A scathing open letter addressed to Cameroon’s Minister of Basic Education, Professor Etoundi Ngoa, has ignited fierce debate over the country’s political future, questioning the call for Cameroonians to back President Paul Biya, who is seeking to extend his decades-long rule at the age of 92.
The letter, penned by a former student of Professor Ngoa and widely circulated across Cameroonian media, challenges the scientific and moral justification of endorsing a leader of such advanced age to govern a nation of 28 million people for another seven years.
The writer, invoking biological principles once taught by Ngoa, argues that “aging is a natural, progressive, and irreversible process,” one that inevitably diminishes “physiological, cognitive, sensory, and motor functions.”
Citing World Health Organization data, the letter notes that at 92, “brain plasticity is reduced, executive functions are impaired, working memory weakens, and information processing speed slows considerably,” adding that the risk of dementia affects “one in two people at this age, even in mild forms.”
Beyond cognitive decline, the letter highlights the physical toll of aging, pointing to diminished mobility, chronic fatigue, impaired recovery, weakened immunity, and cardiovascular challenges.
“Even when aging is ‘successful,’ scientists observe a preference for routine, an intolerance to change, and a reduced ability to manage complex or new situations,” the author writes, questioning whether such limitations are compatible with the relentless demands of leading a modern state.
In a sharp rebuke of Ngoa’s public endorsement of Biya, the letter accuses the minister of abandoning scientific truth for political loyalty, stating: “Biology is not an opinion. It is not a political choice. It is a science of reality.
And it says simply this: at 92, a human being needs rest, not power.”
The piece castigates the minister for “betraying science” and misleading the people of Mfoundi, where Biya draws significant support, by promoting what the author calls an “unnatural error.” Concluding with a plea for honesty, the letter urges Professor Ngoa to “choose truth over ambition,” warning that governing at 92 defies not only biology but the very principles of human dignity and rational governance.
The letter has since intensified public discourse in Cameroon, amplifying concerns over the president’s fitness to serve and fueling broader debates about succession, leadership, and the intersection of politics with biological reality.
About The Author
