As Biya’s health takes turn for the worse, reports say France might sponsor a coup
Cameroonians should be bracing for impact as the health of the country’s president, Paul Biya, takes a turn for the worse.
Mr. Biya has been a colony of diseases for some time now but the diseases have been in check thanks to Swiss doctors who have kept him alive with life-saving steroids.
The 91-year-old Biya has been struggling with a heart problem, failing memory, incontinence and chronic high blood pressure which have been threatening for years to send him to the world beyond.
According to a source close to the ailing president, Cameroonian officials, most of whom have been emasculated, are struggling to keep things under wraps. But their efforts at hiding things are not delivering the right results as critical information is already leaking.
Sources at the hospital where the incompetent leader is struggling for his life have indicated that it will be a miracle for Mr. Biya to run in the 2025 presidential election as his health continues to decline, especially his memory which has sharply diminished.
The source adds that only very few members of the president’s entourage have access to him, adding that his wife, Chantal Biya, is ensuring that no news filters from the hospital.
The source underscored that the steroids which had helped to keep the dictator alive were not yielding the expected results.
“Mr. Biya’s doctors are concerned as their efforts are not helping their old patient. There is panic within the president’s close circle and even his children are not given full access to their father for fear that their reaction could draw unwanted attention,” our source said.
“We know that the president’s inner circle is aware of the impending bad news. Ngoh Ngoh has been briefed on many occasions but he has been advised to keep things under wraps. There are fears that if news of the president’s failing health results in the inevitable, there could be chaos in the country,” our source is in Switzerland said.
“We are keeping a close eye on the situation but we know things are not good. Biya is struggling for his life and it is like his time is up. In Yaoundé, there are questions as to who will take over given that Marcel Niat Njifenji is also on life support,” our source added.
“I think constitutionally, the burden will be on Cavaye Djibril, the speaker of the House, who is also very ill and is incapable of carrying himself around. Cameroonians should be bracing for impact as the news is not good. We are scared that there could be chaos across the country and this might cause the military to step in just to keep the population in check,” our source said.
“But can the military actually help Cameroon? Most of the country’s senior military officials are corrupt and ill. There are huge divisions within the military and such a situation could only cause those differences to become the main cause of genocide in a country wherein tribalism and regionalism have been institutionalized,” our source pointed out.
Meanwhile, it is rumored that the French are already shifting their attention from Biya to the post-Biya epoch in Cameroon. Sources in France say the French are more concerned about their interest and they are looking for options which will help them stay in Cameroon.
Some people say the French might sponsor a coup like the one which took place in Gabon just to pre-empt any bloodshed. The source adds that some French military officers have been talking with Cameroon’s military officers and they are already putting in place alternative plans just in case the worst happens.
Since traveling to China in early September for an important summit, Mr. Biya has not returned home and many hold that he might not be returning anytime soon.
By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai