Guinea-Bissau to Get Prime Minister Under New Deal

Politicians in the nation of Guinea-Bissau say they have signed a deal that would allow the country’s interim leader to choose a prime minister.

The political negotiations agreed upon Wednesday though do not include the participation of the country’s former ruling party, whose leader was overthrown in a coup last month.

Regional mediators have expressed concerns about the legitimacy of such a transition, now being led by interim President Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo.

Guinea-Bissau was just weeks away from holding a presidential runoff vote when a military junta arrested the election’s front-runner and the country’s interim leader. Both men later fled the country on Africa’s western coast after being released by soldiers.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press