The May 6, 2024 Presidential Election In Chad: PART 2

 The Election Was A Real Sham, A Parody Of A Democratic Election, An Insult To Democracy

 The First Three Candidates That Were The President Of Transition, His Prime Minister And  His Former Prime Minister, Swept 96.47 % Of votes.

The 7 Other Candidates That Included ‘Opposition Candidates’, Were Left With A Miserable 3.47 %

 How GENERAL MAHAMAT DERBY ITNO’s Regime Divided, Terrorised, And Knocked Out The Opposition In Chad, Ahead Of May 6 Presidential Election

If the March 24, 2024 Presidential Election in Senegal (West Africa), gave political observers in Africa and beyond the hope that democracy could also work in Africa, the May 6, 2024 Presidential Election in neighboring Chad came as grim reminder that democracy is still being strongly resisted by the regimes in the Central African Sub – region, and that the sub –region remains the darkest spot for democracy in Africa. The May 6 presidential election in Chad was a sham, a parody of a democratic election, an insult to democracy.

Meanwhile, an electoral reform that took place last year in Chad, definitely gave people some hope that Chadian authorities were seemingly opening up to embrace some dose of democracy. The electoral reform did not only reduce the length of the presidential mandate, but also placed a limit on the number of mandates. A presidential mandate was reduced from seven to five years, and one could only serve as President of Chad for a maximum of two mandates, that is 10 years.  That looked good. But it later turned out that the electoral reform was meant to blindfold the Chadian people and the international community. The reality was that the Idris Derby Itno Dynasty that  had taken Chad hostage since 1990, was not willing to  give up power, and that  the May 6 , 2024 Presidential Election in Chad was thus designed for the President of  the Transition, General Mahamat Derby Itno, to win at all cost.

The Opposition Was Terrorised And Knocked Out Ahead Of Presidential Election

One of the major setbacks of the May 6, 2024 Presidential Election in Chad was that the country’s real opposition was ahead of the election terrorised and knocked off by the regime of General Mahamat Derby Itno, the President of the Transition and son of late former President of Chad, Idris Derby Itno.  In fact the real or serious opposition was absent from the May 6 presidential election in Chad.  So in reality the so called presidential election was reduced to an affair between General Mahamat Derby Itno   (President of the Transition), his allies and friends.

How The Opposition Was Eliminated – The Case Of Succes Masra

By the time President Idris Derby Itno of Chad was allegedly killed by rebel group in the Northern part of the country in April 2021, there were two key opposition leaders in the Country. The two were the leader of ‘Parti Socialiste Sans Frontier’, Yaya Dillo, and the leader of ‘Transformateurs’ Party, Dr Succes Masra.  In fact Succes Masra who was comparatively new in party politics in Chad, had rapidly established himself as the most radical opposition leader in the country, and attracted a large following comprised mostly of Chadian youths.

Worthy of note that the new opposition strongman, Dr Succes Masra, resigned from his job at the African Development Bank, AfDB, and return to Chad to concentrate on his political career. He did not thus have any stain like most of the other opposition leaders who had either served in the Government of President Derby Itno, or benefited from the regime.  Dr Masra was a real torn in the flesh of President Idirs Derby Itno, and the regime used security forces and the administration to try to obstruct or even block the new political party, ‘Transformateurs’ from operating. A few years after returning to the country to take politics as a career,  Succes Masra was blocked by the  regime of  President Idris Derby Itno  from participating in the 2020 presidential election.  Of course the incumbent, Idris Derby Itno, won the presidential election that his regime organised for him to win. There was no doubt that General Mahamat Derby Itno, the son of President Idris Derby Itno, who ignored the Constitution of Chad and took power when the father died in April 2021, had an eye on the opposition strongman, Succes Masra.

Black Thursday In Chad

On Thursday, October20, 2022, that is 10 days after General Mahamat Derby Itno was sworn in as President of the Transition in Chad following the so called national dialogue, the genuine opposition parties of Chad, precisely the ‘Transformateurs’ of Succes Masra and the ‘Parti Socialiste Sans Frontiere” of Yaya Dillo,  organised a protest demonstration in the country, against the manipulation by General Mahamat Derby Itno, to hang on to power.  But there was a heavy crack down by security forces, some of whom were dressed in civilian attires. Media reports talked of over 50 deaths and more than 300 persons injured. The opposition cried out that security forces including those that were in civilian attires, shot at peaceful demonstrators with live bullets, and that the more than 50 people who were killed were all shot by elements of the Security Forces.  Worth noting, that one of persons who was killed was a journalist, Narcisse Oredje, who was simply out to do his job – to cover the demonstration. It should be noted as well that the Chadian opposition adopted the name BLACK THURSDAY for that fateful day of Thursday, October 20, 2022.

Succes Masra Flees The Country / Later Returns And Is Appointed PM

Meanwhile following the decision by the Chadian Government to arrest the two key opposition leaders, Succes Masra and Yaya Dillo, to put them on trial for purportedly organizing and insurrection, Dr Masra sneaked out of the country to avoid arrest.  He however returned to Chad late last year, following mediation by one of the Central African leaders, Felix Tshisekedi of DR Congo.  Chadian Military Leader, General Mahamat Derby Itno, signed an amnesty that took away the charges that the regime leveled against the two main opposition leaders, Masra and Diallo, and a number of other persons.  To the surprise of many, the President of the Transition in Chad, General Mahamat Derby Itno, on January 1, 2024 appointed Succes Masra as the new Prime Minister and Head of Government of Chad, and he accepted the appointment. The appointment – deal was likley struck during the negotiation for Masra’s return to Chad.

The appointment of the firebrand opposition leader in Chad, Dr  Succes Masra, as the new Prime Minister of Chad,  sparked controversy, anger, confusion, condemnation and suspicion in opposition circles across country. Masra was accused to have not only betrayed the opposition, but the Chadian people in general, by accepting to join the regime that was responsible for the October 20, 2022 massacre in Chad dubbed Black Thursday. More so, it was recalled that Masra was one of the two opposition leaders that had called for the protest demonstration that led to the massacre.

Opposition Leader, Yaya Dillo, Killed

Meanwhile, when Succes Masra embarrassingly became Prime Minister of Chad, the Co – Opposition Leader, Yaya Dillo, National President of the ‘Parti Socialiste Sans Frontiere’ (Socialist Party Without Borders), indisputable became the main opposition leader of Chad.  But shockingly enough, Yaya Dillo was assassinated at his party’s headquarters in the Chadian capital, Djamena, in February 2024 by ‘unknown gunmen’ in broad daylight. Till date, the Chadian government claims that investigation is still going on, and that the ‘unknown gunmen’ are still to be identified. The elimination of Yaya Dillo, left the Chadian opposition without a key leader ahead of the May 6 presidential election.

Constitutional Council Drops The Remaining Opposition Candidates

As if the killing of Yaya Dillo was not enough, the Constitutional Council the following month, precisely on March 25, 2024, dropped the other few serious opposition candidates from the list of candidates for the May 6 presidential election. It would be recalled that a total of 20 candidatures for the May 6 presidential election, were received by ‘L’Agence Nationale des Gestion des Elections du Chad’, that is, the National Agency for the Management of Elections in Chad, which is like Elections Cameroon, ELECAM In Cameroon. But unlike in Cameroon where it is ELECAM that screens the files of the candidates, in Chad it is the Constitutional Council. So the files of the 20 candidates were forwarded to the Constitutional Council for screening.

But then on March 25, 2024, the Constitutional Council, seen by many as operating under influence of regime of General Mahamat Derrby Itno, announced the disqualification of 10 of the 20 candidates for the May 6 presidential election. Also seen by many Chadians as a design rather than a coincidence, it turned out that those considered as serious opposition candidates for the May 6 presidential election, were among the 10 candidates that were disqualified or dropped by the General Mahamat Derby Itno’s Constitutional Council. So the candidates of the opposition that were left in the May 6 presidential election race were political light weights, that the regime knew could not make any headway in the election.

President Of Transition And Prime Minister Presented As Two Main Contenders

Strange enough, the President of the Transition in Chad, General Mahamat Derby Itno, and his Prime Minister, Succes Masra, who normally were NOT SUPPOSED to be candidates in the May 6, 2024 Presidential Candidates, became those that were being presented by the official media as well as the pro –regime private media organs in Chad, as the two contenders of the May 6 presidential election. Also, Prime Minister Succes Masra was presented as the leading opposition candidate in the election. But the Chadian opposition called Masra a traitor, and did no longer considered him as an opposition. However it should be said that Succes Masra despite the betrayal of the opposition, still had many followers or supporters during the election campaign, especially since as Prime Minister he had the financial means and power, and could do other favours.

But it should be reiterated that the President of the Transition, General Mahamat Derby Into, and  the Prime Minister and Head of Government, Dr  Succes Masra, were normally NOT SUPPOSED TO BE CANDIDATES  in the May 6 presidential election in Chad.  But then it turned out that the President of Transition, General Mahamat Derby Itno, who had repeatedly promised that democratic elections would be organised for a return of power to civilian rule, at the end turned around and declared his candidature for the presidential election. This was indisputably a major irregular situation, as well as a scandal.

Bitter Criticism Of Succes Masra’s Candidature

Even during the reign of President Idris Derby Itno  (the late father of Mahamat Idris Derby),  the Prime Minister or any member of Government from the opposition that wanted to run in  a presidential election,  resigned from the Government at least  six months before the election.  But then to the embarrassment of the Chadian opposition in particular, Prime Minister Succes Masra last March declared his candidature as well as deposited his file to be candidate in the May 6, 2024 Presidential Election in Chad. What angered the opposition the more was the fact that Succes Masra who had betrayed the opposition by accepting his appointment to the post of Prime Minister on January 1, 2024, was still passing for an opposition leader and candidate. There was bitter criticism of the controversial candidature of Prime Minister Succes Masra by the Chadian opposition.

An independent media report from Chad put it aptly: “Tchad : Les candidature controversee de Succes Masra: Compromis, Critique et Calcul Polititique. Le candidature de Succes Masra subscribe des critique acerbes parmi ses anciens allies, qui lui reprochent d’avoir cede aux compromise avec le pouvoir en acceptant l’armistie pour les responsables des massacre d’Octobre 2022 et en accedant a la premature”. Roughly translated as: “Chad: The Controversial candidature of Succes Masra: Compromise, Criticism and Political Calculations. The candidature of Succes Masra has sparked acerbic criticisms among his former allies, who fault him for having ceded to a compromise with the Government in accepting amnesty for those responsible for the October 2022 massacre, and accepting to accede to the post of Prime Minister”,

President Of Transition, Prime Minister And Former Prime Minister, Swept 96.47% Of Votes

The provisional results of the May 6, 2024 Presidential Election in neighbouring Chad that was proclaimed in the evening of May 9, showed that the President of the Transition, General Mahamat Derby Itno (son of the late Chadian leader Idris Derby Itno), won the election in the first round by 61.03 % of votes cast, which was 3,784,360 votes. The 2nd in the election was Prime Minister Dr Assyoncar Masra Succes, popularly known simply as Succes Masra, who officially won 18.53 % of the votes cast, which was 1,149,199 votes. The 3rd was former Prime Minister Pahimi Padacke Albert, who got 16, 91 % of the votes cast. This meant that the first three candidates who were the President of the Transition, his Prime Minister, and his former Prime Minister, swept a total of 96.47 % of the votes that were cast at the May 6 presidential election in Chad. Participation of registered voters at the May 6 presidential election was put at 75.89 %.

The Constitutional Council of Chad had on March 25, 2024 validated the candidatures of a total of 10 candidates to participate in the May 6 presidential election in Chad.  With the first three candidates in the election having grabbed a total of 96.47 % of the votes, it thus meant that the other seven candidates were left with a miserable total of 3.53 % of the votes. There was no doubt that the Constitutional Council of Chad that was even involved in the proclamation of  the  provisional result of the May 6 presidential election by the national vote counting commission, would officially confirmed that provisional result as the final result in its proclamation. And that was what happened a week later.

Why There Was No Surprise In The May 6 Presidential Election Results

Political observers will definitely agree that there was no surprise in the official result of the May 6 presidential election in Chad. This was because from all indications, the General Mahamat Derby Itno regime in Chad strictly designed the election for him to win at all cost.  In a normal situation or in a democracy, the President of a Government of Transition in a country, CAN NOT be a candidate in the presidential election. But in Chad, the President of the Transition, General Mahamat Derby Itno, who at the beginning had promised that a democratic election would be organised by his government to return the country to civil rule, at the end suddenly turned around and became a presidential candidate himself. Worse still, he did not resign from the post President of Transition. This was a very irregular situation.

Also, in a normal situation, the Prime Minister and Head of Government of Chad, Dr Succes Masra, was not supposed to be a candidate in May 6 presidential election. In a normal situation, if the Prime Minister wanted to be candidate in the May 6 presidential election, he would have resigned. That, Masra did not do. This was another irregular situation.

Another very serious issue about the May 6 presidential election in Chad, was  that the real opposition was absent in the election. As aforementioned, ahead of the May 6 presidential election, the regime of General Mahamat Derby Itno had viciously terrorised and eliminated the opposition in Chad. And so the May 6 presidential election became an affair or a friendly match by the President of Transition, General Mahamat Derby Itno, and his allies as well as friends (Prime Minister and Former Prime Minister).  And as could be seen, the three swept a total of 96.47 % of the votes, leaving the other seven inconsequential candidates in the election with a miserable total of 3.53 %.

PM Masra Claims Victory, File Petition To Constitutional Council  

Meanwhile, worthy of note that before  the provisional results of the  May 6 presidential election in Chad was announced in the evening of May 9, 2024,  Prime Minister Succes Masra  had in a dramatic twist earlier in day, claimed victory in a video message that went addressed to the Chadian people, and that went viral on social media. Recalling that he was the Candidate of Change at the May 6 presidential election, Succes Masra said his campaign team had undisputed evidences to show that a majority of the Chadian electorates voted for the Candidate for Change.  He congratulated the Chadian people for having voted wisely, and even went ahead to state some of the things he would do as President of the Republic of Chad. But Succes Masra at the same time alleged that a secret operation was underway to falsify the result of the election, and rob the Candidate of Change of victory. He called on the Chadian people to strongly protect their votes and victory through peaceful means, and called on the Forces of Law and Order to stand on the side of justice. That same afternoon, a post that went viral on social media, alleged that Succes Masra won the May 6, 2024 Presidential election in Chad by 59.28 %, and that General Mahamat Derby Itno came second with a miserable 14. 36 %.

After the official publication of the provisional result of the May 6 presidential election which showed that General Mahamat Derby Itno had won by 61. 03 %, there were some protests by supporters of Succes Masra. There were allegations in the social media that some protesters were arrested and tortured, and that hospitals had been prohibited from giving any statistics of victims of the suppression of the protests by the regime. Succes Masra himself filed a petition at the Constitutional Council against the official provisional results of the presidential election. Without any surprise however, the Constitutional Council rejected the petition and officially proclaimed the result of the May 6 presidential election, confirming the provisional result. Succes Masra in his reaction said since the Constitutional Council had confirmed the contested result of the May 6 presidential election, there was no other choice than to accept the result as such.

 PM Masra And Gov’t Of Transition, Resign

It should be noted that many observers wondered what PM Succes Masra was up to, when he came out in his video massage on May 9 claiming victory in the presidential election, and even later going further to file a petition at the Constitutional Council, contesting the official provisional result which showed that General Mahamat Derby Itno had won the election in the first round by 61.03 %. It should be noted that the terms of  the secret deal or agreement that was struck in late 2023 between  the then President  of the Transition in Chad, General Mahamat Derby Itno, and the then Chadian opposition leader, Succes Masra , for  the latter to return to the country and be appointed to the post of Prime Minister, are not known. But many observers wondered whether Succes Masra could have even in his wildest of imagination thought that all what the regime of General Mahamat Derby Itno did to crush or eliminate the opposition ahead of the May 6 presidential election, was for him (Masra) to become President of Chad!  More so, General Mahamat Derby Itno himself was a candidate in the presidential election.

Some other political observers rather thought that the protest against the provisional result of the May 6 presidential election by Prime Minister Succes Masra, was just a political game. And they seemed to have been right, at least to an extent, as was seen in a message that Masra addressed to General Mahamat Drby Itno on May 22, 2024. In line with the Constitution, Prime Minister Succes Masra and ‘his government’ resigned on Wednesday, May 22, 2024, ahead of the swearing –in of the President – elect of Chad, General Mahamat Derby Itno. What caught the attention of observers the most was part of the content of the message that Succes Masra addressed to the outgoing President of Transition, General Mahamat Derby Itno. Succes Masra thanked General Mahamat Derby Itno for the confidence and honour that he gave him, by appointing him to serve as Prime Minister and Head of Government. Above all, Masra prayed God to BLESS the President – elect of Chad, General Mahamat Derby Itno.

Investiture Of 7^th President of Chad

Then on May 23, 2024, General Mahamat Derby Itno, was sworn – in as the 5^th President of Chad. It was normally supposed to be a ceremony where the out –going President of Transition of Chad, would have handed over power to a civilian President – elect of the country.  But here was an embarrassing situation where the out-going President of Transition ‘handed over’ power to himself as President – elect, and was then sworn in as the President of Chad.  It is only in the Central African Sub –region, where the authorities have continued to put up a strong resistance against genuine democracy, than one can find such cacophony and scandal in the name of a democratic transition.

President Of All Chadians?

In his inaugural address at the May 23 event in Chad’s capital, Djamena, President Mahamat Derby Itno said he was going to be the President of all Chadians. Observers would agree that it however remains to be seen whether all Chadians will accept him as their President. The people of some parts of Chad are said be strongly against the Idris Derby Itno Dynasty that has taken the country hostage for over 30 years.  A few days before the May 6 presidential election, a video appeared on the social media, showing hundreds of youths that came out in a locality in Chad and destroyed campaign posters of General Mahamat Derby Itno.  It was not an isolated case, and it was definitely not a good sign, even if the official result of the presidential election still gave General Mahamat Derby Itno a ‘big win’.

Also, details of the official result of the May 6 presidential election showed that as regard the Chadian Diaspora,  General Mahamat Derby Itno won in’ Diaspora Europe’, ‘Diaspora Africa’, ‘Diaspora Asia’ and only loose in ‘Diaspora America’, whereas many Chadians outside  the country are said to be sworn enemies of  the Idris Derby Itno Dynasty in Chad.  Then there is also the rebel group in the northern part of Chad, FACT, which allegedly killed President – Field Marshal Idris Derby Itno, the father of President – General Mahamat Derby Itno.  Like his late father, General Mahamat Derby Itno has opted to fight and hopefully crush the rebel group, than seek a peaceful resolution of the problem through dialogue.