Cameroon's new vice president job is still empty six months after lawmakers brought it back

The story

Paul Biya, who is 93, came back to Cameroon on August 20 after roughly ten weeks in Europe. That long stretch away set off a wave of rumors about his health, including false claims that he had died.

A lot of people expected a new cabinet as soon as he landed. It hasn't happened. Biya told the country on December 31, 2025 that a new government was coming in the next few days, and more than nine months later the same ministers are still in place.

The bigger question is the vice presidency. Lawmakers revived the post in April for the first time since 1972, and the new law says the vice president would step in as interim leader if the president dies, resigns or can no longer serve. Biya alone gets to choose who fills it, and there is no deadline. So far he hasn't named anyone.

It got stranger in June, when someone dropped off a sealed envelope at the state broadcaster with what looked like an official decree naming a vice president. The government said the paper never went through proper channels, and the person who delivered it was detained.

Opposition leader Cabral Libii says picking a deputy would help calm the jockeying over who comes next. Analysts warn the limbo could make investors wary of big long term projects. The government's line is simple: the timing is the president's call, and he is entitled to take as long as he likes.