92-Year-Old Cameroonian President Will Run for Eighth Term 

Cameroon President Paul Biya, 92, who has held the position for more than 40 years, announced this week he would run for an eighth term in October’s election, ending uncertainty about his political future and that of the troubled country, Semafor Africa reported. 

Biya became president in 1982 and scrapped term limits in 2008. He is now the second-longest-serving president in Africa, behind only Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. 

Biya cited “numerous and insistent” calls from across Cameroon as the reason behind his decision to run again. 

Opposition figures and human rights advocates criticized Biya’s decision, saying the announcement underscored how the country is stuck politically and needed democratic change and accountable leadership, Africanews wrote. 

Meanwhile, Biya’s age is often contrasted with the population of the country – the median age is 19. 

Among the opposition leaders who plan to run in the election is Maurice Kamto, 71, who came in second in the last presidential election in 2018. Two former allies of Biya’s have also announced they will run, noted Reuters. 

In the 2018 election, Biya obtained over 70 percent of the vote in a race marked by allegations of fraud and violence. 

During his time in office, Biya has been accused of corruption and of failing to tackle public discontent. Moreover, he has often traveled outside the country for medical treatment, raising concerns about his health status and whether he can still govern effectively as the country grapples with a civil conflict and jihadist groups. 

Cameroon, a major cocoa and oil producer, has been shaken by a separatist conflict, originating in the Anglophone regions – the majority of the country is Francophone – which has left thousands dead and thousands more displaced. Cameroon is also fighting the jihadist group Boko Haram in the north of the country.