presence of Mr. AP Ai AH, Secretary-General.
In witness whereof, this present Ruling has been signed by the President, the Secretary-General and countersigned by the Registrar-In-Chief.