Ahead of 2025 presidentials: Maître Ndoki launches nationwide tour to mobilize electoral watchdog initiative

The tour aims to mobilize citizens to join Disô, an ambitious electoral monitoring initiative led by civil society group The Nation Builders Movement.

Prominent Cameroonian lawyer and activist, Maître Michèle Ndoki has embarked on a tour in the Far North, North, and Adamawa regions to mobilize citizens to play watchdog rules during the 2025 presidential. The tour will run from April 6 to May 15, 2025. The tour aims to mobilize citizens to join Disô , an ambitious electoral monitoring initiative led by civil society group The Nation Builders Movement .

It more particularly seeks to engage local communities in safeguarding electoral transparency through active citizen participation. In a recent outing to provide clarity on the reason behind the initiative, Ndoki emphasized the importance of citizen involvement in such exercise, stating that “Our democracy depends on the vigilance of its people. Disô is about reclaiming our right to free and fair elections by putting the power of oversight in the hands of ordinary Cameroonians.”

What is Disô ?

Diso, derived from local dialects meaning “witness” or “sentinel,” is a grassroots electoral observation campaign. The initiative plans to recruit and train 10,000 volunteers who will be deployed at a representative sample of polling stations nationwide during the presidential elections. According to the Nation Builders Movement, the project produces real-time, citizen-collected voting data that tracks voting patterns and identifies discrepancies.

This data aims to offer the public and international observers an early and independent picture of electoral outcomes. A spokesperson clarified that Disô is not intended to replace existing institutions, but rather to empower citizens to complement them by promoting transparency, building trust, and ensuring every voter’s voice is respected.

Ndoki brings a wealth of experience to this undertaking. A seasoned lawyer and outspoken activist, she rose to national prominence during the 2018 presidential elections, serving as legal counsel for opposition figures challenging the results. In 2019, she was imprisoned for her role in peaceful protests, a move widely criticized by human rights organizations. Since her release, Ndoki has remained a central figure in civic activism, advocating for rule of law, electoral justice, and gender equality.

Her collaboration with The Nation Builder represents a strategic shift from protest towards proactive institution-building. While speaking to students in Garoua, Ndoki expressed her hope for a future “where elections are not a source of fear but of hope,” adding that the tour is aimed at finding individuals who share that vision and are prepared to take action.

The nation builder is a relatively new but influential civic platform. Launched by four founding members, it has quickly grown into a coalition of lawyers, teachers, engineers, and grassroots organizers committed to rebuilding public trust in democratic institutions through civic education, legal empowerment, and participatory monitoring.

The Disô initiative is the movement’s most ambitious project to date, with organizers placing a strong emphasis on inclusivity and encouraging participation from all regions, age groups, and linguistic communities.

What next after tour?

Following her tour of the northern regions, Ndoki says she will continue her national mobilization campaign. Her goal is to reach the 10,000-volunteer target before the official start of the presidential election season. Volunteers will undergo training sessions covering electoral law, observation techniques, and reporting procedures, and the collected data will be independently compiled, analyzed, and shared within 24 hours of the vote.