World News | Mali Government Adopts Bill Granting Junta Leader Five More Years in Power
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Mali's Council of Ministers on Wednesday adopted a controversial bill granting the head of the military junta an additional five years in power.
Bamako (Mali), Jun 12 (AP) Mali's Council of Ministers on Wednesday adopted a controversial bill granting the head of the military junta an additional five years in power.
Gen Assimi Goita has led the West African nation since orchestrating two coups in 2020 and 2021. The move follows the military regime's dissolution of political parties in May.
According to the government's cabinet statement, the bill will lead to the "revision of the Transition Charter, granting the Head of State a five-year renewable mandate starting in 2025." It implements the recommendations of the national dialogue consultations organised by the military regime in April, which the political parties boycotted.
The bill now awaits ratification by the National Transitional Council, the legislative body overseeing the transition.
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Earlier in May, Gen Goita signed a decree dissolving political parties, a decision made against a backdrop of burgeoning opposition. It coincided with a surge in kidnappings of pro-democracy activists in the capital, Bamako, and just days after a demonstration by several hundred activists.
Mali, a landlocked nation in the semi-arid region of Sahel, has been embroiled in political instability that swept across West and Central Africa over the last decade.
The nation has seen two military coups since 2020 as an insurgency by jihadi groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group worsened. The junta had promised a return to civilian rule by March 2024, but later postponed elections. No date has been set yet for the presidential election. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)