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Compaore allies withdraw from Burkina transitional institutions
10/04/2015
OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) - Political allies of Burkina Faso's deposed President Blaise Compaore suspended their participation in the country's transitional institutions on Thursday to protest modifications to the electoral code that bar them from running for office.
Compaore was forced to step down and flee the country late last year amid a popular uprising against his bid to change the constitution and extend his 34-year rule.
Compaore's Congress for Democracy and Progress (CDP) and six other allied parties suspended their participation in the transitional parliament and the National Reconciliation and Reform Commission.
"We call into question the partisan ... management of the electoral process and hold the transition responsible for this open crisis and consequences that could result from it," the group said in a statement.
A transitional authority is governing Burkina Faso until elections in October.
Following its modification on Tuesday, the electoral code bars anyone who supported Compaore's attempt to change the constitution and abolish term limits from running in elections in 2015 and 2016.
Compaore's former allies said they would only rejoin the transitional institutions "when true inclusive politics are put in place and there is a total respect for the constitution."
Around 10 political figures, including three of Compaore's former ministers, have been arrested over the past week by police, who accuse them of over-billing and embezzlement in connection with government procurement deals.
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