Former president Thabo Mbeki has been requested by the African Union (AU) to help resolve the Côte d’Ivoire presidential dispute, the Thabo Mbeki Foundation said on Saturday.
At the request of the chairperson of the commission of the AU, Jean Ping, Mbeki will embark on an emergency mission to Côte d’Ivoire to assist the parties.
“Last night, Mr Mbeki, acting on behalf of the AU, telephoned both President Laurent Gbagbo and opposition candidate, Mr Alassane Ouattara.
“Both Messrs Gbagbo and Ouattara agreed with His Excellency Ping’s request for Mr Mbeki to travel to Côte d’Ivoire for talks with the parties.”
Mbeki leaves from Khartoum, Sudan next Saturday.
SA has no position yet
Meanwhile, the Department of International Relations and Cooperations said on Saturday that South Africa would await the outcome of an African Union meeting before declaring its position on the Côte d’Ivoire elections.
“The South African government has noted the pronouncements of the electoral commission and the constitutional council on the outcomes of the election in Côte d’Ivoire and continues to monitor developments as they unfold in that country,” said departmental spokesperson Clayson Monyela.
Agence France-Presse reported that outgoing President Laurent Gbagbo had been sworn in as president after elections in Côte d’Ivoire, despite international rejection of his legitimacy. Earlier on Saturday, European Union Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso declared Alassane Ouatara “the legitimate winner” of the presidential elections.
Monyela said the South African government welcomed an urgent convening of an extraordinary session of the African Union Peace and Security Council (AU-PSC) in Addis Ababa to deliberate on the issue.
“South Africa will take into consideration the outcome of the discussions of the AU-PSC and other factors before pronouncing its position,” he said. — Sapa-AFP