Ivory Coast will hold election with or without opposition-RHDP

Ivory Coast’s ruling party, RHDP, has said it will push ahead with the October 2020 election regardless of whether the opposition participate, further deepening the political tensions in the world’s top cocoa producer.

At least a dozen people have been killed since riots broke out in August after President Alassane Ouattara declared he would run for a third term, following the sudden death of his handpicked successor in July 2020.

Ouattara’s main challenger, Henry Konan Bédié had called for civil disobedience and reform of the electoral commission and the constitutional court, but opposition parties have stopped short of saying they would boycott the poll.

Adama Bictogo, executive director of Ouattara’s party, told reporters, “A majority of our supporters have turned to President Alassane Ouattara. He is our solution, and I have explained this to him.

“We will go to the presidential elections in October with or without the opposition. President Ouattara is ready and will go to these elections alone if necessary.

“The opposition is not ready to go to the elections and is using tricks to delay or postpone them. There will be no postponement.”

Party spokesman, Mamadou Touré also told reoporters that the RHDP “remains focused on the election, with a record to defend and a project to propose to Ivorians,” branding the street demonstrations against Ouattara’s candidacy a “dismal failure”.

The opposition has said that President Ouattara, who has been in power for a decade, is violating the constitution by seeking another term. The 78-year old president says a constitutional change means his two-term limit has been reset.

Ivory Coast’s Constitutional Council has cleared President Ouattara, former president Bedie and two other candidates to contest in the vote. Among those excluded were two leading opposition figures, former President Laurent Gbagbo and onetime rebel leader and former Prime Minister Guillaume Soro.

The recent violence sparked memories of 2010-11, when 3,000 people died in the civil war in the country, Ivory Coast, the world’s top producer of cocoa.

The leader of the main opposition, Bedie told a packed opposition PDCI party hall in Abidjan, the parties, after a meeting, had come together to stop Ouattara’s third-term bid.

“It is left to us, in light of everything that has been said here, to protect the stability of the nation,” Bedie said. “In the face of abuse of authority, there is only one watchword: civil disobedience.”

At least a dozen people have been killed since anti-Ouattara riots broke out last month after he declared he would run following the sudden death of his handpicked successor in July.

Several opposition party leaders took to the floor and backed the idea of trying to stop Ouattara from running again, calling for demonstrations to be held across the country.

“The political parties are demanding the withdrawal of Alassane Ouattara’s candidacy, the dissolution of the Constitutional Council, and the dissolution of the Electoral Commission, because of its subservience to the ruling RHDP party,” said Patrice Saraka, an opposition party leader.