- The fear of a military coup d’etat spreading to their countries may have led to the decisions of nonagenarian Cameroon’s President Paul Biya and sexagenarian Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame to make significant changes in their military.
- Both have no known plans to relinquish power, with Kagame having the backing of a constitution change in 2015 that allowed him to remain president until 2034.
- Cameroonian President Biya made major changes to the country’s ministry of defense following the Gabon coup on August 30, including reshuffles of posts such as the delegate to the presidency in charge of defense, air force staff, navy, and police.
- Rwanda’s Defence Force (RDF) announced on X that President Kagame approved the retirement of 83 senior officers and promoted and appointed some officers to replace previous office holders.
- Meetings between Rwanda’s chief of defense staff, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ambassador to Rwanda, and the defense attaché of Cameroon were held to discuss ways to enhance defense cooperation between their respective countries.
- The decisions of Kagame and Biya to reshuffle their militaries came a few hours after soldiers seized power in Gabon, punctuating the 53-year hold on the country by President Ali Bongo’s family.
- Rwandan President Kagame, who doubles as the Commander-in-Chief of RDF, has approved the retirement of 95 military generals and senior officers, as well as 930 junior soldiers. General James Kabarebe, the country’s former Minister of Defence and Chief of Defence Staff, is top on the list of retirees.
- The modifications are said to be made to the delegate to the presidency in charge of defense, the staff of the air force, the navy, and the police. Although the motivation for this policy change is unclear, some observers argue that it is an attempt to avoid any coup attempts in Cameroon, similar to Gabon. Since he came to office in 1982, Biya has been one of Africa’s most enduring leaders.
