Cameroon’s president has clocked up more than 4.5 YEARS on private trips since he took power in 1982. He and his wife spend so much time in one Geneva hotel the staff have codenames: Him and Her. wsj.com/amp/articles/w…
At the Geneva Intercontinental, the Biya’s always take the entire 16th floor, including its two corner suites: one for him and one for her. Hotel staff say they always pay in cash, they bring their own kitchen staff and she brings her personal hairdresser. 
In Mr. Biya’s 4th decade in power,armed separatists are battling soldiers in Cameroon’s west, while Boko Haram seizes villages in the northeast. 100s of 1000s have fled their homes in the past 2yrs.Cameroonian migrants now represent the 4th largest nationality sailing into Greece
A hotel reservation receipt seen by the Journal shows the size of the president’s entourage. In one September 2017 stay, he booked at least 48 rooms. “If the Cameroonians are not coming, the hotel will close,” said one employee.
In Geneva, Mr. Biya seldom leaves his corner suite. For privacy, his delegation installs its own internet connection & phone switchboard. He enters and exits through the service exit for daily jogs. Mrs. Biya leaves through the front entrance, often laden with shopping bags.
Mrs. Biya stands more than 6 feet tall thanks to a voluminous bouffant hairstyle nicknamed “The Banana.” A Cameroonian journalist recently called her “The Belle of the Banana Republic,” and was sentenced to two years imprisonment for insulting the First Lady.
At the Geneva Intercontinental, the Biya entourage is managed by an enforcer nicknamed The General who roams the hallways chastising delegates and hotel staff. The General always settles the bill, always in cash.
