About eight months ago, Cameroonian-born mega techpreneur Rebecca Enonchong debunked rumors that she was running for office ahead of the 2025 Cameroon Presidential elections. Is she now charging her mind?
Following the circulation of a poster across social media, the Appstech CEO didn’t hesitate to distance herself from the rumors, labeling them as “fake” while explaining why she wouldn’t be running for office even though she was flattered by the intention.
The 56-year-old, is quite influential in many works of life, particularly in the tech industry where she has been consistent with her support for African start-ups and many other endeavors. Besides her participation in tech related activities, she remains an outspoken women, who has often used her influence on X (formerly Twitter) to address societal ills and injustice in Cameroon and Africa.
With her continues criticism of the incumbent regime which still stand firm ahead of the 2025 elections, most citizens were starting to be in dreamland, suspecting that the techpreneur would launch another unprecedented challenge against Paul Biya and CPDM.
The last time a woman stood her grounds in Cameroon and ran for office, was in 2010, when 59-year-old Kah Walla, representing the Cameroon People’s Party (CPP) challenged CPDM and SDF. Well, given that women have often shied away from political affairs in the country, emerging 6th on the podium with a 0.7% of total votes, out of 20 candidates, wasn’t a bad feat for Kah Walla.
Since that time, we’re yet to see another influential woman attempt to hold the bull by the horn.
Not surprisingly, many Cameroonians were expecting that Rebecca who’s better-placed nowadays, would seize the opportunity, but even if she admits that she knows/has what it takes to run for office, she knows what she stands to lose in the process hence not ready for such a sacrifice as many things could go at stake.
“I have seen the graphic shared widely on various social media platforms which portray me as a candidate for the 2025 presidential elections in Cameroon. Although I am immensely flattered by the efforts of those involved in this campaign, I have no intention of running for political office” – Rebecca Enonchong said.
“I love the freedom of being a private citizen, of being able to speak my mind without the restrictions that an office would bring.” She added
“I am also blessed to be working on so many initiatives, commercial and non-profit, that have impact not just on Cameroonians but on Africans and people worldwide. Technology, Entrepreneurship, Global Health, Private Sector diplomacy, children’s education, are sectors I am involved in that I am able to influence as a private citizen. I will always continue to use my voice, my resources and my network to fight for social justice, prosperity for all. I just don’t need a political platform to do so.“
It’s now very clear that we will have to wait for a long time to have another woman rise up to challenge the status quo. The political atmosphere of Cameroon has been effortlessly dominated by the masculine energy and is seems like the women are giving up in that area.
