"We asked for this meeting with the Special Representative in order to discuss three points, namely the banning of an FPI meeting, the lifting of sanctions against members of the FPI and the national situation," said the president of the Front Populaire Ivoirien (FPI), Mr. Pascal Affi N'Guessan at the end of a meeting with the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Côte d'Ivoire, Aïchatou Mindaoudou on Friday, 21 February 2014.



Regarding the first point, Mr. N'Guessan deplored the decision taken by the Mayor of Abobo to ban an FPI meeting in his district. « This sort of action is regrettable and we think it goes against the atmosphere of détente, normalisation of the situation and reconciliation. It was important for us to come and talk to the Special Representative about it as we believe that considering her status, she can talk to the appropriate authorities so that this kind of action is not repeated and this person is made to explain his action," added the president of FPI.



On the second issue, Mr. N'Guessan said he had taken the opportunity of the presence in Côte d'Ivoire of the Group of Experts on Sanctions to make a plea to the Special Representative to support their request for the lifting of sanctions against members of the FPI. "We ourselves are under sanctions despite this we are fighting for reconciliation, peace and an atmosphere of détente. We would like our efforts to be taken into consideration and the sanctions against us lifted," he said.



With regard to the last point, Mr. N'Guessan talked about the institutional reforms announced as part of the organisation of the presidential election in 2015, and the importance of discussing how best to implement them. « These reforms cannot be carried out without an assessment and a diagnosis which should be done in a democratic setting which is what we termed "les Etats généraux" a large public meeting involving all stakeholders, especially the political parties,» the president of the FPI insisted.