In Côte d’Ivoire, ex-banker Tidjane Thiam renounces French nationality to run for the presidency | EUROtoday

On Mar 20, 2025

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TIdjane Thiam, former boss of Credit Suisse and chief of the Democratic Party of Côte d’Ivoire (PDCI), formally renounced his French nationality. The decree, revealed within the Official Journal on March 20, 2025, marks a necessary step in its ambition to run for the presidency of Côte d’Ivoire in 2025. Under the Ivorian legislation, which prohibits the presidential candidates from holding one other nationality, this method was important.

The decree signed by the French authorities specifies that “Thiam (Cheick, Tidjane), born on 07/29/1962 in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire)”, is now free of his allegiance to France. Acquired in 1987 with out request from his half, this French nationality had fueled authorized points on its twin citizenship and eligibility. However, though this gesture could make a authorized impediment to its candidacy, different challenges stay.

Contested eligibility

Article 48 of the Ivorian Nationality Code, which stipulates that an Ivorian loses his nationality within the occasion of a voluntary acquisition of one other, might query the validity of his candidacy if this rule is utilized retroactively. His supporters denounce what they contemplate a maneuver to dismiss it from the presidential race.

Elected president of the PDCI in 2023, Thiam was seen as one of many essential presiders to the presidency subsequent October, regardless of the persistent doubts in regards to the candidacy of Alassane Ouattara, the outgoing president, whose age and the need to hunt a brand new mandate stay unsure.

Internal rivalries

At 62, Tidjane Thiam, former minister, had to enter exile after the 1999 army coup towards Henri Konan Bédié. His profession as a world banker propelled him to the top of Credit Suisse in 2015, a place he held till 2020. However, one other impediment arises: a judicial attraction was filed towards the legitimacy of his election to the presidency of the PDCI, arguing that he nonetheless held French nationality on the time. This trial, in progress in Abidjan, might delay its marketing campaign.

To uncover

The kangaroo of the day

Answer

The query of Ivorian id, on the coronary heart of political tensions through the civil struggle, reappears that ivoirity continues to divide the nation. Some concern that this debate revives conflicts when approaching the election.

Inside the PDCI, Thiam can be confronted with inside challenges. Jean-Louis Billon, former Minister of Commerce, introduced his intention to run for the celebration’s nomination, including an extra dimension to the battle for the presidency of the PDCI.

https://www.lepoint.fr/afrique/en-cote-d-ivoire-l-ex-banquier-tidjane-thiam-renonce-a-la-nationalite-francaise-pour-briguer-la-presidence-20-03-2025-2585264_3826.php