President Paul Biya finally returned to Cameroon on Thursday, August 20, concluding a brief 74-day stay in Switzerland. Citizens eagerly awaiting his arrival were met with a fleeting glimpse of his hand, extended through the slightly lowered window of the presidential limousine.
Many Cameroonians had anticipated the customary sight of their long-serving leader descending the presidential jet’s gangway, engaging in handshakes with the dignitaries of the Etoudi palace. Instead, they were shown merely a hand. In the realm of politics, such a detail is far from insignificant. The political hand carries four distinct levels of meaning: the hand that kills, the hand that cheats, the hand that blesses, and ultimately, the hand that governs.
Degree 1: the hand that kills
In ancient Roman arenas, the vast crowd would fall silent, their gaze fixed solely on Caesar’s hand. A raised thumb meant life for the gladiator; a lowered thumb, death. On Thursday, August 20, in Yaoundé, this dynamic was inverted. It was no longer the emperor’s hand dictating the gladiator’s fate, but the gladiator’s hand needing to assure the “Empire” of his continued existence. Cameroonians witnessed Biya’s hand waving in greeting, serving as tangible proof of his return alive.
Degree 2: the hand that cheats
When physical capabilities wane, one resorts to trickery with the hand. Consider Diego Maradona, the Argentine football legend, who famously scored against England in 1986 using his hand, dubbing it the “Hand of God.” Despite widespread recognition of the deception, the referee validated the goal. Similarly, on that Thursday, while everyone observed only a single hand, CRTV, Cameroon’s national television, with its extensive crew of 200 agents filming the motorcade, nevertheless authenticated this “miracle.”
Degree 3: the hand that blesses
Within religious liturgy, power is frequently conveyed through the hand. A priest lays on hands, the Pope bestows blessings Urbi et Orbi, and a monarch is consecrated through anointing. Once anointed, the hand becomes a sacred relic. Thursday’s event presented an inverted liturgy: a relic-like hand emerging from behind a tinted window, much like a reliquary paraded on holy days, intended to sustain the faith of the loyal.
Degree 4: the hand that governs
This brings us to the ultimate symbolic level: the hand that signs. Throughout the 74-day “short stay” in Switzerland, assurances were given that the state continued to function. The reason? The hand was signing – decrees, appointments, and laws. The hand was present, even if the physical body was not. This embodies the most ancient legal definition of power: the manus, the hand. In Latin, manus signifies authority and might. There are no more speeches, no physical presence, no walk across the tarmac. Only the signature and the salute remain. The hand that signs, and the hand that greets.
In Rome, the hand decided who lived or died. In the church, it conveyed blessings. In Yaoundé, it primarily communicates that the person wielding it remains in power. After forty-three years of leadership, Cameroonians must now accustom themselves, for an indefinite period, likely shorter than longer, to being governed by a hand. Cameroonian journalist Marie Roger Biloa states it more bluntly: “Cameroon,” she asserts, “must prepare to confront the definitive disappearance of a president who is already de facto absent.“
