Algiers, Feb 25, 2019 – Algeria’s prime minister on Monday insisted voters would determine if ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika gets a fifth term at the ballot box, after major protests against his candidacy. “Thank god the rallies were peaceful, but I urge vigilance” as “calls to demonstrate were from an unknown source”, Ouyahia said. The premier insisted Bouteflika has pledged to hold a national “conference, unprecedented in the history of Algeria” if he is reelected, where “everything” can be discussed. “Algeria has been through enough suffering and experienced enough reforms to have the opportunity to choose in peace and quiet,” he said. Bouteflika, who has governed Algeria since 1999, was instrumental in fostering peace after a decade-long civil war in the 1990s.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 25, 2019 16:52 UTC