There have been wide ranging debate lately over the well-being of the President of the republic and the country’s commander in Chief amidst the escalating health situation caused by the coronavirus

Many have been questioning the silence of their leader with remorse even dare to say he must have died

That President Biya is killed on social media is nothing new in the country but what is particularly unique about this situation is the fact that the Unity palace occupant is silent amidst a ravaging global pandemic which has kept almost every world leader busy

Opposition leader Maurice Kamto recently called on the President to take his full responsibilities as a leader and tackle the virus heads on, warning he will assume the office of the President should the 87 years old chided to remain behind the scene

The 7 days ultimatum from the opposition leader further fueled the debate on the whereabouts of their President amidst a health challenge which is fast becoming a national emergency

But his supporters aren’t buying, many say the President is already tackling the crisis through his government and must not necessarily be seen on TV talking about it.

A leading French newspaper in one of its recent editions wonders what the population wants the president to say.

Nothing new?

President Biya thrives in uncertainty and has proven time and time again that he has a very thick skin and resistant to public pressure nomatter the time and moments

He is also known to be awkwardly physically absent in major moments of crisis, opting to execute through his government ministers and other other representatives while operating from behind the scenes.

Examples are abound of the President significantly absent From the national stage each time the nation comes calling, only appearing on scheduled traditional media outings to talk to the Cameroonians people.

During the deadly Eseka train disasters on October 30th 2016 which killed hundreds of Cameroonians, many criticized the President for his total absence from the national stage, arguing he should have atleast address the nation or visit the disaster site.

But while government speedily rollout measures including compensation package to victims, the President waited for many months, only to address the issue at his traditional new year message in December, invoking old wounds and questioning his proximity to the people

The President has rarely addressed the nation out of his traditional pre-scheduled state addresses when it comes to the Anglophone crisis despite to numeours deaths and interntional pressure each time people are killed.

But as fresh remorse continuous to spread about his state of health, observers of this country’ politics are aware that nomatter how bad the coronavirus situation might be, President Biya will only address it during his traditional May 20th speech and that’s as good as we can get.

Maurice Kamto, President of MRC opposition party  gives Biya 7 days to prove he is alive and leading the fight against coronavirus or he assumes the role of President 

The opposition leader made the stunning declaration today March 27th 2020 through a statement.

In the three page document,Kamto says Cameroonians are asking if their country is being governed in this difficult time and if yes by whom?

He pointed to the fact that, President Biya appeared only once during the 2018 Presidential elections and struggled to walk on his own during a visit to Paris as evidence that the commander in Chief is tired and can’t effective lead the nation.

He also enumerated measures he says he has taken vis sa vis the fight against coronavirus and insist  the country needs its President now more than ever

Kamto’s outing comes barely hours after fake news broke on  internet announcing the dead of President Biya, forcing the communication minster Sadi to issue a statement denying the news as fake, insisting  the President is strong and going about his usual routine.

But critics of Kamto accused him of being power drunk, ridiculing his claims about the President’s stamina and many say  in times like these politicians must keep their differences and fight for the interest of the  nation

Many now say  Kamto is  an opportunist who will stop at nothing to seize any moment of difficulty faced by the nation to try and ladder his way to power

The government is yet to respond to his late night declaration.

Cameroonians at home and abroad wake up this morning March 26th 2020 to an unexpected news

Social media was crowded with competing messages announcing the “death” of the Presisdent of the republic Paula Biya

Many had taken to Facebook and Twitter to announce the demise of the President, sparking massive traffic and uncertainty around some parts of the country.

Fake news report of a specialized medical plane idling at the Yaounde Internarjonal airport in an attempt to evacuate the President last night were rumored through social media to make sense of the dead announcement.

But while the fake news was making waves around social media, some news organs quickly and rightly dispel the news as fake, saying president Biya is not only alive but strong and going about his normal activities in Yaounde.

The news of the supposed demise of Cameroon’s longtime President comes 16 years after the President was announced dead back in 2004

During that period, the state was on high alert as many including top government officials confirmed he was “dead”.

He would later resurfaced days later and blamed his enemies for wishing him dead in a famous address to the nation , promising them he had 20 more years to live.