For the opposition in Mali, there is no question of postponing the date of the elections. Political parties and associations held a meeting on Wednesday, January 5, 2022 to inform Goodluck Jonathan, ECOWAS mediator visiting the country, that it is not to consider a prolongation of the transition. They demanded the organization of the presidential election for a return to constitutional order and the transfer of power to civilians.
The political authorities of the Malian opposition are calling for an end to the transition and the holding of presidential elections. At their meeting on 5 January 2022, they said that the conclusions of the National Assizes which provided for an extension of the transition should not be followed. The presidential election must be held within the time limits that have been retained since the beginning of the transitional period after the overthrow of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. “We realize that these transitional authorities have not been up to the task. So, we have to find ourselves, as Malians, to decide on a new roadmap, and to have new transitional authorities who will have as their sole mission to secure the country and organize the presidential and especially general elections for a return to constitutional order”, declared Amadou Koïta,
Zeynab Evelyne Jacques, Vice-President of the Republican Alliance for Progress (ARP), fears that ECOWAS will impose further sanctions on the Malian state, which has been suffering since the coup. “Not only are we in an economic crisis, but also socio-cultural and terrorism. So having a sanction would be very present for Malians and unbearable,’ she said.
Moreover, the opposition intends to materialize its commitment by organizing a demonstration at the monument of the martyrs of the 1991 revolution, on Saturday, January 8, 2022. A way to alert the authorities to the urgency of organizing the elections and to avoid any attempt to prolong the power of the military. On the same day, supporters of the extension of the transition also planned to demonstrate to put pressure on the Heads of State of ECOWAS to meet on Sunday, 9 January 2022 to decide on the situation.
