Guinea opposition angry at junta's extension of transitional rule

CONAKRY,  Guinea 

Opposition groups in Guinea say they are outraged at an announcement by the junta that the transition to democratic rule will extend beyond the end of the year.

A spokesperson for the ruling authority said conditions for the transitional period to end have not yet been met.

In negotiations with the regional bloc, ECOWAS, the junta which seized power in a coup in September 2021 had promised a return to elections and civilian rule within two years.

In July, it presented citizens with a draft of a new constitution which imposes a strict two-term limit for the presidency, each for five years.

It would also potentially allow current military leader Mamady Doumbouya to participate in the next presidential poll.

But the promised referendum on the document, expected to pave the wave for a return to constitutional rule, is yet to take place.

And the junta has shown little sign of moving to organise an election.

A committee of Guinean opposition groups, civil society organisations, and activists known as the Forces Vives, says it will no longer recognise the legitimacy of the transitional authority after 31 December.

The organisation on Friday called for the mobilisation of the Guinean diaspora in Europe to take part in a demonstration in Paris on 28 December, to demand the junta’s departure from power.