It seems like every few years, we have this same topic of conversation around speculation of the death of Cameroon’s long-time president Paul Biya. This time round the 91-year-old president has not been seen for around one month at this stage, and it has raised speculation that he may have already died, and that the Cameroonian government may be refusing to acknowledge that fact to the public.
However, yesterday the Cameroonian government came out to dispel the rumours and have insisted that Paul Biya is in fact still alive and is just receiving care in Geneva, Switzerland. Cameroon’s government spokesperson, René Sadi, even insisted that President Biya would return home within the next few days, according to the BBC. Whether or not the President is still alive, we will likely only know within the next few weeks.
The Cameroonian President was last seen in public while attending the China-Africa summit in September, according to the BBC. He has since gone on to miss other high profile public gatherings of world leaders, such as the UN General Assembly, and he recently missed the meeting of La Francophonie. Which has caused a flurry of speculation that he may have already died.
Now, the point of this piece is not to speculate about the well-being of the Cameroonian President, there is obviously no way of knowing for sure without seeing him first. However, that doesn’t stop us from lamenting about the fact that this sort of speculation keeps happening in the first place. Paul Biya has been president of Cameroon ever since 1982. That means he has been President of Cameroon for around 42 years,
That means that Cameroon’s president has been in power for almost twice as long as I have been alive. Moreover, the median age in Cameroon is currently 17 years old. Meaning, for the majority of Cameroonians, Paul Biya’s presidency is all they have known all their lives. At 91 years old, he is the oldest sitting president in Africa and in the world. It is difficult to imagine how or why anybody would insist on remaining in power, even at 91 years old, but those are African leaders for you.
These extended periods of absence are not even anything new for the Biya administration. In fact, that has pretty much been the norm for many years at this stage. At this stage, he is as much a resident of Geneva, where he regularly receives treatment, as he is of Cameroon. However, despite his apparent health challenges, it is clear he aims to remain in power for as long as he can. Cameroon’s next presidential election is set to hold in November 2025, and Paul Biya (if he is indeed still alive) will most likely seek to extend his term for another 7 years.
Let’s be honest, there is no reason why a 91-year-old man should be president of any country. This year, in the United States, President Joe Biden had been effectively forced out of his nomination by his party over concerns about his age. And yet if you were to compare Joe Biden, at 82, to Paul Biya in terms of their energy and the amount of work they get done, the contrast is basically night and day. Yet Republican politicians have been for years referring to Joe Biden as senile. If Joe Biden is senile, (which he isn’t) how would they then characterise Paul Biya? Who is nowhere near as active.
Also, it is not as if President Biya is this highly popular figure within Cameroon. It’s not like Cameroon today, after decades of his leadership is a thriving nation. They face many of the same difficulties as other countries in the region with corruption, poverty, conflict, etc. One could hardly declare that the “elections” that have been held over the last few decades have been free and fair either. Cameroonian elections are widely considered to be undemocratic by most observers.
And yet despite all these problems, for the past 42 years Paul Biya has sought to maintain his grip on power. And if he is still indeed “in excellent health” as Cameroonian government officials have claimed, it doesn’t look like that will change anytime soon.