The head of Ivory Coast’s main opposition party on Thursday claimed the government was trying to silence dissent before upcoming presidential elections, as crowds gathered to protest his ban from standing.A court in the west African country last month barred Tidjane Thiam from being a candidate in the October 25 vote, saying he lost Ivorian nationality when he acquired French citizenship in 1987.Presidential candidates are not allowed to hold dual citizenship. Thiam was born in Ivory Coast and renounced his French passport in March to enable his run for the top job.About, 1,000 supporters from his Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI) gathered outside the party’s headquarters to call for his reinstatement on the electoral list.”The government is intensifying its efforts to silence opposition voices by using both the security forces and the courts,” said Thiam in a statement.The 62-year-old former banker, who has not been seen in Ivory Coast for more than a month, called on the authorities to “end its repression of civil society and promise to organise free and fair elections open to all”.The government decision to prevent Thiam from standing has also put his position as PDCI leader in doubt.One party member has brought legal action about whether he can lead the organisation because of questions about his nationality.A hearing on that issue on Thursday morning was adjourned until May 15.Thursday’s gathering of PDCI members had initially been banned on public order grounds by the police.One of them, PDCI vice-president Noel Akossi Bendjo, said: “Thiam is our leader and our candidate and we will fight so he is in the elections and wins them.”Simon Doho, who heads PDCI lawmakers in parliament, added: “We have to call everyone… We’re not afraid of anyone.”Meanwhile, a source close to Thiam’s brother, Abdel Aziz Thiam, said the former minister and PDCI member was “held for about 20 minutes at the airport” on Wednesday night.”He asked repeatedly why he was being held and did not get a reply. They told him later that it was a case of mistaken identity,” the source added.
