Tidjane Thiam, president of the PDCI-RDA, has not hidden his anger. In a solemn statement, he denounced the decision of a court of first instance ordering his removal from the electoral roll, thereby preventing him from running in the upcoming presidential election in Côte d’Ivoire.
The PDCI leader believes this is a political maneuver aimed at sidelining him. “The ruling power has simply eliminated its most serious opponent,” he said, describing the decision as based on a “perverse and incomprehensible legal reasoning.”
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Elected party leader in December 2023 with over 96% of the vote, Tidjane Thiam was recently confirmed as the PDCI’s presidential candidate for the 2025 election, securing 99.5% of the vote. He says he has toured the country to build a political platform focused on education, health, and security. He also claims to have received broad popular support, reinforced by a recent poll placing him in the lead with 57% of voting intentions in a second-round match-up against Alassane Ouattara.
The PDCI president also recalled that he had been chosen to coordinate a coalition of 25 opposition parties, the CAPCI, alongside political figures such as Simone Gbagbo, Pascal Affi N’Guessan, and Charles Blé Goudé. “The PDCI stands united behind me. There will be no Plan B,” he declared firmly.
Thiam warned that the situation poses a serious threat to Ivorian democracy. “Our country has already experienced too much electoral tension. We cannot afford to go down that road again,” he said, calling on both national and international actors to help ensure free and peaceful elections.
“I am absolutely determined to fight so that Ivorians can freely choose their president. This is a matter of dignity,” Tidjane Thiam concluded.