Cameroon’s President Paul Biya started his seventh term as head of state after being sworn in.
Biya, 85, who won the October 7 presidential election with a 71 percent margin of the vote, now sets out on a seven year term amid concerns over how the poll was conducted.
Cameroon’s speaker of the National Assembly Cavaye Yeguie Djibril, administered the oath of office, urging Cameroonians to recognize the legitimacy of the president.
“All Cameroonians recognize you as the president of the republic. With you Cameroonians live in peace and freedom,” Djirbil said as he presided over the swearing in ceremony.
The BBC reports that Biya, who has been president for the past 36 years, pledged to uphold the “integrity” and “unity”.
The swearing in comes just a day after 80 people, mostly students were kidnapped in the country’s North-West Region.
Since October last year, armed separatists have been seeking the independence of North-West and Southwest, the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon.
More than 300,000 people have fled the violence in the North-West and South-West regions with some crossing the border into Nigeria since the conflict started in 2016.
