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Cameroon's Minister of the Interior Paul Atanga Nji has announced that political opponent Tchiroma Bakary will be prosecuted over allegations that he incited "violent post-election demonstrations".

At least four demonstrators have been lost their lives during clashes between police and military and opposition supporters since the electoral process on October 12, with 92-year-old President Paul Biya winning an eighth presidential mandate.

The opposition leader maintains that he won the election, a assertion rejected by Biya's ruling party, the Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM).

Aggressive responses by police and security officers on demonstrators have alarmed the world leaders, with the United Nations, AU and European Union urging restraint.

Minister's Claims

On Tuesday, Nji charged Tchiroma Bakary of coordinating what he described as "unlawful" protests causing the fatalities, and also condemned him for claiming win in the presidential race.

He noted that Tchiroma Bakary's "accomplices behind an subversive plot" will also undergo judicial processes.

Vote Outcome

The president, who assumed office in the early 80s and is now the most elderly national leader, obtained the 12 October presidential election with a majority of the votes, compared to a significant minority for the challenger, according to the electoral authority.

Opposition Response

Tchiroma Bakary is yet to respond to the government's decision to bring him to court, but he had earlier declared that he rejected a rigged election - and that he was undaunted of being taken into custody.

On election result day, he reported that security forces used lethal force on protesters gathered near his home in the city of Garoua, causing the death of at least 2 individuals.

Inquiry Revealed

Recently, the interior minister announced that an inquiry would be launched into violent incidents prior to and following the publication of the vote outcome.

"In the course of these incidents, some of the perpetrators lost their lives," he stated, without providing a precise figure of protesters who have been fatally injured in the clashes.

Nji added that a number of personnel of the security forces also sustained serious injuries.

Current Situation

Although the interior minister asserted the situation across the country was now stable, protesters continue to protest in some parts of the nation, especially in Douala and Garoua, where protesters mounted barricades on Tuesday, and ignited tires on the thoroughfares.

Analysts alert that the post-electoral violence could push the nation into a governmental instability.