CAMEROUN’S President, Paul Biya, returned to the country on Monday, October 21, after a 42-day absence that had sparked questions about his health and whereabouts.
The chartered plane carrying the 91-year-old president and his wife, Chantal, from Geneva, Switzerland, landed at Nsimalen International Airport in Yaounde, the capital city, a few minutes before 5p.m.
According to Reuters, Biya was received on the tarmac by his Secretary General Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, with whom he chatted briefly before getting into his car, without speaking to the public. But as his motorcade exited the airport, Biya waved at supporters through the back window of his car.
Biya’s prolonged absence fuelled widespread speculation that he was unwell or dead, prompting authorities to issue statements affirming that he was in good health.
The country later outlawed any discussion about his health, saying it was a matter of national security.
Thousands of supporters of the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) party lined the 22-km stretch (13 miles) from the airport to the Etoudi Presidential Palace, clad in fabrics bearing Biya’s image. Onlookers also turned out onto the streets to confirm for themselves that the head of state was still alive.
Besides billboards with messages welcoming him back home and wishing him well, supporters also carried banners, one of which read, “Long life to His Excellency, Paul Biya, father of the nation.”
