It is being reported in France and Switzerland that Cameroon’s President is no more.

The 91-year-old dictator, who undertook a long tiring journey to China, might not be returning to his country in front of the plane.

Paul Biya, who has ruled Cameroon for almost 42 years, seems to have succumbed to the inevitable after a tough fight with prostate cancer which spread to other vital organs.

For many years, Mr. Biya has been a colony of diseases, with heart problems and memory failure stalking him like a stubborn shadow.

If this news gets confirmed, Mr. Biya will be remembered as a man who single-handedly destroyed a prosperous country handed over to him by the country’s first president, Ahmadou Ahidjo.

Once a buoyant nation, Cameroon is dealing with many development issues. The country’s economy has been in poor health for decades, causing many young Cameroonians to look outwards for opportunities.

Youth unemployment is very high and salaries are very low. Cameroonians have been transformed into “the roving Jews” of Africa by a man they thought would lead them to the land of promise when he took power in 1982.

Since taking over power in 1982, Mr. Biya has spent more time, money and energy just to maintain himself in power. The country has the worst roads on the continent and health care is unreliable.

Currently, there are reports of troop movement in Yaoundé. In the morning, helicopters could be seen and heard flying over the nation’s capital.

According to a military source, authorities in Yaoundé know that Mr. Biya’s time is over and the military might be preparing to take over or to ensure that chaos does not ensue when the news of the dictator’s death reaches Yaoundé.

Cameroon Concord News Group’s correspondent in France and Yaoundé are keeping an eye on the situation. Our Yaoundé city reporter who spoke to a senior military officer in the morning of Sunday said that the news was not good. Biya might be breathing his last and it is no surprise that the news of his death is already spreading.

Our Yaoundé correspondent also quoted the military source as saying that it was up to Cameroonians to urge the authorities to reveal the whereabouts of their president.

The senior military officer is also quoted as saying that people around the dictator were doing much to hide the truth and to intimidate the population.

This is a developing story.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai