By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
File Photo.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said that he was saddened by Chad President Idriss Déby’s death and concerned over developments in that country involving armed groups.
Ramaphosa has sent his condolences to his family, government and the people of Chad.
He’s also called for an immediate end to the violence.
Ramaphosa has furthermore expressed the concern of the South African government at developments in Chad involving armed groups.
He has called for an immediate cessation of violence, which he believes is necessary to bring peace and stability to the Chadian people as part of ending the conflict on the continent.
“We condemn in the strongest terms the violence that has claimed so many lives, including that of President Déby. We call for calm and a cessation of fighting,”said Ramaphosa.
Idriss Deby, who ruled his country for more than 30 years and was an important Western ally in the fight against Islamist militants in Africa, has been killed on the frontline against rebels in the north.
Deby’s son, Mahamat Kaka, was named interim president by a transitional council of military officers, spokesman Azem Bermendao Agouna said in a broadcast on state television.
Deby, 68, came to power in a rebellion in 1990 and was one of Africa’s longest-ruling leaders, surviving numerous coup attempts and rebellions.
His death was announced the day after he was declared the winner of a presidential election that would have given him a sixth term in office. Most of the opposition, which had long complained of his repressive rule, boycotted the vote.
Deby – who often joined soldiers on the battlefront in his military fatigues – visited troops on the frontline on Monday after rebels based across the northern frontier in Libya advanced hundreds of km (miles) south toward the capital N’Djamena.
The government and National Assembly have been dissolved and a nationwide curfew imposed from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Deby had pushed through a new constitution in 2018 that would have allowed him to stay in power until 2033 – even as it re-instated term limits.
He took the title of Marshal last year and said before last week’s election: “I know in advance that I will win, as I have done for the last 30 years.”
He was dealing with mounting public discontent over his management of Chad’s oil wealth and crackdowns on opponents.
But in the election results announced on Monday, Deby claimed 79% of the vote.
Western countries have counted on Deby as an ally in the fight against Islamist militant groups, including Boko Haram in the Lake Chad Basin and groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State in the Sahel.