Civil society firebrand and veteran lawyer, Alice Nkom, has strongly encouraged President Paul Biya to stay out of the 2025 presidential race due to his advanced age, as the 92-year-old caps his 42-year-rule with more calls from his party members to stand for the election.
In a video shared by Equinoxe Television, the 80-year-old founder of the Network of Human Rights Defenders in Central Africa (REDHAC) said President Biya should not “embarrass” Cameroonians by seeking re-election, as it remains uncertain if the long-serving leader will contest the 2025 election.
“At this point, your body no longer holds up, and your mind no longer functions as it once did,” said Barrister Nkom, whose NGO was slammed with a three-month suspension in December.
“I say this to you because I, too, am in this situation—I am in my 80s, and I know what has changed in me. I know what I can no longer give to Cameroonians, and I cannot even promise it to them because that would be a lie.”
She said President Biya has “disappointed” Cameroonians and has not lived up to the legacy of his predecessor, President Ahmadou Ahidjo, who resigned and handed him power in 1982.
“When you took power, Mr. President, you told us, and we noted, that President Ahidjo had left behind a country where civil servants were paid, where everything was in order, and where the coffers were full. You yourself confirmed this, and it was true,” she said.
“Do you think your successor will be able to say the same thing, assuming there will be one? But there will inevitably be one, whether naturally, accidentally, or by your own will, because one day you will have to leave power. Are you certain about the legacy you will leave?”
While Biya has not formerly announced his candidacy for the election, top members of his party, the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement, say he is running.
Early this week, the Secretary General at the Presidency, Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, rounded off a series of consultative meetings with Ministers and Parliamentarians of the ruling party.
The state media reported that the meetings were aimed at preparing for President Biya’s re-election.
Higher Education Minister, Jacques Fame Ndongo, who is also the Communication Secretary of the CPDM Central Committee, said Biya’s candidacy was “100 percent” certain.
This was after the Minister of Communication, Rene Emmanuel Sadi, said chances of Biya running for the election were 50-50.
Amid these outings, there are strong calls from civil society for the President to let younger people take over.
Barrister Alice Nkom thinks President Biya is leaving behind an undesirable legacy in a country where 23 percent of people live below the international poverty line.
“Mr. President, sincerely recognize within yourself and before us that you have failed, that you have disappointed us, that you have not fulfilled the electoral promises you have been making for 43 years,” she said.
