(MENAFN) Cameroon’s long-time president, Paul Biya, has been officially declared the winner of the country’s October 12 election, earning 53.66% of the vote and extending his rule for another seven years, until he is nearly 100 years old.

The Constitutional Council announced the results on Monday, placing main challenger Issa Tchiroma Bakary second with 35.19%. Tchiroma, who resigned as transport and communication minister in June to run for office, had earlier declared himself the winner based on his party’s own tallies.

Tensions flared over the weekend, with four people killed in Douala when opposition supporters defied protest bans and clashed with security forces. Unrest continued on Monday, as Tchiroma reported that snipers killed two people outside his residence in Garoua. A local journalist told a news agency that “a number of people” were shot near the opposition leader’s home.

At 92, Biya is the world’s oldest serving head of state and Africa’s second longest-ruling leader, after Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Nguema. He has governed since 1982 and removed presidential term limits in 2008, paving the way for his continued rule.

In his victory statement, Biya acknowledged “the weight of the responsibility” placed upon him and called for unity in building a peaceful and prosperous Cameroon.

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