The trio preferred to take the position of Mayor, thereby surrendering the office of Member of Parliament to their alternates. The replacements took place today during the opening of the Second Ordinary Session of the National Assembly for the 2020 Legislative Year chaired by House Speaker Cavaye Yeguié Djibril.

Mme. Jiha Tankoua Epse Peyou Odile Clarisse of the Cameroon Democratic Union (CDU) has replaced Hon. Hermine Patricia Tomaino Ndam Njoya who succeeded her husband, late Adamou Ndam Njoya, as Mayor of Foumban in the Noun Division of the West region.

Two MPs of the Front for the National Salvation of Cameroon, FSNC, in the North Region also chose their Mayoral posts over their stay in the Glass House. As such, Abiassou Ernest replaced Hon. Ousmanou Aman Sa’Aly in the Bénoué – West Constituency while Ahmadou Mohamadou has replaced Hon. Boubakary Djidda in the Mayo-Louti Constituency.

Hon. Ousmanou Aman Sa’Aly stays as Mayor of Pitoa while replaced Hon. Boubakary Djidda is Mayor of Mayo Oulo.

Section 4 (2) of the Standing Orders of the National Assembly provides that: “The office of Member of the National Assembly shall be incompatible with State remunerated public duties. Consequently, any public officer elected to the National Assembly shall be immediately replaced. In addition, he shall be placed on secondment at the Parliament where, a month following his election, he does not indicate that he declines the office of Member of the National Assembly.”

Law N° 2012/001 of 19 April 2012 relating to the electoral code, amended and supplemented by law n° 2012/017 of 21 December 2012 also addresses issues of incompatibilities in its sections 162 and 163:

SECTION 162.-  (1) The office of Member of Parliament shall be incompatible with the office of member of Government or of persons ranking as such, member of the Constitutional Council and of member of the Economic and Social Council.

(2) The office of Member of Parliament shall further be incompatible with the office of Senator, mayor, government delegate to a city council, president of a regional council, with any other nonelective public office and with the duties of president of a consular chamber, board chairperson or with the status of wage earner in a public establishment or public and semi-public enterprise.

SECTION 163.-(1) The occupation of one of the posts referred to in Section 162 above shall render the parliamentary seat vacant.

(2) No Member of Parliament shall cause or allow his name to be followed by any reference to his capacity as Parliamentarian in any advertisement concerning a financial, industrial or commercial undertaking.