United Nations sunctioned former Central African Republic Head of State Francois Bozize has announced his candidacy in the December presidential election.
Francois Bozize was austed in 2013 and his return in the high-risk vote in a country ravaged by civil war is making things more terrible.
AFP reports that Militants of Bozize’s Kwa Na Kwa (KNK) party have been meeting in Bangui since Friday and the announcement was widely expected.
“The party congress has just designated me candidate of the Kwa Na Kwa for the next presidential election … I solemnly accept the mission you have entrusted me,” he said in a speech that was also transmitted live on Facebook.
Francois Bozize has returned from exile in Uganda.
Bozize was listed by UN 9 May 2014 pursuant to paragraph 36 of resolution 2134 (2014) as “engaging in or providing support for acts that undermine the peace, stability or security of CAR.”
Fracoise Bozize
In liaison with his supporters, Bozize encouraged the attack of 5 December 2013 on Bangui.
Since then, he has continued trying to run destabilization operations in order to maintain tensions in the capital of CAR.
Bozize reportedly created the anti-Balaka militia group before he fled the CAR on March 24, 2013.
In a communique, Bozize called on his militia to pursue the atrocities against the current regime and the Islamists.
Bozize reportedly provided financial and material support to militiamen who are working to destabilize the ongoing transition and to bring Bozize back to power.
The bulk of the anti-Balaka are from the Central African Armed Forces who dispersed into the countryside after the coup d’dtat and were subsequently reorganized by Bozize
Bozize took power following a 2003 coup, before being overthrown himself 10 years later by Michel Djotodia, head of the mainly Muslim Seleka rebellion in the predominantly Christian country.
Since then, the poor, landlocked country has spiralled further into bloodshed, marked by vicious intercommunal violence.
“The many sufferings of the Central African people, as well as the call of the activists have pushed you to come back to the fold,” said the KNK’s secretary general, Bertin Bea, addressing Bozize earlier.
France intervened militarily in its former colony from 2013 to 2016 to push out the Seleka, winding down the operation after Faustin-Archange Touadera was elected president.
Touadera governs today with the support of a large UN peacekeeping operation, but most of the country is controlled by ex-rebels and militias.
The government signed a peace deal in February 2019 with 14 armed groups, who typically claim to defend the interests of specific communities or religions
