Cameroon’s 91-year-old President, Paul Biya, is in good health, according to a government statement released on Tuesday. The statement called the widespread rumors about his health “pure fantasy.” Biya has not been seen in public since attending a China-Africa forum in Beijing in early September, and his absence from a summit in France last weekend sparked speculation regarding his condition.
“Rumors of all kinds have been circulating through the media and social networks about the president’s health,” said government spokesperson Rene Sadi. “The Government unequivocally states that these rumors are pure fantasy… and hereby issues a formal denial.”
Opposition parties and civil society groups have been calling for an update on Biya’s health and his whereabouts. According to Sadi, after the China visit, Biya paid a private visit to Europe. “The head of state is in good health and will be returning to Cameroon in the coming days,” he added.
Biya’s absence from the French-speaking leaders’ summit in Paris was notably discussed at the event. One African minister, who requested anonymity, remarked, “He’s over 90, he hasn’t been involved in day-to-day business for a long time, but if he dies, the situation is likely to get out of hand.”
With no clear succession plan in place, the potential death of Biya would cause significant political turmoil. “No one has prepared for the aftermath. We don’t know what Cameroon would be like without Paul Biya,” the minister said.
Cameroon, a major cocoa and oil producer, has experienced political instability in recent years due to a secessionist war that has killed thousands and a violent Boko Haram insurgency in the north. The country has only had two presidents since gaining independence from France and Britain in the early 1960s.
