Veteran Cote d’Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara said Tuesday he will seek a fourth term in the west African country, as tensions rise over the exclusion of many opposition candidates.
Ouattara, 83, who has led Cote d’Ivoire since 2011, will be the overwhelming favourite to win the October 25 vote.
Ouattara had already been nominated by his ruling Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP) party, but he waited until Tuesday to confirm he would run.
The opposition has argued a fourth Ouattara term would be unconstitutional.
“I am a candidate because the constitution of our country allows me to run for another term and my health permits it,” he said, adding that the world’s top cocoa producer was “facing unprecedented security, economic, and monetary challenges, the management of which requires experience”.
For the past decade Ouattara has steered Ivory Coast to relative stability, in a turbulent region which has seen a rash of military coups.
Yet critics accuse him of tightening his grip on power.
The opposition has also accused the authorities of using courts to exclude opponents. The government insists the judiciary acts independently.
The two main opposition parties have launched a joint campaign to demand the reinstatement of their barred leaders ahead of the election.
