IVORY COAST: Ivorian Prime Minister Guillaume Soro resigns his position, respecting a power sharing deal with Henri Konan Bedie's party during the country's last presidential election that plunged Ivory Coast into war

Record ID: 182160

  • Title: IVORY COAST: Ivorian Prime Minister Guillaume Soro resigns his position, respecting a power sharing deal with Henri Konan Bedie's party during the country's last presidential election that plunged Ivory Coast into war
  • Date: 9th March 2012
  • Summary: ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST (MARCH 8, 2012) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF EXTERIOR OF PRESIDENTIAL PALACE, IVORY COAST FLAG VARIOUS OF INTERIOR CABINET MEETING, IVORIAN PRIME MINISTER GUILLAUME SORO SPEAKING, PRESIDENT ALLASSANE OUATTARA AND JUSTICE MINISTER JEANNOT AHOUSSOU LISTENING SORO HANDING HIS RESIGNATION LETTER TO OUATTARA SORO STANDING IN FRONT OF JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (French) GUILLAUME SORO, FORMER PRIME MINISTER, SAYING: "I've just given to His Excellency Mr President my resignation from my function as Prime Minister and Defence Minister." VARIOUS of OUATTARA AND SORO WALKING AT PRESIDENTIAL PALACE, JOURNALISTS WAITING OUATTARA AND SORO SHAKING HANDS (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT ALASSANE OUATTARA, SAYING: "Mr Prime Minister, taking into account the principles of separation of power you have handed over your resignation as well as naturally that of your government. I am accepting it." VARIOUS STREET SCENE CAR PASSING AND PEOPLE WALKING (SOUNDBITE) (French) JEAN EBROKIE ASSOUMOU, TRADER, SAYING: "Seeing the bad effects the war has had, I think we could allow Soro, from my point of view, to stay in power for another couple of years to be able to better deal with the security issues so that things restart the right way." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE READING NEWSPAPER HEADLINES
  • Embargoed: 24th March 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Cote d'Ivoire
  • Country: Ivory Coast
  • Topics: Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVACPX4VDV0ALB9I2WXDT3JNFQ7Y
  • Story Text: Ivory Coast's prime minister Guillaume Soro and his cabinet resigned on Thursday, paving the way for the formation of a broader coalition government after parliamentary elections late last year.
    Soro, surrounded by his ministers told President Alassane Ouattara in Abidjan that his new Parliamentary function meant he had to resign.
    "I've just given Mr President my resignation from my function as Prime Minister and Defence Minister," Soro said.
    Soro's departure was expected and will allow Ouattara to keep his campaign promise of appointing a prime minister from the PDCI party of Henri Konan Bedie, which backed him in the second round of the 2010 presidential election.
    Soro is expected to take the helm of the national assembly - the second most powerful position in the country after the president - following his election as a member of parliament in December.
    Ouattara, receiving Soro's resignation said: "Mr Prime Minister, taking into account the principles of separation of power you have handed over your resignation as well as naturally that of your government. I am accepting it."
    Ouattara's election victory was disputed by Laurent Gbagbo, his rival who had been president since 2000 and was unwilling to surrender power.
    The power struggle triggered a bloody four-month conflict which ended in April of last year with Gbagbo's capture.
    Soro's Forces Nouvelles rebel group and former president Bedie backed Ouattara in the standoff.
    Opinion on the streets of Ivory Coast's commercial capital is divided regarding Soro's departure, because of his close connections to the country's main bulk of the new army, FRCI.
    "Seeing the bad effects the war has had, I think we could allow Soro from my point of view to stay in power for another couple of years to be able to better deal with the security issues so that things restart the right way," said Jean Ebrokie Assoumou, a trader from Abidjan.
    Others thought the sudden change in government could destabilise the country.
    "Despite the fact that Soro was in power we see the FRCI creating trouble everywhere and we are trying to calm things down, so actually in our actual socio-political situation we cant's change the government out of the blue, abruptly like that," said Hermane Kouakou Konan.
    Gbagbo is currently in jail awaiting trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague where he faces war crimes charges.
    Soro, 39, has held the position of prime minister for five years, initially under a unity government that was headed by Gbagbo.
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