Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who has ruled the West African country for 43 years, launched his bid for a sixth term yesterday.
Mr Obiang, 80, seized power in 1979 from President Francisco Macias Nguema, who was the leader at independence and whose rule prompted a mass exodus and thousands of deaths.
The general elections are scheduled for 20 November.
The president told a rally that his party had chosen him to run “because he is the symbol of peace that reigns in Equatorial Guinea”, the AFP news agency reports.
AFP adds that the country has 425,000 registered voters out of a population of around 1.4 million. ENDS