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Guinea-Bissau: Acting President Nhamadjo rules himself out as presidential candidate
Acting President of Guinea-Bissau, Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo. PHOTO/File
Guinea-Bissau’s acting president announced Monday he would not be running in next month’s general election, ending months of speculation that he was eyeing the country’s top job.
Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo, who has led a transitional government since a coup destabilized the west African nation 2 years ago, came to power under the understanding that he would not seek to be elected when the country returned to democracy.
“I will not be a presidential candidate and I ask all my supporters to understand,” he told a press conference in the capital Bissau.
“It is a matter of principle because I signed a transition pact that I have to respect. I will continue working at the presidential palace until the inauguration of the new head of state and I will on the baton to the choice of the people.”
The April 13 presidential and legislative elections were originally due to take place within a year of prime minister Carlos Gomes Junior’s administration being removed but it has been postponed several times.
Guinea-Bissau, which gained independence from Portugal in 1974 after a war the latter, lasting more than a decade, has suffered intermittent unrest since its liberation from the yoke of colonialism.
Nhamadjo said that everything would be in place to allow the elections to take place “in acceptable conditions”. “I will be the guarantor of peace and stability,” he said.
Candidates have Wednesday to submit their applications to the Supreme Court, which will then rule on their validity and many have already thrown their hats into the ring, including former finance minister Jose Mario Vaz.
Source: AFP