Côte d’Ivoire: Alassane Ouattara reverses his decision, enters presidential race

The outgoing Ivorian president Alassane Ouattara announced on Thursday his candidacy for a third term in the presidential election to be held next October.

He had initially said he would not stand for re-election, leaving his runner-up Amadou Gon Coulibaly to wear the colors of the ruling Rally of Houphouëtists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP). But the death of the former Prime Minister changed the situation.

“I am a candidate in the presidential election of October 31,” said Ouattara in his speech to the nation on the eve of the anniversary of Côte d’Ivoire’s independence. The head of state gave two main reasons for his candidacy: a case of force majeure, following the death of his party’s candidate, Amadou Gon Coulibaly, in early July, and a civic duty.

“The risk that the country reverses its gains after so much effort and sacrifice could be compromised if I don’t stand again,” he said.

As if to anticipate criticism from the opposition, Ouattara recalled that he had pledged not to seek a new term in his speech of March 5. Before Parliament, he had said he wished to make way for a new generation. While making it clear that the new Constitution allowed him to run for office, he said that this would also be an angle for his opponents to attack him.

“I’d started planning my departure. My life after the presidency. I had begun to get my institute up and… and to start a foundation,” he told the nation. But “man proposes, God disposes,” Ouattara said, referring to the death of Amadou Gon Coulibaly, adding that his death had “left a void in the team set up to continue” his program.

The Ivorian Head of State went on to list the points, which, in his view, would require continuity at the head of the country: the challenges of maintaining peace and security in Côte d’Ivoire, the need to curb the coronavirus pandemic, the risks that all the gains made during his nine years in office would be compromised. All this is compounded by the very tight timetable, with elections in three months’ time. Alassane Ouattara wanted to show that he was not trying to stay in power forever, but rather by force of circumstance.