Gregoire Owona Says Rumors of Biya’s Death Lies

By Tata Mbunwe

Gregoire Owona, the Minister of Labor and Social Security, has denounced rumors that Cameroon’s Head of State, Paul Biya, has died, terming them lies.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Owona calls on authorities to punish those deceiving the public that the President is dead.

“Those who try by various means to deceive the public by announcing the death of the Cameroonian Head of State must pay a high price for such a gross lie,” he wrote.

“Since they no longer have any human conscience, the appropriate institutions must crack down on these impostors wherever they come from and wherever they broadcast. We are in a democracy but wickedness and hatred have a limit.”

The Labor Minister did not provide any information about President Paul Biya’s state of health, as reports suggest that the President has been hospitalized in France – there has been no official statement from the Presidency.

Gregoire Owona is the first Minister in PM Dion Ngute’s cabinet to publicly comment since information began flying on media spaces about Biya’s health mishap.

He was last seen publicly in early September, after attending the China-Africa summit. But he failed to attend other international events, including the La Francophonie Summit and the Sustainability Conference in Hamburg, Germany, on October 7.

Considering that this is not the first time President Biya’s death is being speculated, many suggest that it might be a political stunt by the regime to gain sympathy for the 91-year-old ahead of the 2025 elections.