A well respected intellectual and independently minded jurist, Kamto is the kind of candidate that President Paul Biya, who celebrated 30 years in power on 6 November, might not like to face.

If he did not present a threat, the regime could leave him alone.

However, since he stepped down from his post as minister of state for justice, where he worked on negotiations between Cameroon and Nigeria on the Bakassi Peninsula in November 2011, the ruling party and local officials have tried to cancel his press conferences and limit his access to the media.

Kamto was one of the first ministers to step down from government, with most of those who have fallen out with Biya becoming the subject of court procedures and anti-corruption investigations.

In August, Kamto founded an umbrella opposition group, the Mouvement pour la Renaissance du Cameroun, but is faced with the challenge of building up a national base.