Algerian interim President, Abdelkader Bensalah (pictured), announced on Sunday the country’s first post- Bouteflika presidential elections will be held next December 12.
“I decided, based on my constitutional prerogatives, that the date of the presidential election will be Thursday, December 12,” the leader said during a TV address to the nation. He also said an independent committee, led by Mohamed Charfi, former advisor to Abdelaziz Bouteflika, has been set up to follow up the electoral process.
Two weeks earlier, the army's chief of staff, Ahmed Gaïd Salah, called on the government to organize elections before the end of the year. Salah suggested that the voters should meet by 15 September at the latest, so that the election can take place within 90 days, in accordance with the Constitution.
As a reminder, this is the second election announcement in less than three months since the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika last April. The first ballot announced for 4 July did not finally take place due to a lack of candidates, and now observers are waiting for the reaction the second announcement will raise among the populations. The latter have been protesting since February 22 through the “Hirak” movement. They demand that all former pro-Bouteflika officials resign, including Ahmed Gaïd Salah and Abdelkader Bensalah.
Moutiou Adjibi Nourou