Guinea: President Conte dies at 74

  1. Posted on Tuesday 23 December 2008 - 12:02
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    Mamdou Dian Donghol Diallo, AfricaNews reporter in Conakry, Guinea
    The president of Guinea, General Lansana Conte, is reported dead at 6.45pm on Monday. He was suffering from a long sickness. The Prime Minister Dr Ahmed Tidiane Souaré, the Assembly President Abubakar Somparé and the Chief of the Army General Diarra Traoré broke the news to the nation on television.
    lansana conte
    The entire state of Guinea is calm and in a state of mourning as the news spread across the country in the early hours of Tuesday.

    National Assembly President Sompare asked the country's Supreme Court to name him president in line with the constitution. "I have the heavy and difficult task to inform you with great sadness of the death of General Lansana Conte, President of the Republic of Guinea, after a long illness," Sompare said in the television broadcast, according to Reuters report.

    As the television played national music, Sompare declared 40 days of national mourning.
    He praised Conte, who liked to cultivate rice at his home in solidarity with Guinea's farmers and sometimes received visitors while puffing a cigar, as "a solid peasant, a brave soldier".

    The well-known Conte is a diabetic, chain-smoking general for a very long time. He died in the capital, Conakry, after ruling the West African bauxite exporting country for 24 years.

    Conte came to power on April 3rd 1984 through a military coup d’etat, after the death of Ahmed Sekou Touré on March 26th 1984 and whose power lasted for 26 years. By then, Somparé who is supposed to replace the president according to the constitution has already asked the Supreme Court president to note the throne vacancy and enforce the law in conformity with the constitution.

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