Doumbouya

Doumbouya was declared victor in the West African country’s first election since he led the 2021 military takeover.

Mamady Doumbouya, a general who led a 2021 military takeover in Guinea, has been sworn in as the West African country’s president.

The Saturday event, which took place in front of tens of thousands of supporters and several heads of state, came after Doumbaya was declared the victor in last month’s election.

The vote was the first since Doumbouya toppled President Alpha Conde four years ago.

Although he initially pledged not to run for president after seizing power, Doumbouya ultimately stood for election against eight other candidates. However, his most prominent opponents remained in exile, with the opposition calling for a boycott of the poll.

The West African country’s Supreme Court later said Doumbouya received 86.7 percent of the vote.

Dressed in a traditional gown, Doumbouya swore an oath to uphold the constitution – which had recently been altered to allow him to stand – during an hours-long ceremony at the General Lansana Conte Stadium on the outskirts of the capital, Conakry.

“I swear before God and before the people of Guinea, on my honour, to respect and faithfully enforce the Constitution, the laws, regulations and judicial decisions,” he said.

Heads of state from Rwanda, The Gambia, Senegal and other African countries joined the event, as did the vice presidents of China, Nigeria, Ghana and Equatorial Guinea, as well as officials from France and the United States.

Assimi Goita, a general who has led neighbouring Mali since a military takeover in 2020, was also in attendance.

The election came after Guineans approved a new constitution in September that permitted members of the military leadership to run for office. It also lengthened presidential terms from five to seven years, setting a two-term limit.

Doumbouya has said the military takeover was justified due to alleged corruption and economic mismanagement under Conde, who in 2010 became the country’s first freely elected president since its 1958 independence.

During four years in power, the military dissolved state institutions and suspended the constitution, as it negotiated with regional bodies, including the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), over a return to democratic civilian government.

Doumbouya has cracked down on civil liberties, banned protests and targeted political opponents during his time as leader.

With about 52 percent of the population living in poverty, he has promised to tap the country’s vast natural resources, which include untapped iron ore deposits, as well as the world’s largest bauxite reserves.

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Mamady Doumbouya faced eight rivals for the presidency, but the main opposition leaders were barred from running.

Guinea coup leader ⁠Mamady Doumbouya has ​been ‍elected president, according ‍to provisional results, paving the way for a ​return ‌to civilian governing after a military takeover nearly five years ago.

The provisional ‌results announced on Tuesday showed Doumbouya winning ‌86.72 percent of the vote held on ⁠December 28 – an absolute majority that allows him to avoid a runoff.

The ‌Supreme Court has eight days to validate the results in the ‍event of any challenge.

Doumbouya, 41, faced eight rivals for the presidency, but the main opposition leaders were barred from running and had urged a boycott of the vote.

The former special forces commander seized power in 2021, toppling then-President Alpha Conde, who had been in office since 2010. It was one in ​a series of ‌nine coups that have reshaped politics in West and Central Africa since 2020.