Endemic Poverty And Corruption Drive Guinean Elite Forces To Launch Coup

Presiden Guinea Alpha Conde. (Wikimedia Commons/Chatham House)

JAKARTA - Guinea's elite national army announced it had seized power, toppling President Alpha Conde in a coup attempt, after gunfire around the presidential palace in Conakry, Sunday local time.

Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya, head of the unit and leader of the coup attempt, said the move was caused by corruption which led to poverty in the country.

"Endemic poverty and corruption have prompted troops to remove President Alpha Conde from office. We have dissolved the government and institutions. We will rewrite the constitution together," he said, quoting Reuters on Monday, September 6.

Military sources said President Alpha Conde was taken to an undisclosed location and troops commanded by Doumbouya had made several other arrests. They include senior government officials, the sources said.

However, Guinea's main opposition leader, Cellou Dalein Diallo, denied rumors he was among those detained.

President Conde won a third term in October, after amending the constitution to allow him to rule again, sparking violent protests from the opposition.

In recent weeks, the government has sharply increased taxes to replenish the state coffers, raising fuel prices by 20 percent, causing widespread frustration.

To note, Guinea experienced sustained economic growth during Conde's decades in power thanks to its wealth of bauxite, iron ore, gold and diamonds.

However, only a few of its citizens feel the benefits of economic growth. Meanwhile, critics say President Conde's government uses restrictive criminal laws to prevent dissent, while ethnic divisions and endemic corruption have sharpened political rivalries.

"While the president is proclaiming everywhere that he wants to govern differently by fighting corruption, embezzlement of public funds is increasing. The new rich are mocking us. This is all that makes it easier for the military." Alassane Diallo, a resident of Conakry, told Reuters.

As previously reported, Guinea's elite forces announced the country's leadership had been ousted, in the latest political upheaval to hit the mineral-rich and impoverished west African nation, amid conflicting claims about who is in power.

Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya in a short speech on national broadcaster Radio Television Guinea said the country's parliament and constitution had been suspended, borders were closed.

"We take our fate in our own hands," he said, criticizing the state of the country under the 83-year-old president.

"The personalization of political life is over. We will no longer entrust politics to one person, we will entrust it to the people," he stressed.