After spending seven long weeks abroad during which he made no public appearance, the President of Cameroon, Paul Biya, put an end to speculation about his real state of health with his return to the country with great fanfare on Monday October 21. As he turns 92 next February, what will his program be in Yaoundé from now on?
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With our correspondent in Yaoundé, Polycarp Essomba
If, following his triumphant return to Cameroon Monday October 21 after seven weeks of absence, nothing has yet been officially announced concerning the president’s agenda Paul Biyasources close to the Presidency of the Republic speak of a president at work, as he has been since Geneva where he has just spent the last seven weeks, reclusive. He received piles of files and initials from Yaoundé which he returned to various administrations after having processed them, these same sources believe.
Also readCameroon: President Paul Biya returns to the country after seven weeks of absence and concern
However, given his age – 91 – and the health problems attributed to him, many people believe that the head of state will save time and should continue the rest he has allowed himself. in Swiss. During the coming weeks, however, one file in particular should hold his attention: the preparation of the finance bill for 2025 which is currently underway.
Some predict that Paul Biya could, this time, make an appearance on the 42nd anniversary of his coming to power
On the political level, an event is also fast approaching: the celebration of the 42nd anniversary of his accession to the supreme office, on November 6, a date which is generally the occasion of various celebrations for the activists and sympathizers of his party , the CPDM, but in which Paul Biya has not participated for several years. It remains to be seen whether it could be otherwise this year, given the context in which this anniversary is looming: some are indeed predicting that the president could break with his usual discretion and make an appearance, for the most part great pleasure of his supporters.
The triumphant return of Paul Biya to Cameroon, a staging of political communication
During his return to Cameroon on Monday October 21 after seven weeks of absence which gave rise to many questions about his real state of health, Paul Biya received a triumphant welcome in Yaoundé. While the Head of State will soon be 92 years old and has ruled Cameroon for almost 42 years, the RDPC, his party, like the Presidency of the Republic, wanted to make the event a real political communication operation. “ A president who returns to his country… What deserves [une telle] celebration? » asks academic Alexie Tcheuyap, for whom the staging of a festive crowd welcoming Paul Biya arises, above all, from a need for affirmation and reassurance after a “ unsaid: that of aging and fragility » from the head of state.
On the side of the presidential camp, on the other hand, we prefer to praise the tactical experience of the politician here. “ He was announced dead. President Biya turns to his advantage a situation that could have seemed unfavorable to him “, as we say within the majority party.
While on June 9, 2004 – already in response to speculation about his death – Paul Biya declared: “ People are interested in my funeral. I’ll see them in 20 years »20 years later, no good words this time. But for the opponent Cabral Libii, the sequence once again illustrates the fact that “ Paul Biya is a totem for his party, the oxygen of a system that is at stake for its survival “. One year before the presidential election of October 2025, even if the president has not said whether or not he will run for an eighth term, the televised demonstration of the mobilization capacity of his party appears, in any case, as an act of campaigning before the campaign for many observers.