ABIDJAN – Incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo’s government has ordered the seizure of the regional central bank’s offices in Ivory Coast in an attempt to retain control of state finances after being cut off from the money used to pay civil servants.
His political rival Alassane Ouattara, who is the internationally recognised winner of the presidential election held nearly two months ago, condemned the move yesterday. Without access to government funds, it’s unclear whether Gbagbo will be able to continuing paying the country’s military and security forces. Ouattara supporters hope that by stemming the flow of funds to Gbagbo’s government they can force a mass defection.Gbagbo’s finance minister Desire Dallo announced on state television late on Tuesday that the Ivorian government was seizing the regional bank’s offices in Ivory Coast. Employees are to answer to local officials in Ivory Coast instead of the regional bank based in Dakar, Senegal, the order said.The Central Bank of West African States, known by its acronym BCEAO, regroups the treasuries of eight West African countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. – Nampa-AP
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