Ivory Coast: Alassane Ouattara Sworn In For Disputed Third Term

The Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara has taken the oath of the office for a controversial third term urging his political opponents to help defuse the tensions following the deaths of dozens of people in election related violence and the arrest of opposition figures. The final results last month showed the 78 year old winning re election with more than 94 percent of the

October 31 votes which opposition parties largely boycotted and dismissed as illegal. Monday’s solemn swearing in ceremony in the commercial capital Abidjan was attended by thirteen African counterparts but was snubbed by the opposition. Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was also among those present. I ask all the political parties to seize this new opportunity to

defuse tensions through dialogue, said Ouattara. He had said earlier that he asked the Prime Minister Hamed Bakayoko to resume discussions with the opposition which continues to contest legitimacy of the polls. The opposition groups said Alassane Ouattara violated the constitution which limits every presidents to two terms. Ouattara had maintained that approval of a new constitution in 2016 allowed him to restart his mandate. When Alassane Ouattara was declared the

winner, the opposition cried foul and announced a rival, transitional government in protest. Several opposition leaders were arrested with legal proceedings over the sedition launched against them. Pre and post election violence has killed at least 85 since August according to an official toll. For many Ivorians, painful memories were stirred of the aftermath of disputed elections in 2010. A political standoff was followed by a brief civil war in which approximately 3,000 people died and an estimated 1.3 million people fled their homes in the country, the world’s top cocoa producer.