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Eyewitness News
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Cameroon President Biya says will seek eighth term
YAOUNDÉ - Cameroon's President Paul Biya said Sunday that he would be seeking an eighth term in office in October's elections in a bid to extend his nearly 43 years in power. Biya, 92, posted the announcement on X in French and English. "I am a candidate for the 12 October 2025 presidential election. Rest assured that my determination to serve you is commensurate with the serious challenges facing us," he wrote. "Together, there are no challenges we cannot meet. The best is still to come." Biya was already the de facto candidate of the Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM), of which he is party leader. But given his age, the president's health and his capacity to govern have become the subject of debate. Several longstanding supporters have appeared to distance themselves from him in recent months, and there have been two high-profile defections from Biya's camp in recent weeks. Employment minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary resigned from government in June to stand in the election for his Front for the National Salvation of Cameroon (FSNC). And former prime minister Bello Bouba Maigari, an ally of Biya's for nearly 30 years, said he was standing for National Union for Democracy and Progress (NUDP). Both Tchiroma's and Maigari's parties were longstanding allies of Biya's CPDM, which has held power since independence in 1960. Also in the running are Maurice Kamto, who came second in the 2018 presidential election and is Biya's fiercest critic, and prominent opposition figure Cabral Libii from the Cameroonian Party for National Reconciliation (CPNR). Candidates have until 21 July to declare that they intend to run for office. But the opposition is deeply divided and is struggling to unite behind a single candidate, even though public opinion is critical of the government. Cameroonians frequently complain about rampant youth unemployment, rising prices and poor public services. In addition, violence occasionally erupts from separatists, especially in English-speaking regions of the mostly francophone country.
Al Jazeera
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Cameroon's 92-year-old president seeks eighth term in office
Cameroon's president, Paul Biya, who is 92 years old, has announced plans to run for an eighth term in this year's presidential election on October 12. Biya, who is the world's oldest serving head of state, made the announcement in posts on X on Sunday in both French and English. 'I am a candidate in the presidential election,' he wrote. 'Rest assured that my determination to serve you matches the urgency of the challenges we face.' Biya, who is seeking a new term that could keep him in office until he is nearly 100, came to power more than four decades ago in 1982, when his predecessor, Ahmadou Ahidjo, resigned. His health is the subject of frequent speculation, most recently last year when he disappeared from public view for 42 days. His re-election bid had been widely anticipated but not formally confirmed until Sunday's social media post. Biya had been posting regularly on his verified X handle in the buildup to the announcement. In 2018, in a first, he also used social media to announce his candidacy for that year's presidential contest, marking a rare direct engagement with the public on digital platforms. Members of the governing Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM) and other supporters have since last year publicly called for Biya to seek another term. But opposition parties and some civil society groups argue his long rule has stifled economic and democratic development. Two former allies have quit the governing coalition and announced plans to separately run in the election. 'President Biya's announcement to run again is a clear sign of Cameroon's stalled political transition. After over 40 years in power, what the country needs is renewal – not repetition. Cameroonians deserve democratic change and accountable leadership,' Nkongho Felix Agbor, a human rights advocate and lawyer, told The Associated Press news agency. Sunday's announcement is sure to revive debate over Biya's fitness for office. He seldom makes public appearances, often delegating responsibilities to the powerful chief of staff of the president's office. Last October, he returned to Cameroon after a 42-day absence, which had sparked speculation he was unwell. The government claimed he was fine but banned any discussion of his health, saying it was a matter of national security. Biya scrapped term limits in 2008, clearing the way for him to run indefinitely. He won the 2018 election with 71.28 percent of the vote, though opposition parties alleged widespread irregularities. The cocoa- and oil-producing Central African nation, which has had just two presidents since independence from France and the United Kingdom in the early 1960s, is likely to face a messy succession crisis if Biya were to become too ill to remain in office or die. Besides Biya, several opposition figures have also declared their intention to run, including 2018 runner-up Maurice Kamto of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement, Joshua Osih of the Social Democratic Front, lawyer Akere Muna and Cabral Libii of the Cameroon Party for National Reconciliation. All have criticised Biya's long period as head of state and called for reforms to ensure a fair vote in 2025. Under Biya, Cameroon has faced economic challenges and insecurity on several fronts, including a drawn-out separatist conflict in its English-speaking regions and ongoing incursions from the Boko Haram armed group in the north.
AsiaOne
14-07-2025
- Health
- AsiaOne
Cameroon's Biya, 92, announces bid for 8th presidential term, World News
YAOUNDE — Cameroon's President Paul Biya, the world's oldest serving head of state at 92, will run for re-election in this year's presidential vote on Oct 12, a post on the president's X account said on Sunday (July 13). "I am a candidate in the presidential election. Rest assured that my determination to serve you matches the urgency of the challenges we face," the post on the official account said. Biya, who is seeking a new term that could keep him in office until he is nearly 100, came to power more than four decades ago in 1982, when his predecessor Ahmadou Ahidjo resigned. His health is the subject of frequent speculation, most recently last year when he disappeared from public view for 42 days. His re-election bid had been widely anticipated but not formally confirmed until Sunday's social media post. Biya had been posting regularly on his verified X handle in the buildup to the announcement. In 2018, in a first, he also used social media to announce his candidacy for that year's presidential contest, marking a rare direct engagement with the public on digital platforms. Members of the ruling Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM) and other supporters have since last year publicly called for Biya to seek another term. But opposition parties and some civil society groups argue his long rule has stifled economic and democratic development. Two former allies have quit the ruling coalition and announced plans to separately run in the election. Health worries Sunday's announcement is sure to revive debate over Biya's fitness for office. He seldom makes public appearances, often delegating responsibilities to the powerful chief of staff of the president's office. Last October, he returned to Cameroon after a 42-day absence that sparked speculation he was unwell. The government claimed he was fine but banned any discussion of his health, saying it was a matter of national security. Biya scrapped term limits in 2008, clearing the way for him to run indefinitely. He won the 2018 election with 71.28 per cent of the vote, though opposition parties alleged widespread irregularities. The cocoa- and oil-producing Central African nation, which has had just two presidents since independence from France and Britain in the early 1960s, is likely to face a messy succession crisis if Biya were to become too ill to remain in office or dies. Besides Biya, several opposition figures have also declared their intention to run, including 2018 runner-up Maurice Kamto of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement, Joshua Osih of the Social Democratic Front, lawyer Akere Muna and Cabral Libii of the Cameroon Party for National Reconciliation. All have criticised Biya's long rule and called for reforms to ensure a fair vote in 2025. Under Biya, Cameroon has faced economic challenges and insecurity on several fronts, including a drawn-out separatist conflict in its English-speaking regions and ongoing incursions from Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram in the north. [[nid:617261]]
France 24
13-07-2025
- Politics
- France 24
Cameroon's 92-year-old President Biya to seek eighth term
Cameroon's President Paul Biya said Sunday that he would be seeking an eighth term in office in October's elections in a bid to extend his nearly 43 years in power. Biya, 92, posted the announcement on X in French and English. 'I am a candidate for the 12 October 2025 presidential election. Rest assured that my determination to serve you is commensurate with the serious challenges facing us,' he wrote. 'Together, there are no challenges we cannot meet. The best is still to come.' Biya was already the de facto candidate of the Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM), of which he is party leader. Several longstanding supporters of Biya have appeared to distance themselves from him in recent months, and there have been two high-profile defections from Biya's camp in recent weeks. But the opposition is deeply divided and is struggling to unite behind a single candidate.
Malay Mail
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
Cameroon's 92-year-old president faces defections as key allies join race to end four-decade rule
YAOUNDÉ (Cameroon), July 4 — At 92, the world's oldest head of state, Cameroonian President Paul Biya, faces defections by allies-turned-rivals jockeying to replace him in elections that could end his four-plus decades in power. Biya, who has led Cameroon with an iron fist since 1982, has had two key allies defect back-to-back as the African country heads for elections in October. First was employment minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who stepped down and announced on June 26 he was running for president for his party, the Cameroon National Salvation Front. Two days later, minister of state Bello Bouba Maigari, a former prime minister, also jumped in the presidential race. Neither defection appears to have fazed the veteran leader. The government released a terse statement announcing Tchiroma had been replaced, without mentioning he had resigned. Biya's camp also downplayed the challenge from Maigari, who leads the government-allied National Union for Democracy and Progress and has been close to the president for nearly three decades. 'Nothing new here,' Fame Ndongo, communications chief for the ruling Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM), wrote in a front-page column Monday in the state newspaper, the Cameroon Tribune. Biya had 'long ago decoded the premonitory signs of these departures, which are part of the classic political game in an advanced liberal democracy,' Ndongo said. By statute, Biya is automatically the ruling party's presidential candidate, though he has not yet confirmed he will run. The nonagenarian's public appearances have grown rare and rumours of poor health are swirling. 'Rotting in poverty' Tchiroma and Maigari have challenged Biya before. Both ran against him in the 1992 election. Tchiroma had just been released from prison, and Maigari was just returning from exile at the time. But both men, powerful figures from the country's politically important, traditionally pro-government north, soon fell in line with Biya. That has drawn criticism from some. Northern Cameroon's people 'are rotting in poverty,' said Severin Tchokonte, a professor at the region's University of Garoua. 'Supporting the regime all this time amounts to betraying those people, who have no water, no electricity, no infrastructure to ensure their minimal well-being,' he said. Tchiroma has sought to distance himself from Biya's tainted legacy, drawing a line between 'yesterday' and 'today'. 'Admittedly, we didn't manage to lift you from poverty yesterday, but today, if we come together... we can do it,' he told a rally in Garoua in June. Cameroon's last presidential election, in 2018, was marred by violence. Only around 53 per cent of registered voters took part. The ruling CPDM has long relied on alliances with potential rivals to keep it in power. But Cameroon is in dire economic straits, and there are mounting calls for change, especially on social media. With many of the country's 28 million people mired in poverty, there could be a mass protest vote at the polls. Presidential puppets? That may not benefit Tchiroma and Maigari, however. Both face accusations of acting as Biya puppets to divert votes from more hardline opponents such as Maurice Kamto of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement (CRM) — a charge both men deny. 'Bello and Tchiroma have been with the CPDM a long time. They could be looking to fracture and weaken the opposition to contain the surge of Maurice Kamto and the CRM,' said Tchokonte. 'If the CRM gets votes in the north, that could tip the balance.' There is a 'large, cross-regional' demand for change in Cameroon, said Anicet Ekane, the veteran leader of opposition party Manidem. 'It will be increasingly difficult for (Biya) to count on elites to tell people how to vote and avoid a national movement against the government,' he said. Biya urged Cameroonians in February to ignore 'the sirens of chaos' being sounded by 'certain irresponsible individuals'. 'I can assure you my determination to serve you remains intact,' he said last year. — AFP
