By RFIPublished on 12/23/2019 Modified on 12/23/2019 at 8:37

Former Ivorian rebel leader and 2020 presidential candidate Guillaume Soro, who was on a private flight to Abidjan, finally landed in Accra, neighboring Ghana.

No return to Côte d'Ivoire for Guillaume Soro. The former president of the National Assembly and candidate for the Ivorian presidential election of 2020 was expected early in the afternoon in Abidjan after more than six months of absence.

But his flight to Abidjan was diverted to Accra, Ghana. There, several caciques of the GPS (Generations and peoples in solidarity), its citizen movement, were embarked by the gendarmerie, according to party lawyers. An arrest warrant has been issued against him by the Ivorian justice.

Change of trajectory over Burkina

This Monday, December 23, already in the morning, access to Guillaume Soro's residence had been prohibited by the authorities. Even his brother was unable to enter. Then it was access to the military airport, where the former minister was to land, which was blocked by the police. Almost no GPS activist was present on site.

On the GPS side, it is said that Guillaume Soro's plane was prevented from landing by the authorities. But a press release from the National Civil Aviation Agency indicates that it was at the request of Guillaume Soro that the plane was hijacked as it flew over Burkina Faso.

" Attempt to destabilize and divert public funds "

According to a source close to the government, the arrest warrant issued against him has the motive " attempt to destabilize and embezzlement of public funds ". The news of this mandate would have pushed him to turn away from Abidjan, and to land in Ghana around 2:30 p.m.

A little later in the afternoon, a press conference was held at the GPS headquarters. Once completed, security forces entered by climbing the compound. Hooded, a dozen men burst into the room. Some journalists had their equipment confiscated and activists were jostled.

Several members of the Sororist party, including Alain Lobognon, founding member of the GPS, were arrested by the gendarmerie, according to their lawyers. As for Guillaume Soro, he would still be stuck in his plane, at Accra airport.

► Read also: Côte d'Ivoire: Soro's candidacy, a question of support and strategy

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