Presidential elections of 2021 in Benin : Challenges

A few months before the next presidential election, it's always hard to tell who will be on the starting line. While the Beninese were almost certain that President Talon would run for a second term despite his promises to make just one, the latter had a press release published prohibiting the use of his images by courtiers who ask him to keep up for another five years. It is true that the press release also says nothing about the intentions of the current tenant of the Marina Palace., which leaves the door open to all eventualities.

Pierre MATCHOUDO

The next presidential election will be organized on the basis of a new electoral code which introduced the sponsorship of elected officials as a condition for standing as a candidate. An innovation that looks banal as it exists in many countries. This is what Wilfried Léandre Houngbédji pointed out, the Director of Communication of the Presidency received on 10 August by radio, The Voice of Lokossa for whom the question of sponsorship should not arise. "The elected officials in question are Beninese and each of them, in front of his conscience, can sponsor whoever he wants, even if it means candidates going to meet these people who hold sponsorship to convince them of the relevance of their social project and the seriousness of their approach ".

Only, not everyone is so convinced, especially on the opposition side. We must "ask the government to see that this is a provision that is not fair, this is a provision that does not promote an inclusive election. The whole country cannot be excluded ", said Eric Houndété, the president of the new opposition party Les Démocrates in an interview with RFI. The vice-president of the same party increased, the 3 last august, by believing that "All those who want to be candidates must participate in the elections and it is up to the populations to give their discharge to whomever they want".

The sponsorship equation ....

Opposition and movement are convinced that the election of 2021 is played first on this issue and that the winner of the standoff has a good chance of winning the ballot. The electoral code requires the obtaining of sponsorship of at least 16 elected, deputies and mayors. The problem, is that the opposition has no MPs and the opposition represented by the FCBE has only been able to win 6 town halls on 77. The account is therefore far away. Technically therefore, only President Talon, if he is a candidate, and candidates from the ranks of the presidential movement will be able to assert their inclinations to participate in the election. This battle is reminiscent of that of the certificate of conformity on the eve of the last legislative elections.. Any party claiming these elections should obtain the famous discharge from the Interior Ministry. None had been able to meet the conditions set by the latter, and as a result, only the two parties of the presidential movement, the Republican Bloc and the Progressive Union took part.

The doubt…….

On the opposition side, it is believed that the deputies and mayors of the presidential bloc do not have the independence necessary to sponsor a dissident candidacy. The head of state himself said, the day after the last communal, that he would disapprove of one of the parties supporting him joining the opposition for the election of mayors. The stake therefore, for the opposition, is to do everything, through dialogue, to obtain the outright cancellation of sponsorships to give yourself the chance to be in the competition.

Infrastructures and social The second question on which the next presidential election will be decided concerns the achievements of the current head of state. We remember that after about two years at the head of the country, President Talon asked the Beninese to be patient, using the allegory of the pot that is on the fire while the people are hungry and impatient. Since, roads have started to be paved. From Nicéphore Soglo in 2011, the number of kilometers of roads completed has become a criterion for assessing the action of a President of the Republic in Benin. Patrice Talon is no exception. For some time, Cotonou towns, Porto-Novo, Ouidah ... began to present a new aspect with the asphalting of the streets. This program called Asphalting is a campaign argument to be made during the next presidential election.. The weak point, is that it is mainly focused on southern cities. Therefore, it is open to other competitors to concentrate their efforts on the rest of the country. To the weakness of this program is added the social question. The country's situation is characterized by a great gloom which contrasts with the macroeconomic data. In 1996, President Soglo, candidate for his own succession failed to be elected because, in part, many voters threw at him the fact that we "do not eat the cobblestones", alluding to his road construction program.