3.8.2026
Despite being absent from office and out of the country since June, Cameroon government officials have dismissed speculations President Paul Biya is sick and receiving treatment in Geneva, Switzerland.
Cameroonians have been apprehensive on what has become of their 93-year-old leader and are asking the government to tell the people the true state of his health.
But speaking to Radio France International, Cameroon’s minister of communication and government spokesperson, René Emmanuel Sadi, said Mr. Biya will soon be back in the country to continue as President and there was no question of looking for a successor.
“The question of a vacancy in the office of Head of State should not even arise,” Sadi said.
“President Paul Biya is alive. President Paul Biya has not resigned – that must be stated clearly. President Paul Biya will soon return to Cameroon; therefore, at this stage, there are no grounds to speak of a vacancy in the leadership of the State,” he insisted.
According to Sadi, this matter is clearly governed by Cameroon’s Constitution, “which explicitly defines the conditions under which a vacancy can be said to exist”, and should therefore not worry citizens.
“The Constitution cites death, resignation, and permanent incapacity – all of which must be formally established beforehand by the Constitutional Council,” he added.
However, he did not state exactly why Mr. Biya had stayed away for a very long neither did he confirm or deny whether he is in Geneva hospital or hotel.
“I cannot tell you exactly when President Paul Biya is returning. And even if I knew, it is not my place to announce it here. I can at least tell you that he is coming back very soon,” Sadi told RFI.
Opposition party MRC general secretary and communication director Maurice Kamto told RFI that the lack of transparency regarding the President’s stay in Europe shows a lack of respect for the Cameroonian people.
“Why distort the electoral process only to spend weeks upon weeks outside our country? If he is indeed facing health issues, the Cameroonian people have a right to know; there is no reason to maintain ambiguity regarding the President of the Republic’s state of health.”
Biya, 92, was reelected in October last year, winning an eighth term, supposed to keep him in power for another seven-year mandate until 2032. He would be almost 100.
But the vote was marred by accusations of fraud and by violence.
Cameroon’s Biya re-elected despite deadly protests and claims of fraud
He has ruled since 1982, removed presidential term limits in 2008, and has never lost an election.
Cameroon President Paul Biya...