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Abidjan (Agenzia Fides) - The new Ivorian Independent Electoral Commission (CEI), set up to prepare for the presidential elections to be held in 2020 (see Fides, 9/10/2018) is already a source of controversy. "There are tensions and divisions not only on the part of the opposition political parties but also on the part of civil society", said Father Donald Zagore, a priest of the Society for African Missions, to Agenzia Fides. "It is a situation that does not favor a climate favorable to peace and stability that will inevitably lead to non-consensual and problematic elections", the Ivorian missionary continues.
"Our politicians must understand that peace, for our peoples and for our countries in Africa, is not an optional factor. It is fundamental, it is a MUST, an obligation, an unquestionable and inevitable duty for all", stresses Zagore. "That is why until our politicians become spokesmen, apostles and fervent defenders of an absolute dynamic of neutrality and total independence of our institutions, we will find ourselves fighting in order to lay the foundations of a true and authentic democracy in our countries".
"Tomorrow's peace in Ivory Coast - concludes Fr. Donald - is fueled today by the ardent desire for a clear will of absolute rejection of autocracy in the management of political responsibility. It is necessary to work to promote the values of transparency, equity and, above all, a balance between power and political competitiveness".(DZ/AP) (Agenzia Fides, 12/7/2019)
