- Politicians Urge Military Leader to Rule for 5 years
By Kolawole Ojebisi
In what appears to be a calculated attempt to clear the country of vestiges of democratic dispensation, Mali’s military junta has announced the dissolution of all political parties in that country.
This move is contained in a statement read on state television on Wednesday.
According to the statement, the decision was validated by the country’s military leader, Assimi Goita
This apparently is a culmination of efforts by Goita to legitimize his reign, which started last month, with a call by some “political actors” to name Goita as president with a five-year mandate.
The call was made by some people under the aegis of national conference of political actors in Mali.
They also recommended the dissolution of all political parties in a move that has been described as “sponsored” by some political observers.
Meanwhile, the recommendation led to protests in Bamako on May 3 and May 4, with several hundred critics carrying placards displaying messages calling for multi-party elections.
They also chanted slogans like ‘Down with dictatorship, long live democracy’.
Recall that ahead of another protest planned for May 9, Mali suspended political activities across the country.The move forced opposition groups to cancel the demonstration.
Recall that prominent politicans vociferous in their opposition to the military regime of Goita have been disappearing lately.
On Thursday, Human Rights Watch said in a statement that Abba Alhassane, secretary general of the Convergence for the Development of Mali (CODEM), was arrested by “masked gunmen claiming to be gendarmes” on May 8.
The group also said on the same day, “unidentified men” seized El Bachir Thiam, leader of the Yelema party, in the town of Kati outside Bamako.
Goita first seized power in August 2020 amid escalating attacks from armed groups affiliated with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda’s regional affiliate, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).
