Cameroon’s veteran leader Paul Biya, photographed in April at one of his last public engagements, has been away from the country for nearly 60 days. The 93-year-old president reshuffled key military posts on Monday from Geneva amid growing concern over his prolonged stay abroad.
He appointed officials to key positions within the army and promoted five colonels to the rank of brigadier general. One of those promoted was Raymond Jean Charles Beko'o Abondo, who was immediately reappointed as commander of the elite presidential guard, responsible for protecting Biya, a position he has held since 2013.
Why are the changes drawing attention?
Such shake-ups are not unusual under Biya’s administration, especially during periods of intense public scrutiny or perceived weakness. But the circumstances surrounding the latest changes have prompted debate, particularly among social media users.
The nonagenarian president who never loses
After an unexpected coup three years ago in neighbouring Gabon toppled the Bongo dynasty and sent shockwaves across the continent, Cameroon immediately reshuffled its military leadership. Then, while running for a controversial eighth term in power at last year’s presidential election, Biya reshuffled the top brass of the army.
Again in June this year, he promoted several members of the defence and security forces to higher ranks.
What is known about Biya’s current trip?
Biya made the appointments in separate decrees on Monday from the Swiss city of Geneva, where he has been staying since leaving Cameroon on 7 June for what his team described as a
"brief private stay".
Many in Cameroon have criticised the lack of information about his activities and the uncertainty surrounding the duration of his foreign trip.
After last year’s election, he promised to name a new cabinet, but has yet to do so. A new post of vice-president that was created this April remains unfilled.
During his nearly 60-day period abroad so far, he has signed several other decrees, including some authorising his government to sign loan agreements with international financial institutions.
His absence has also fuelled speculation about his health, though the government has repeatedly rejected reports that the head of state has been hospitalised.
Press freedom groups were outraged when it was announced two years ago that the media in Cameroon were banned from reporting on Biya’s health.
What has the government said?
Cameroon’s Communication Minister René Emmanuel Sadi said in an interview with French-language broadcaster RFI that the president is alive and will be returning to the country soon.
He also dismissed opposition claims that the nonagenarian leader’s absence amounted to a vacancy at the helm of the state, saying Biya continues to work from Geneva.
What is the opposition saying?
President Biya’s continuing absence means Cameroon has a
"glaring institutional vacuum", according to Mamadou Mota, vice-president of the opposition CRM party.
"Executive power is exercised at the heart of the nation, not through smoke signals or telepathy from hotel suites on the other side of the world,"he said last month.
Additional reporting by Natasha Booty
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