Republic of Congo’s Sassou Nguesso announces bid to extend four-decade rule

Republic of Congo’s President Denis Sassou Nguesso said on Thursday he would run for a new term in elections in March, seeking to extend his more than four decades in power at age 82.

“I will stand as a candidate in the presidential election,” the central African country’s leader said in a statement issued by his staff.

The statement said he announced to a crowd of several thousand people in the southern district of Ignie.

By law, Nguesso is not barred from contesting in the election. Constitutional reforms passed in 2015 scrapped the original age limit of 70 for presidential candidates and introduced three five-year terms.

Nguesso led the Republic of Congo, also known as Congo Brazzaville, under a one-party system from 1979 to 1992, before Pascal Lissouba defeated him in the first democratic contest. He ousted Lissouba in 1997 after a civil war and has ruled since.

The ruling Congolese Labour Party announced in December that the president would seek a fresh term.

Nguesso won re-election in March 2021 with over 88 per cent of the vote.

SOURCE: Reuters