Ahmad, who goes by only one name, unseated longstanding incumbent Hayatou in the CAF Presidential election in March.

Since then he has warned Cameroon is at risk of losing the tournament due to slow progress in their preparations.

An Inspection Committee is due to conduct an eight-day visit to Cameroon from August 20 to 28 assess the current state of affairs in the country, particularly surrounding key infrastructure projects.

Hayatou claimed in an interview with a radio station that the "unpreparedness of Cameroon cannot be judged two years before the competition".

"There is an undertone when the CAF President talks about an independent evaluation team," the Cameroonian, a former senior FIFA vice-President, said. 

"This is worrying"

Hayatou's comments appear to form part of a concerted effort from Cameroonian officials to hit back at the rhetoric from the CAF President.

Embattled Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) President Tombi A Roko Sidiki has launched a scathing attack on the CAF and Ahmad, claiming it is difficult not to pay attention to "persistent rumours of a conspiracy intended to withdraw the 2019 Nations Cup hosting from Cameroon to another country".

In a wide-ranging statement, Sidiki also said there was a "smear and misinformation campaign" was being carried out against his country and questioned the validity of the upcoming inspection visit.

"FECAFOOT is deeply concerned by the fact that these remarks are made when the first CAF inspection mission scheduled for 20 to 28 August 2017 has not yet been fielded in Cameroon," he said.

"One may question the rationale of this inspection visit as the outcome seems to have already been decided at the highest level of CAF."

Sidiki again insisted they would be ready to host the 2019 tournament and stressed a programme for the construction and rehabilitation of sports infrastructure in the country had been initiated.

He pointed to the successful organisation of the African Women Cup of Nations in Cameroon in 2016 as an example of how the nation can stage major events.

The women's competition took place in Yaounde and Limbe, two cities which are due to host matches at the 2019 event, which will feature 24 teams for the first time after CAF rubber-stamped the expansion of the tournament last month.

This has also been criticised by the FECAFOOT head as he claims initiating the change immediately constitutes "changing the rules during a game".

"It is most curious that the decision was taken to immediately apply the new reforms in the organisation of the Africa Cup of Nations to AFCON 2019," said Sidiki.

"Such a situation, which unilaterally calls into question the specifications previously agreed upon between Cameroon and CAF, is tantamount to changing rules during a game.

"However, consistent jurisprudence reveals that changes in the organisation of a competition should not apply to the edition immediately following the adoption of such changes. 

"For example, the decision taken by the FIFA Board  to change the World Cup format will not apply to Russia in 2018 or Qatar in 2022."

The Cameroonian Government have repeatedly claimed they can host the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations as planned.

Morocco have already indicated they would be willing to step in should Cameroon not be able to host the event.