Cameroon's government has banned the media from discussing the health of President Paul Biya, whose absence since last month has sparked speculation about his well-being.
This is reported by Reuters, Ukrinform reports.
In a letter to regional governors dated October 9, distributed by the country's Ministry of Interior, it is said that any discussion of the state of health of 91-year-old Biya is prohibited in Cameroon.
From now on, "any debate in the mass media about the state of the president's health is strictly prohibited. Violators will be held accountable to the full extent of the law," said the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Paul Atanga Nji.
In the letter, Njie stressed that discussing the president's health is a matter of national security. He ordered governors to create units to monitor broadcasts on private media channels and social media.
Biya has not appeared in public since the beginning of September. His failure to attend a planned summit in France last weekend further fueled public debate about his health. In social networks, it was assumed that Biya may have died, writes Bloomberg.
This week, authorities issued a statement that the president was on a private visit to Geneva and was in good health, dismissing reports of his illness.
Cameroon has had only two presidents since gaining independence from France and Great Britain in the early 1960s. Biya has been in power in Cameroon since 1982.
Photo: prc.cm