Cameroon President Paul Biya delivers a speech during a ceremony at the Boulouris National Cemetery in Boulouris-sur-Mer, south eastern France, Aug. 15, 2024. (Christophe Simon, Pool via AP, File)
YAOUNDE, Cameroon on Friday set the next presidential election for Oct. 12, according to a statement from the country’s longtime president. The vote comes at a key time for the west African nation whose 92-year-old leader has not ruled out that he would seek another term.
Paul Biya, Africa’s second longest-serving president after Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea, is frequently sick and abroad, and last year, talk spread that he had died, prompting the government to publicly deny the rumors.
The over 40 years of Biya’s stay in power has left a lasting impact. His government has faced various challenges, including allegations of corruption and a secessionist movement in Cameroon’s English-speaking provinces that has forced thousands out of school and triggered deadly clashes with security forces.
Cameroon has also had to deal with spillover violence by the Islamic extremist Boko Haram group, based in neighboring Nigeria.
Recently, several of Biya’s longtime allies defected to announce their own candidacies for president.
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