The Force Cauris pour un Bénin Émergent (FCBE) has clarified its absence from the Cadre de Concertation des partis de l’opposition.
In an interview with Bip Radio’s L’Entretien Grand Format program on Sunday March 16, Paul Hounkpè, the party’s top official, explained the reasons for this move.
“We’re so organized back home that we don’t jump into just anything,” he asserted.
He recalled that the idea of creating a framework for consultation between opposition parties dates back to 2021, when he was still Leader of the Opposition. “We worked on this with all the opposition political parties,” he explains.
However, according to Paul Hounkpè, the FCBE was not invited to the constituent general assembly of the Cadre de Concertation, held in Cotonou on November 10, 2024.
“We could have been involved”, he laments. Believing that the process was conducted unilaterally, his party chose not to join. “We’re not in it and we’re not going to be in it,” he says.
Although the FCBE was subsequently invited to join the framework, its leaders refused, considering that the foundations for this consultation had been laid without their involvement, and that the approach was not in line with their vision.
It should be pointed out that the political party chaired by former minister Paul Hounkpè plans to collaborate with the current government in 2026. In other words, the FCBE could well accompany Patrice Talon’s candidate for the 2026 presidential election.