Too old to lead, too powerful to quit: the curse of Africa’s lifelong rulers

Pedestrians walk past a billboard of Cameroon's President Paul Biya reading: 'I thank the sovereign people for electing me' on a street in Yaounde, today, a day after the Cameroon presidential election results were announced. Biya, 92, has been re-elected for an eighth term with 53.7% of the vote, according to official results. Photo / AFP

As he campaigned for an eighth term in office, Cameroon’s 92-year-old leader confidently declared: “The best is yet to come.”

President Paul Biya, the world’s oldest head of state, now has seven more years to fulfil that promise after victory extended his tenure to the eve of his elections.