Cameroon President Paul Biya's 48‑day Geneva stay fuels power‑vacuum debate

Cameroon’s 93‑year‑old President Paul Biya has been out of the country for 48 days, staying in Geneva after departing on 7 June for a “short private stay” with his wife. The prolonged absence has reignited opposition claims of an institutional vacuum, with figures such as Mamadou Mota (Cameroon Renaissance Movement) and Patricia Tomaino Ndam Njoya (Cameroon Democratic Union) calling for a clear procedure to assess the president’s capacity and warning that the nation is running “on autopilot”. Government officials reject the notion of a vacancy. Higher‑Education Minister Jacques Fame Ndongo said Biya continues to monitor files and issue directives through his aides, while Communication Minister René Emmanuel Sadi denied reports that the president had been hospitalized in Geneva. Critics, including human‑rights lawyer Alice Nkom and lawyer Christian Ntimbane Bomo, question the legality of decrees signed abroad. The issue echoes a similar controversy in late 2024 when Biya spent about 50 days outside Cameroon, underscoring growing public frustration over delayed governance and succession uncertainty.