Chad’s Junta Leader Set To Take Oath As Elected President

Chad’s Junta Leader Set To Take Oath As Elected President....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

General Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, who has overseen Chad’s junta for the past three years, is scheduled to take the oath of office on Thursday following an election victory that has been vigorously disputed by opposition factions in the north-central African nation.

Deby officially secured 61 percent of the vote in the May 6 election, an outcome criticized by international NGOs as lacking credibility and fairness, and denounced by his primary rival as a “charade.”

In April 2021, he was declared the transitional president by a junta comprising 15 generals after the assassination of his father, the longstanding president Idriss Deby Itno, who ruled the country with an iron fist for three decades until his demise at the hands of rebels.

The swearing-in ceremony signals the conclusion of three years of military governance in a nation pivotal to combating extremism across Africa’s tumultuous Sahel region.

In 2021, Deby received swift recognition from the international community, led by France, whose military forces have faced ousting by military regimes in other former colonies such as Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger in recent years.

The investiture event solidifies what critics have decried as the establishment of a Deby dynasty.

Prime Minister Succes Masra, formerly a staunch critic of Deby before assuming office, tendered his resignation on Wednesday following his party’s electoral defeat after a mere four months in power.

Masra, an economist who garnered 18.5 percent of the vote, has contested the election results. Initially claiming victory after the first round of voting, he was accused by the opposition of being a puppet of the junta. The opposition, which has faced violent suppression in Chad, saw its key members barred from participating in the election.

After the rejection of Masra’s appeal to nullify the election outcome by Chad’s Constitutional Council, he asserted that there was “no other national legal recourse” and urged his supporters to remain engaged but peaceful.

Deby’s cousin, Yaya Dillo Djerou, who emerged as the primary opposition figure to the general, was fatally shot at close range during a military raid on February 28, according to his party.

The attendance of heads of state at the inauguration will indicate the level of international backing for the 40-year-old president.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who visited N’Djamena in 2021 to pay tribute to the late Marshal Deby prior to his son’s assumption of power, will be represented by Franck Riester, the Minister for Foreign Trade and Francophonie.

Chad, among the world’s poorest nations, is France’s last military stronghold in the Sahel region, with 1,000 troops stationed there. Macron was one of the few leaders to extend congratulations to Deby on his electoral victory.

Several Sahel countries, grappling with jihadist insurgencies, have bolstered relations with Russia after severing ties with Paris. Russian President Vladimir Putin was among the first to congratulate Deby, and the delegation dispatched to N’Djamena for the ceremony will be closely scrutinized by analysts

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