Ivorian Court Rules Opposition Leader Ineligible for Election Race

2025-04-23 04:11:43

(MENAFN) A court in Ivory Coast has ruled that the country’s main opposition leader, Tidjane Thiam, is ineligible to run in the upcoming presidential election, ordering his removal from the electoral roll.

The Abidjan-Plateau Court of First Instance determined that Thiam, the president of the opposition Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI), lost his Ivorian citizenship upon obtaining French nationality in 1987.

This ruling comes just one week after the PDCI nominated Thiam as its candidate for the October 25 presidential election.

Thiam has vehemently rejected the decision, calling it "unfair, unjustified, and incomprehensible." He further accused the ruling RHDP party’s activists of orchestrating a "political decision" under the guise of a legal process.

While the RHDP has yet to officially announce its candidate, President Alassane Ouattara is expected to run for a third term. Additionally, former President Laurent Gbagbo and three other notable figures have been barred from competing in the race.

Thiam, who previously served as planning minister in the PDCI-led government before a 1999 coup, is a former CEO of Credit Suisse.

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