Opposition supporters in Togo continue to hold street protests demanding that their president, Faure Gnassingbe exits power and make way for political reforms.
The street protests over the past four months have been characterised in some instances by violence with many arrests made by the security agencies.
The embattled President Gnassingbe is bearing the brunt of citizens demanding an end to his family dynasty which has lasted for 50 years in the West African nation.
Gnassingbe last week said “Togo is currently disrupted by demonstrations, which, far from being peaceful as permitted by law, have often been extremely violent.”
“Those who organise these events bear the heavy responsibility for the victims and the damage they caused,” he said in a speech broadcast on national television.
ECOWAS leaders have urged the two parties to end the violence and talk about the crisis.
The people of #Togo marching on the nationalist song “Ablode Gbadja” which means total independence. The musician who sang that song spent the rest of his life in exile under Eyadema #Togodebout pic.twitter.com/Uns1cOkYFA
— Farida Nabourema (@Farida_N) November 16, 2017
Faure Gnassingbe took over from his father Eyadema 12 years ago after he died while in power for 38 years.
He has since won elections in 2005, 2010 and 2015 but got the two-term limit for presidents scrapped a year ago to allow him to further prolong his rule.
Source: Africafeeds.com
