There will be no vote on the president, but the parliamentary election in Togo is still important for Faure Gnassingbé: because the West African country is in turmoil. Europe is also looking ahead to the vote.
The party of President Faure Gnassingbé went into the election campaign with drums, trumpets and a lot of confidence. She is considered the clear favorite to win the vote. “Look, despite the rain, people came,” said a campaigner for the ruling UNIR party happily.
The president cannot sit back and relax completely. Although there will be no vote on him, without a majority in parliament the 58-year-old is threatened with a significant loss of power. His country is also in turmoil.
Family in power for more than 50 years
The confirmed bachelor Faure Gnassingbé has ruled the West African country of Togo for almost two decades now. If you add in the almost 40 years that his – at times dictatorial – father held power, it is difficult to deny: it is a real family dynasty that has controlled the fortunes of the 8 million inhabitants for more than half a century -Landes directs.
Many years ago, President Gnassingbé himself said: “If someone comes to power just because he has a name, because he comes from a family, that would be bad for the country.”
Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbé during the G20 Investment Summit 2023 in November in Berlin.
“I don’t feel like a dictator”
At least for the time being, it doesn’t look as if anything will change quickly in the balance of power. Parliament recently passed a constitutional amendment that significantly limits the powers of the president.
But the opposition is still on the barricades. In the end, they accuse, these innovations would also cement Faure Gnassingbé’s power again, through the back door, so to speak. One thing is clear: if his party retains the majority in the National Assembly, it will also strengthen him.
The long-time president, who once studied in Paris and Washington, rarely gives interviews, but told the AFP news agency in 2020: “To be honest. In any case, I don’t feel like a dictator or anything like that.”
Young Togolese can no longer remember a president before Faure Gnassingbé.
Elections also interesting for Europe
Germany, the Europeans and especially France, as a former colonial power, are certainly looking at the election in Togo with interest. Especially because neighboring countries such as Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso had cut many ties with the Europeans and instead relied on Russia militarily.
Togo, on the other hand, had recently put out feelers towards the Anglo-Saxon West, had sought money for development aid from the USA and joined the British Commonwealth two years ago.
In the coastal state of Togo, almost half of the population lives below the poverty line. The country is struggling to prevent terrorism from seeping into the north from Burkina Faso. There are many indications that all of this will remain Faure Gnassingbé’s problem for quite some time.