Wide protests against Nigerien president
Tens
of thousands of Nigeriens on Sunday took to the streets of their
capital city, Niamey, to protest against President Mamadou Tandja's
moves of changing the constitution through a referendum and staying
longer in office. The immense crowd was composed of adult men and
women, young and old people.
They represented almost all the political formations of the
opposition and the civil society.
The peaceful march commenced about 10H00 GMT near a roundabout in
central Niamey called Trésor. The quietly singing and slow-moving
crowd – almost like that of a funeral procession, drifted along,
passing the high court building and converging at “Concertation”, a
vast square in front of the national assembly building, AFP said.
Although cool in nature and action, the protesters’ placards sent
tough messages: “The tazartché (continuity) will never happen; to
hell with your referendum; Niger doesn’t belong to you and your
family; you will walk through our dead bodies to achieve your
dreams; no to constitutional disorder.”
Addressing the crowd from a makeshift stage of empty metal barrels,
the president of FDD (an opposition party), Mahamadou Issoufou,
criticized President Tandja’s decision of refusing to step down at
the end of his second term as stipulated by the constitution.
“It’s a primitive and backward intention that will not only destroy
democracy but also the country itself. The Nigerien people have been
betrayed, the constitution has been squashed, but we can’t allow
this to get to its end,” Issoufou yelled with a raised fist at an
excited crowd.
He invited the CENI (National Independent Electoral Commission) to
obey the ruling of the Supreme Court, which barred it from
organising the disputed referendum.
Issoufou also urged every other opposition party to unite with them
and form a common front against President Tandja.
But Tandja seems not to be relenting to pressures. After dissolving
the parliament and Supreme Court, he gave orders to CENI to organise
the referendum slated for 4 August.
The international community, notably the U.S., France and the
European Union, has condemned President Tandja’s plans and has asked
him to reconsider his decision.
Tandja was elected to office in 1999 and re-elected for a second and
final term in 2004, which expires late this year. Niger’s
constitution allows only two terms for a president.
But the president’s supporters say he brought economic growth to the
poor nation and therefore deserves a third term to consolidate this
prosperity.
Source: AfricaNews.
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