By Ollus Ndomu
Thousands of opposition supporters poured into the streets of Abidjan on Saturday to denounce President Alassane Ouattara’s plan to run for a fourth term, a move critics say defies constitutional term limits.
Marchers from the Party of African Peoples – Ivory Coast (PPA-CI) of former president Laurent Gbagbo and the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI) led by Tidjane Thiam converged on the main boulevard from Saguidiba to Place Ficgayo in the opposition stronghold of Yopougon. The demonstration was authorised by authorities after a planned protest on August 2 was cancelled due to security forces being redeployed.
Protesters waved party flags, chanted slogans calling for “respect for the constitution,” and demanded the reinstatement of excluded candidates. Gbagbo and Thiam were both barred from the October ballot – Gbagbo over a criminal conviction linked to post-election violence in 2010–2011, and Thiam on grounds of holding dual citizenship.
“We will not allow one man to decide the fate of an entire nation,” one PDCI supporter told Al Jazeera, accusing the electoral commission of serving the ruling party’s interests.
Opposition leaders are also calling for an independent audit of the voter roll, warning of “serious irregularities” that could compromise electoral transparency. Ouattara’s supporters insist the president’s candidacy is legal following constitutional changes in 2016, which they say reset term limits.
The political standoff has reignited memories of Ivory Coast’s history of election-related unrest. At least 3,000 people were killed during the 2010–2011 post-election crisis, and more than 85 died in protests over Ouattara’s re-election bid in 2020.
Civil society groups and religious leaders have urged calm, warning that rising political rhetoric could deepen divisions in the run-up to the October vote.
Security forces maintained a visible presence along the protest route, but the march ended without major incident by late afternoon.
Election campaigning is set to begin in September, with the opposition vowing to escalate pressure unless their demands for electoral reform are met.
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