Opposition activists call for Plan B nominee ahead of Ivorian presidential poll

With just over a week left for candidates to register for Ivory Coast’s October presidential elections, a group of opposition activists are calling for a Plan B nominee.

The group consists of members of the former Movement of Students of Côte d'Ivoire and  officials of the Democratic Party of Côte d'Ivoire-African Democratic Rally (PDCI-RDA).

As part of the Initiative for the Reconciliation and Safeguarding of the party, they want it to nominate a new presidential candidate.

Failure to do this, they say, is discouraging party faithful and pushing some of them towards other political groupings.

In April, an Ivorian court ruled that the PDCI-RDA’s nominee, Tidjane Thiam, should be removed from the electoral roll because he was a French national when he registered.

The opposition leader and former Credit Suisse Chief Executive accused the ruling party of using the courts to eliminate President Alassane Ouattara’s most serious rival.

Members of the Initiative for Reconciliation and Safeguarding of the PDCI-RDA have also spoken out against what they say are “internal dysfunctions” in the party.

They say this includes opacity in the management of its finances, " internal practices that stifle democracy", and "a growing gap between the party's leadership and its base “.

The party’s executive secretary, Sylvestre Emmou, has denounced the criticism saying it is giving a false impression that there is a crisis within the PDCI-RDA.