Consequences of Chantal Biya’s Absence

The First Lady of Cameroon (acronym: FLOC) is the hostess of Unity Palace or Etoudi.  The use of the title of First Lady to describe the spouse or hostess of an executive began in the United States. In the early days of the republic, there was not a generally accepted title for the wife of the president. Many early first ladies expressed their own preference for how they were addressed, including the use of such titles as "Lady", "Mrs. President", and "Mrs. Presidentress". According to legend, it was Dolley Madison that was first referred to as "First Lady" in 1849 at her funeral in a eulogy delivered by President Zachary Taylor. Sometime after 1849, the title began being used in Washington, D.C., social circles. The earliest known written evidence of the title is from the November 3, 1863, diary entry of William Howard Russell, in which he referred to gossip about "the First Lady in the Land," referring to Mary Todd Lincoln. Use of the title later spread from the United States to other nations. Several women who were not presidents' wives have served as First Lady, as when the president was a bachelor or widower, or when the wife of the president was unable to fulfil the duties of the First Lady herself. In these cases, the position has been filled by a female relative or friend of the president. According to United States Files the position of the First Lady is not an elected one, carries no official duties, and receives no salary. Nonetheless, first ladies have held a highly visible position in U.S. government. The role of the First Lady has evolved over the centuries. She is, first and foremost, the hostess of the Unity Palace. She organizes and attends official ceremonies and functions of state either along with, or in place of, the president

Origins and Role of First Ladyship

Like Chantal Biya today, Dolly Madison popularized the First Ladyship by engaging in efforts to assist orphans and women, by dressing in elegant fashions and attracting newspaper coverage, and by risking her life to save iconic treasures during the War of 1812. Madison set the standard for the ladyship and her actions were the model for nearly every First Lady until Eleanor Roosevelt in the 1930s. Plagued by a paralytic illness, President Franklin Roosevelt was not free to travel around the country, so Mrs. Roosevelt assumed this role. She authored a weekly newspaper column and hosted a radio show. Over the course of the 20th century it became increasingly common for first ladies to select specific causes to promote, usually ones that are not politically divisive. Lady Bird Johnson pioneered environmental protection and beautification; Pat Nixon encouraged volunteerism and travelled extensively abroad; Betty Ford supported women's rights; Rosalynn Carter aided those with mental disabilities; Nancy Reagan founded the ‘Just Say No’ drug awareness campaign; Barbara Bush promoted literacy; Hillary Clinton sought to reform the healthcare system in the U.S.; and Laura Bush supported women's' rights groups and encouraged childhood literacy. Michelle Obama has become identified with tackling childhood obesity. Hillary Clinton was, for a time, given a formal job in the administration. She became a U.S Senator from New York in 2001 and is currently the Secretary of State in the Obama administration. Like Chantal Biya, many first ladies, including Jacqueline Kennedy, Nancy Reagan, and Michelle Obama have been significant fashion trendsetters. There is a strong tradition against the First Lady holding outside employment while serving as White House hostess. However, some first ladies have exercised a degree of political influence by virtue of being an important adviser to the president. During Hillary Clinton's campaign for election to the U.S. Senate, the couple's daughter Chelsea took over much of the First Lady's role. The Office of the First Lady is an entity of the Presidency, a branch of the Executive Office of the President. As such, Hillary Clinton's abdication of the office in favour of the couple's daughter, in advance of the former's installation as a United States Senator avoided conflict under the Ineligibility Clause of the United States Constitution. In next door Nigeria, First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan, is canvassing for the inclusion of roles of presidents’ wives in the constitution. According to her, the inclusion would enable First Ladies get retirement benefits along with their husbands when they leave office. She has even picked up a job as Civil Service Permanent Secretary at Bayelsa State.

Consequences of Chantal Biya’s Absence

If we have taken the pains to recount all this it is to awaken Cameroon’s national consciousness to the function our First Lady Chantal Biya has been performing and to signal the consequences of her absence to the ordinary Cameroonian. Nobody ignores the important social role Chantal Biya has been playing in Cameroon. We know of her involvement with orphans and vulnerable children as well as the very hard-to-reach and underserved segments of our population. Nobody today in Cameroon doubts the fact that it is Chantal Biya more than anyone else that has given a human face to the Presidency. No one doubts the fact that if Chantal Biya were still as present as she used to be the quadruplets born by the Tiko woman and presently at Mount Mary Buea needing assistance should have been a thing of the past. Only the other day, an old woman in distant Belo Sub Division queried the son who has just arrived from the city over the disappearance of Chantal Biya. According to this old mother, the only thing she has ever benefitted from this government are two bars of soap she received from the Chantal Biya delegation to Belo some time ago.

It is now over 167 days since Chantal Biya was last seen in public. That is, from March 8 this year till today August 20, nobody has seen her in public. As hostess of the Unity Palace, she was supposed to prepare and receive guests at Unity Palace on May 20. She was not there. As First Lady she was, as has been the case, supposed to have accompanied President Biya to Nyabisan for the Mevele Dam project. Same for Lom Pangar recently. Talk less of the CEMAC Heads of State summit in Congo. Our Chantal has not been seen. No word too from her press officer. Only thing we know for a fact is that the husband, Paul Biya recently signed a Presidential decree transforming her Chantal Biya Foundation into a public utility.

Signs of Strained Family Relations?

A renowned American writer, Troy, wrote at the close of the decade that: ‘The pressures of the presidency can place a strain on the strongest of marriages, but it can also steer a sometimes shaky union to surer ground. Bill and Hillary Clinton, rocked by the allegations over the White-water affair and by their failed attempt to restructure the healthcare system, have become visibly closer. It seems as if their marriage intensified. They need each other in ways they didn't each other before," mused Troy. The fact is that President Paul  Biya married Chantal Biya out of love. The fact is also that Cameroonians have come to love Chantal Biya as the mother and ‘First Lady of the Land’. They deserve an explanation on her whereabouts. Can someone speak out?