Rais wa Cameroon mwenye umri wa miaka 92, Paul Biya amabaye ni kiongozi mkongwe zaidi duniani kwa sasa ametekeleza mabadiliko makubwa katika safu ya juu ya jeshi siku chache tu baada ya kutangaza nia ya kugombea kwa muhula wa nane kwenye uchaguzi wa urais utakaofanyika Oktoba 12. Kupitia amri za rais zilizotangazwa Jumanne usiku, makamanda wapya wa vikosi, jeshi la anga na jeshi la majini wameteuliwa, huku maafisa wanane wakipandishwa vyeo kutoka brigedia hadi meja jenerali. Mmoja wa waliopandishwa ni mkuu wa kikosi maalum cha Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), ambacho kinatajwa kuwa mhimili wa usalama wa rais kutokana na jukumu lake kwenye oparesheni dhidi ya ugaidi
Hatua hizi zimekuja wakati ambapo kuna upinzani mkubwa kwenye mitandao ya kijamii na vyombo vya habari kufuatia tangazo la Biya kugombea tena, huku umri wake na safari zake za mara kwa mara nje ya nchi zikizua maswali kuhusu uwezo wake wa kuendelea kuongoza. Wachambuzi wanasema mabadiliko haya ni mkakati wa Biya kujihakikishia uaminifu kutoka kwa jeshi ili kudhibiti maandamano au upinzani wowote kuelekea na baada ya uchaguzi. Serikali, hata hivyo, imesisitiza kuwa Biya ana afya njema na anafaa kuendelea kuongoza taifa hilo la Afrika ya Kati
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Cameroon's 92-year-old President Paul Biya, the world's oldest head of state, has overhauled the military's top ranks in what analysts say is an effort to ensure the armed forces back his bid for an eighth term after a public outcry
The personnel moves, announced late on Tuesday in a series of presidential decrees, affect nearly all branches of the armed forces. They include the appointment of new chiefs of staff for the infantry, air force and navy as well as the promotion of eight brigadier generals to the rank of major general
One of the promoted generals is the coordinator of the elite Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), a special forces unit often deployed in counter-terrorism operations and seen as central to Biya's security apparatus. The decrees also named a new special presidential military adviser.
The decrees were published two days after Biya, in power since 1982, announced he would run for his eighth term in office in Cameroon's presidential election scheduled for October 12
The seven-year term could keep him in office until he is nearly 100
The announcement prompted an unprecedented public outcry in the press and on social media in Cameroon, where Biya's age and long absences have raised questions about his fitness to rule
The government has said Biya is in good health and dismissed any suggestions otherwise.
The decrees concerning the armed forces reflect "a strategy by President Biya and his collaborators to consolidate power by building a fortress of loyal army generals around him" that can suppress any protest to his continued rule, said Anthony Antem, peace and security analyst at the Nkafu Policy Institute in Yaounde
Celestin Delanga, researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), said the decrees "come in a unique political and security context"
Biya wants to ensure stability during and after the election and "additional trusted personnel are needed" for that, he said
The cocoa- and oil-producing Central African nation also faces a host of serious security challenges, notably a conflict with Anglophone separatists and threats from Nigeria-based Islamist fighters in the north
The government gave no explanation for the overhaul.
The last significant military shake-up in Cameroon came just last year, shortly after Biya returned in October from his latest extended stay abroad which revived speculation about his health
Source: Reuters
Hatua hizi zimekuja wakati ambapo kuna upinzani mkubwa kwenye mitandao ya kijamii na vyombo vya habari kufuatia tangazo la Biya kugombea tena, huku umri wake na safari zake za mara kwa mara nje ya nchi zikizua maswali kuhusu uwezo wake wa kuendelea kuongoza. Wachambuzi wanasema mabadiliko haya ni mkakati wa Biya kujihakikishia uaminifu kutoka kwa jeshi ili kudhibiti maandamano au upinzani wowote kuelekea na baada ya uchaguzi. Serikali, hata hivyo, imesisitiza kuwa Biya ana afya njema na anafaa kuendelea kuongoza taifa hilo la Afrika ya Kati
Soma pia:
Rais wa Cameroon Paul Biya atangaza kuwania Urais kwa awamu ya nane
Rais wa Cameroon, Paul Biya, mwenye umri wa miaka 92, ametangaza nia ya kugombea kwa muhula wa nane katika uchaguzi wa urais utakaofanyika October 12, 2025 Biya, ambaye ni kiongozi wa taifa mwenye umri mkubwa zaidi duniani kwa sasa, alitoa tangazo hilo kupitia machapisho kwenye mtandao wa X...
www.jamiiforums.com
=====
Cameroon's 92-year-old President Paul Biya, the world's oldest head of state, has overhauled the military's top ranks in what analysts say is an effort to ensure the armed forces back his bid for an eighth term after a public outcry
The personnel moves, announced late on Tuesday in a series of presidential decrees, affect nearly all branches of the armed forces. They include the appointment of new chiefs of staff for the infantry, air force and navy as well as the promotion of eight brigadier generals to the rank of major general
One of the promoted generals is the coordinator of the elite Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), a special forces unit often deployed in counter-terrorism operations and seen as central to Biya's security apparatus. The decrees also named a new special presidential military adviser.
The decrees were published two days after Biya, in power since 1982, announced he would run for his eighth term in office in Cameroon's presidential election scheduled for October 12
The seven-year term could keep him in office until he is nearly 100
The announcement prompted an unprecedented public outcry in the press and on social media in Cameroon, where Biya's age and long absences have raised questions about his fitness to rule
The government has said Biya is in good health and dismissed any suggestions otherwise.
The decrees concerning the armed forces reflect "a strategy by President Biya and his collaborators to consolidate power by building a fortress of loyal army generals around him" that can suppress any protest to his continued rule, said Anthony Antem, peace and security analyst at the Nkafu Policy Institute in Yaounde
Celestin Delanga, researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), said the decrees "come in a unique political and security context"
Biya wants to ensure stability during and after the election and "additional trusted personnel are needed" for that, he said
The cocoa- and oil-producing Central African nation also faces a host of serious security challenges, notably a conflict with Anglophone separatists and threats from Nigeria-based Islamist fighters in the north
The government gave no explanation for the overhaul.
The last significant military shake-up in Cameroon came just last year, shortly after Biya returned in October from his latest extended stay abroad which revived speculation about his health
Source: Reuters
