Choi and Badini discuss
upcoming CPC

Nord Sud  - 
UNOCI's chief, Y. J. Choi
and the Facilitator's representative, Boureima badini yesterday met to discuss
the evolution of electoral process, especially the upcoming CPC. According to
the right-hand man of Blaise Comoaore in Abidjan, the exchanges mainly revolved
around the common measures to be taken to make the process progress. For its
part, UNOCI through its spokesperson, hamadoun Touré, "updated its logistical
action plan to further help the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and the
structures involved in the electoral process meet the immediate challenges."

 

Doris Ross met Young Jin Choi
yesterday

L'Intelligent d'Abidjan
 – After meeting
with Charles Diby Koffi, on Wednesday, Mrs. Doris Ross, chief of an IMF mission
and the delegation under her leadership met with the UNOCI's Chief. Young Jin
Choi and his guests held talks on issues related on the crisis-resolution
process.

 

Presidential election: the IEC
anounces that campaign will be open on 14 October

Le Patriote
 – (...) The IEC gave the
criteria for the establishment of polling premises and stations. The criteria
resulted in the following figures: 10,179 premises of vote; 20,073 polling
stations. Let us outline that: 1) the reliability of the indelible ink was
tested on Monday 30 august in the presence of law baillifs; 2) all the technical
specifications related to electoral documents were elaborated and adopted. The
IEC insisted on the need for security arrangements regarding electoral
documents, especially the ballot paper and the voting report; its technicians
are working with the National Publishing Company to quickly print electoral
documents. 3) the recruitment criteria and the terms of reference for the
training of the IEC's personnel, in charge of the management of the poling
station and those in charge of the distribution of voters cards were also
adopted. 4) all the present decrees related to the electoral process were
adopted by the Central Commission. It especially consists of decrees

related to Ivorians voting abroad, the organisation of the electoral campaign,
the organisation and functioning of the polling stations, the requisitioning of
officials and state employees who will be assimilated for the crisis-resolution
elections. The IEC once again welcomes the validation by the State of Côte
d'Ivoire of its calendar for availability of funds which will allow it to carry
out the different task on its timetable. It also highlights the fact that the
electoral campaign will begin on 14 October 2010. (...)

 

Political
parties excluded from radio and television debates/The RHDP attacks the CNCA
decision

Le Nouveau Réveil–
The facts

The technical commission of the
National Commission for Debates and special Programmes of the CNCA, during its
session on 14 September 2010, made it known to representatives of presidential
candidates for 31 October 2010 that given that the configuration of the debates
could not obtain a consensus of the National Commission for Debates and Special
Programmes, it felt it necessary to have only members of civil society, experts
and ministers taking part in pre-campaign programmes on radio and television.   (...)

An analysis of the facts

The RHDP observes that the CNCA, by
taking this decision, is taking away from the political parties and the
presidential candidates the possibility of participating in political debates
during the pre-campaign thus depriving Ivorians of their right to political
information and ideas to debate.
(...)

The RHDP's position

The RHDP demands that the CNCA goes
back to its previous measures which envisage the final implementation of the
technical dispositions for a successful media coverage of the pre-campaign and
the presidential campaign for elections on 31 October 2010. Consequently, RHDP
demands that the programme scheduled for Sunday, 19^th September 2010
on the topic of the Ivorian school, as well as all other programmes being
prepared as part of the presidential election are presented by the
representatives of the candidates for the presidential election of October 31st,
2010.

 

The Affair of
«arms purchase aborted in the United States», Amani Michel (Defence Minister):
«We will not have the material necessary to secure the elections», Blaise
Compaoré and Choi were informed yesterday

Soir Info  –
Security measures
envisaged by the Ministry of Defence to efficiently monitor elections in
Côte d'Ivoire could
be seriously affected or even annulled.  The 4000 automatic pistols, 200,000 9
mm ammunition and the  50.000 grenades ordered from an American arms company
that the Ministry could not name  - could not be brought to Abidjan as
stipulated in the contract.

Since Thursday 16 September 2010, this famous
American company could not be contacted. One of the special envoys of the
Minister of Defence, Colonel Yao N'Guessan was arrested. (...)
Therefore with regard to what has happened, the Minister
is
powerless to deal with any future electoral battles. «We will no longer be able
to provide security for the elections. We need these materials otherwise we will
be vulnerable. In situation of self-defence, our agents, due to lack of
equipment, will not be able to do anything. Côte d'Ivoire risks disaster».
Therefore, from today, Minister Amani has informed the Facilitaor of the Ivorian
crisis, the president of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaoré and the UN Special
Representative in Côte d'Ivoire Choi.

  

 

A FANCI officer kidnapped in
New York - Minister Amani tells the whole truth

Notre Voie  -
On mission in the United
States to look for equipment for maintaining order, Colonel Yao N'Guessan, a
member of the cabinet of the Minister of Defence, disappeared last Friday in a
New York airport.  Yesterday, Minister Amani called the press to his office to
deplore what appears to be an odious kidnapping of an Ivorian official on
American soil.  

(...)
The truth on the inexplicable
arrest

The affair goes back to 2009.
The 2 July, at a time when Beugré Mambé, chiarman of the Independent Electoral
Commission (IEC) was fooling Ivorians into believing that the holding of
presidential election was possible on 29 November, Michel Amani N'Guessan wrote
to the president of the Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council (...) to
ask for a « relaxing of the arms embargo » on Cote d'Ivoire by resolutions
1572/2004 and 1580/2005. In this letter, the Ivorian Minister of Defence , said
that by signing the Ouagadougou Poolitical Agreement on 4 March 2007, the two
parties had agreed to deployed a mixed contingent of 8,000 men (4000 FDS
loyalists and 4000 FAFN rebels) constituting the Integrated Command Centre (ICC)
in charge of security for the presidential election.

"In order for these police and
gendarmerie forces to fulfil their usual mission of providing security for
people and goods, wrote Amani, we are asking to be allowed to import 4000
automatic pistols, 200,000 9 mm ammunition and 50,000 teargas grenades".
And the president of the Republic, the Prime Minister, the Facilitator and the
Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Côte d'Ivoire, Mr. Choi
were informed. The latter, according to Minister Amani, even assured him of his
support to help ensure the success of this legitimate and legal request. So, the
request has been regularly sent to the head of Côte d'Ivoire's permanent mission
to the UN, Ambassador Ilahiri Alcide Djédjé, who, in his turn, sent a note
verbale, on 14 July 2009, to the Sanctions Committee of the Security Council.
 On 30 July 2009, all these efforts led to success. By the signature of its
president, Claude Heller, the Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council
responded favourably to the request to relax the embargo. The only condition,
the Committee demanded was that all the suppliers of the material inform it, so
that they can be exempt

. (...)