Awaited gov’t, other appointments: Will Biya maintain Niat, Cavaye, Ayang dynasties?.

He has eclipsed several political dynasties, created new ones and sustained many in what continues to be seen as compensation for loyalty and guarantee of political continuity. 

Yet, the Biya of 1982 to 2025, is believed to be working out something which could either change or redynamise the compass he uses in sharing the proverbial national cake, from this year going forward.

The anxiety has remained palpable, albeit delays since he announced an overhaul of the country’s governing architecture. That he did on November 6, 2026, while taking the oath of office for his current mandate. 

While the announced marked shift is yet to be materialised, what remains clear to every Cameroonian is that of a new government, which the President also announced months ago.

In a context where many of Biya’s political creatures are hoping to survive the impending storm, others who stood with him across decades, and navigating challenging circumstances, have breath their last. 

This has left political analysts questioning if the Biya of 2026 will continue with his known tradition of keeping certain political dynasties alive. 

For now, it is a tradition that has played out repeatedly almost leaving citizens with the mindset that if the dynamo of any dynasty gives way, Biya always does something to keep it alive.

From the time he took the oath of office on November 6, 2025, till now, Biya has lost some of his trusted political allies. One of them is the late Cavaye Yeguie  Djibril who stayed in the corridors of Parliament for at least 50 years and served as Speaker for an uninterrupted 34 years.

There is also Marcel Niat Njifenji, who served as pioneer Senate President, from 2013 till March this year when he was replaced. 

Besides being handed the leadership of the Senate, Niat was a longtime Biya ally, who served in several capacities for decades.

The former Prime Minister, Ayang Luc, who died on October 14, 2025, is another personality who enjoyed the President’s confidence. He headed the Economic and Social Council from 1984 till his demise, making a record 41 years in the same post. 

Niat, Cavaye and Ayang, unlike other persons in the rungs of power Biya is believed to barely know, were very close to the Head of State. 

Beyond being people who shared a close age gap with Biya, the trio’s loyalty to the President and the ideals he incarnates till death, is now pushing many to assume that Biya will not forget their families in the coming appointments into juicy positions of responsibility.

The Head of State, some are already asserting, may likely stay true to his tradition of always elevating children of several as State personalities, especially those who were close to him.

In the subconscious of many, whenever the President decides to act, there is the high possibility that, there will be space for a Cavaye, an Ayang and a Niat to be appointed.

This, analysts hold, will play out as it has been the President’s best strategy of compensating his political allies and friends of a certain level.

Dynasties, names making case for Niat, Cavaye, Ayang

The conjectures around Biya appointing a political successor for Niat, Cavaye, Ayang and others, are anchored on what has happened across the years. 

Those projecting such a narrative are retracing how Biya has repeatedly appointed relatives of his dead political friends and influential citizens to keep their relationship alive.

Many of such examples abound. In contemporary times, the case of Sultan Ibrahim Mbombo Njoya, who served as member of government for several years, and eventually becoming Senator, is still fresh in the mind.

The appointment of his son, Seidou Mbombo Njoya, as a Senator for the 2023-2028 legislature of the Upper House of Parliament, is said to have come along such lines.

In Kumba, Senator Nfon Victor E. Mukete III enjoyed the Biya era as a relevant voice within the CPDM and in government circles. 

The Nfon had a long stay as the Board Chairperson of the Cameroon Telecommunications, CAMTEL. Nfon Mukete III benefitted from Biya’s largesse twice to serve as Senator. 

When the Nfon died in 2021, Biya kept the link alive. In 2023, Nfon Mukete IV Ekoko, the successor of Nfon Mukete III, was appointed Senator. This too is another clear compensation of a dynasty close to the centre of power.

In the case of former Prime Minister, Achidi Achu, he was brought to the Senate in 2013, and his wife, Judith Yah Sunday epse Achidi, was appointed General Manager of CAMTEL in December 2018. 

Such too in the thinking of many, was a gesture from Biya to Achidi, who later died in May 2021. 

Another person holding a public office viewed in this bracket is Prof Fru Angwafo III, President of the North West Regional Assembly.

Many view his ascension to the post as a reward, thanks to the loyalty and membership of the late Fon of Mankon, Fon Angwafor Solomon Anye lll, to the CPDM party.

The late Fon was very influential and served till he joined his ancestors as Vice President of the ruling CPDM. 

Such connection to power is believed to have informed the choice of an Angwafor to run the show at the North West Regional Assembly.

Along the same lines, Ama Tutu Muna’s entry into government and current stay at the National Commission for the Promotion of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism, NCPBM, some are also saying, is not also unconnected to his late father, Solomon Tandeng Muna’s closeness to Biya. 

Dynasties that cut through Ahidjo, Biya eras

Records, others are saying, point to rare cases of names that have been relevant since the time of the late President Ahmadou Ahidjo. Some of such names are; Mathias Djoumessi and Abba Ousmane Mey. 

Djoumessi is said to have been the father of current Minister of Public Works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi. His father was said to be a prominent figure who also served in government in the yesteryears.

Abba, on his part, was a civil administrator who commanded a lot of influence across the Grand North, serving as Governor in the process, before being named member of government.

In the process of time, his son, Alamine Ousmane Mey, was drafted from the private sector into government. Ousmane Mey is currently Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, MINEPAT.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3836 of Friday July 03, 2026