Forty-nine days. That’s the time Paul Biya has been away from Cameroun, a number that equals his longest absence in 2024. Left on June 7 for a private trip to Europe, the 93-year-old president has not reappeared in public since. The writing staff in Yaoundé are counting down and growing anxious.
Scenario That Resembles a Misunderstanding
The president is currently believed to be staying at an hotel in Geneva, just like last year. The government tried to cut short the rumors. On June 18, Communications Minister René Emmanuel Sadi denied any hospitalization of Paul Biya at a Geneva clinic.
No recent image has come to confirm this denial. It’s the least one can say.
Sunday, on Droit de Réponse plateau aired on Equinoxe TV, an RDPC activist Lucien Bidima claimed to have personally visited the InterContinental hotel in Geneva. He said he saw a ‘very fit’ president, fully active. However, no visual proof accompanied this declaration, neither a photo nor a video. It’s hard not to see it as a simple PR operation.
Chantal Biya Takes Center Stage and a Constitutional Void
This time, what’s different is Chantal Biya’s growing involvement in state affairs. Several media outlets describe her as increasingly involved in managing the country’s files. Her name even circulates around some nominations. Her constant presence alongside the president during Swiss trips fuels the idea that access to the head of state may now pass through her.
The problem is, Cameroon still doesn’t have a vice-president.
When the president vacates power, it’s the Senate President Aboubakary Abdoulaye who must assume the interim. A constitutional mechanism that has never been tested in this exact situation and which worries part of the political class. We don’t yet know if this absence marks a turning point or just another pause in Paul Biya’s term. But the climate, already tense for several months, is not calming down.
