Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara on Thursday confirmed he would seek re-election in October, formally accepting the ruling party’s nomination to be its candidate, reported France 24.
Ouattara has governed the country since 2011. Back in March, he announced that he would not run again and named then-Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly as his preferred successor. He intimidated that instead of seeking another term he would want to hand over reigns to a new generation. But, Coulibaly’s sudden death in July forced the ruling party to ask Ouattara to reconsider his decision.
“I have decided to respond favourably to the call of my fellow citizens,” Ouattara said in a televised speech on Thursday. “Given my previous promise, this decision represents a real sacrifice for me.”
Ouattara’s opponents claim that he cannot run in the election again due to the two-term limit in the constitution. But, he insists that his first two mandates do not count under the new Ivory Coast constitution adopted in 2016.
Opposition party, the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), called his decision to run “deplorable.”
“Ivory Coast could have given another signal that would have allowed democracy to continue,” FPI spokesman Issiaka Sangare added.
On Saturday, the FPI named his one-time Prime Minister Pascal Affi N’Guessan as its election candidate, ending speculation that Ivory Coast’s former president, Laurent Gbagbo might return from abroad to stand.
Gbagbo was freed conditionally by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity. He even applied for a passport to return to Ivory Coast for the election. He was acquitted of four counts of crimes against humanity including murder, rape, persecution, and other inhumane acts during the 2010-2011 bloodshed. The ICC prosecutors are appealing his acquittal.
Henri Konan Bedie, the confirmed candidate of one of the country’s largest parties, the PDCI, is expected to be Ouattara’s other main challenger in the upcoming election.
The first round of voting has been scheduled on October 31.
