John Fru Ndi, leader of Cameroon’s main opposition party and critic of president, dies at 81

YAOUNDE, Cameroon (AP) — John Fru Ndi, the leader of Cameroon’s opposition Social Democratic Front and one of the party’s founders, has died after a prolonged illness. He was 81.

The party said Fru Ndi, who had been battling health issues for months, died late on Monday at his residence in the capital, Yaounde, a month ahead of his 82nd birthday in July.

“It is with sadness that we announce the transition into eternal glory of the National Chairman of the (party),” Joshua Osh, the party’s vice president, said on Tuesday.

An influential figure, Fru Ndi was one of the founders of the Social Democratic Front in 1990 and a prominent opponent of Cameroon’s longtime President Paul Biya.

He went up against Biya in three elections — losing each one — and more recently, became a strong critic of the president’s handling of the country’s crisis following the 2017 rebellion of English-speaking separatists.