Supporters celebrated 42 years of Cameroonian President Paul Biya’s leadership on Wednesday, organizing rallies, special broadcasts, and calls for an eighth term in office. This comes just two weeks after the 91-year-old president returned from a six-week absence, which fueled widespread speculation about his health.
The secretary general of the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (RDPC), Jean Nkuete, urged party members to unify behind Biya for the country’s stability and progress. In a recent letter, Nkuete praised Biya’s “remarkable achievements” and called for an end to “malicious rumors” about the president, who took office in 1982 following Ahmadou Ahidjo’s resignation.
“The Cameroonian people respect age and wisdom,” the letter continued, advocating for Biya to seek another term next October, highlighting his status as one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders.
In response, some RDPC branches quickly expressed support. In the west, activists and supporters signed a motion inviting “all Cameroonians, regardless of political affiliation, to endorse President Paul Biya’s candidacy.” Meanwhile, in the southern town of Ebolowa, during a documentary screening on “Paul Biya, a great statesman with a remarkable destiny,” Higher Education Minister and RDPC communications official Jacques Fame Ndongo publicly called for Biya to run again.
Despite the enthusiasm among his supporters, Biya has remained silent on his intentions and has not named a successor, a sensitive topic. Following the controversial 2018 elections, Biya intensified his authoritarian control, with dissent facing repression, arrests, and imprisonment, according to human rights activists.
His recent absence, which began after the China-Africa cooperation summit in Beijing in September, raised many questions. Amid swirling rumors about his health, authorities issued a statement on October 8, asserting that Biya was well, working from Switzerland, and would return soon. Biya reappeared in Cameroon on October 21 to a warm welcome from his party, with First Lady Chantal and presidential secretary general Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh greeting him at the Yaounde airport, where a lift for passengers with reduced mobility was visible.
Since his return, Biya has signed several decrees, including military appointments, signaling his continued control, say his supporters. RDPC deputy secretary Gregoire Owona affirmed on state television that Biya “is working tirelessly for his country” and remains fully engaged with its issues.
In recently released photos, Biya, smiling, met with Gabon’s high commissioner at the presidential palace—the only images of him since his return. Meanwhile, over 50 pages in the latest issue of Time of Opportunity, a magazine from the presidency’s civil office, detail Biya’s “vigorous” diplomatic engagements. Reflecting on Biya’s enduring rule, CRTV chief Charles Ndongo, writing in the Cameroon Tribune, attributed it to “absence, distance, and silence.”
