Three weeks before the Chadian presidential election, marches are organized against Idriss Déby Itno's sixth term. Opposition figures, human rights defenders and civil society organizations are asking for alternation.
Idriss Déby Itno is seeking a sixth term at the head of Chad. On February 6, he was invested by his party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement (MPS), a candidate for the presidential election on April 11. Since the announcement of his inauguration, a very tense atmosphere reigns in the streets of the Chadian capital. Opposition political parties and associations have called for demonstrations almost every weekend. The young people are angry and there is good reason: they demand the withdrawal of Déby's candidacy. If the mobilization has continued to grow in recent weeks, the gatherings were quickly dispersed by the police.
Idriss Déby Itno: alone against all?
The Chadian marshal launched his campaign on March 13, at the N'Djamena stadium, surrounded by his supporters of the MPS and his campaign team. It is as a huge favorite that he is running for this new election. A connoisseur of the workings of the electoral exercise, he relies on his Interior Ministry and his relatives to secure a new mandate. Among them, his son Abdelkerim Idriss Déby, and the First Lady, Hinda Déby Itno. The secretary general of the MPS, former mayor of N'Djamena has been appointed to lead this campaign.
Facing him ? Nobody… or almost. Almost all of his opponents have chosen, forced or not, the path of boycott. Several opposition heavyweights have announced their withdrawal from the electoral process. Idriss Déby has only six opponents left, generally unknown to the battalion. Supported by the international community, especially for Chad's contribution to peacekeeping operations in the Sahel and the G5 Sahel to counter the rise of jihadism, the presidential election seems to have been won in advance for the Marshal.
The demands of Chadian youth
After the announcement of his investiture, and given his longevity at the head of the country, many young people came to the districts of the capital to denounce an "injustice". Young people who want to be heard and understood. They want to express themselves in politics and have hope in their future and that of their country. They demand a renewal of the aging ruling political class. And inevitably, Idriss Déby is not one of them.
This fed up is exacerbated by the attempt to arrest the opponent, Yaya Dillo, presidential candidate, having cost the lives of his relatives. The ensuing censorship on social media has fueled the anger of Chadian youth, who feel deprived of their most basic rights. The climate of insecurity foreshadows a presidential election under high tension. And the rumors that are starting to appear in the streets and on social media could lead to further repressions in the weeks to come.