CONAKRY, Guinea
Guinean authorities dissolved dozens of political parties and placed two major opposition parties under observation late Monday, as the transitional government has yet to announce a date for elections.
The West African country has been ruled by a military regime since soldiers ousted President Alpha Conde in 2021.
The West African regional bloc, known as ECOWAS, has
pushed for a return to civilian rule and elections are scheduled for
2025.
The mass dissolution of 53 political parties and the mandatory surveillance of 54 others for three months are unprecedented in Guinea, which held its first democratic elections in 2010 after decades of authoritarian rule.
The Ministry of Territorial
Administration and Decentralization announced the measures based on an
assessment of all political parties that began in June. The assessment was
aimed at "cleaning up the political scene," according to
the ministry.
The 67 parties that will be under observation for three months can operate normally but must resolve irregularities noted in the report.
These parties include the Rally of the
Guinean People , the party of former President Alpha Conde, and another
major opposition party, the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea .
Authorities said the parties
under observation failed to hold their congresses on time and failed to provide
bank statements, among other things.
Guinea is among a growing
number of West African countries, including Mali , Niger and Burkina
Faso , where the military has seized power and delayed a return to
civilian rule. Earlier this year, Burkina Faso's military junta extended its
transitional mandate by five years.
Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya ,
who rules Guinea, overthrew the president three years ago, saying he was
preventing the country from descending into chaos and blaming the previous
government for failing to deliver on its promises.
However, since he came to
power, some have criticized him for not being better than his predecessor. In
February, the military leader dissolved the government without explanation,
saying a new government would be appointed.
Mamadi Doumbouya rejected
attempts by the West and other developed countries to intervene in Africa's
political challenges, saying Africans are "exhausted by the
categorisations that everyone wants to pigeonhole us with" .
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