Laurent Gbagbo is expected tomorrow Thursday 17 June in Côte d’Ivoire. The former president makes his comeback after a ten-year absence and three months after he was definitively acquitted by the International Criminal Court. After long discussions about the reception format, things become clearer even if some questions remain.
as reported from Abidjan, Pierre Pinto
Laurent Gbagbo arrives in Abidjan on a commercial flight with Brussels Airlines at 15.45 local time UTC. He will then be led at the Presidential Pavilion at Félix Houphouët-Boigny Airport where it will welcome a few dozen hand-picked guests including some members of the government, whose identities have not yet been revealed. According to him, areas dedicated to the public would be planned near the airport so that supporters could visit him.
Security unit
Then Laurent Gbagbo’s procession will begin a long journey through Abidjan that will take it through several municipalities from the Ivorian economic capital to the north of Cocody. A journey that has not yet been officially presented. No more than the scope of the security system used for his safety and for the management of crowds that will be determined to meet the likely seasonal rains.
Visit to his homeland
The ambiguity also remains regarding its program for the days that will follow. Assoa Adou, his general secretary, told the press on Monday that Laurent Gbagbo would quickly go to the Gagnoa region, in the middle of the west of the country, to bow to his mother’s grave, who died while in custody in The Hague. A move that can take place at the end of the week.
After a ten-year absence, his return is expected, especially in his region of origin.
Mr Laurent Gbagbo, that is an inspiration, I want him to take up politics again, thanks to him we have learned many things.
In Gagnoa, Laurent Gbagbo is still popular with young people
► To read also: Laurent Gbagbo: the most important dates for an eventful political and judicial journey
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