Cameroon’s 91-year-old President Paul Biya has not been seen since he attended the China-Africa summit in Beijing last month.
His absence from the public eye since early September has not gone unnoticed, sparking rumours the African leader is in poor health or even dead.
Over several weeks, President Biya has missed several key engagements, including the UN General Assembly summit in New York and a meeting of French-speaking countries in Viller Cotterêts.
Cameroon’s ambassador in Paris André Magnus Ekoumou attempted to quell speculation surrounding the President’s well-being by reporting he is in “good health” and currently in Geneva.
On Tuesday, Cameroon’s government broke its silence over the President and issued a formal denial of his illness or death, but Biya has still not made a public appearance.
Government spokesperson René Emmanuel Sadi issued a statement declaring the current theories around the President’s health “are the stuff of fantasy and pure imagination of their authors”.
Director of the President’s Civil Cabinet Samuel Mvondo Ayolo followed suit, warning the rumours are being perpetrated by “a few malicious individuals”.
He added: “The Civil Cabinet wishes to reassure all our compatriots about the excellent state of health of the Head of State, who is working and attending to his duties in Geneva, from where he has never left since his arrival from Beijing.”
However, he failed to provide an exact date for the President’s return to Cameroon, indicating only that the leader would arrive in the “next few days”.
If Biya does return alive and well to Cameroon over the coming days, it would not be the first time the President has defied rumours of his own death.
In 2004, Biya was reported dead and the rumour was met with silence from authorities.
A few days later, after allowing tensions to build, Biya reappeared on the tarmac of Yaoundé-Nsimalen International Airport, coincidentally arriving from Geneva.
Greeted by the crowd, Biya proclaimed: “The ghost salutes you.”
He went on to win the presidential election which took place in the months following, leading some to speculate his grand return to Cameroon was part of an elaborate publicity stunt.
However, the next presidential election in Cameroon is due to take place in October 2025, which brings into question the benefits of repeating the same stunt so far ahead of the next major vote.
