Faure Gnassingbe, the son of Togo's late military leader, Gnassingbe Eyadema (who ruled for 38 years) has won the presidential election! He won 60% of the votes.
"We do not like that small boy to govern us, we do not like that small boy to govern us. His father did bad against us. How can we leave his son to treat us as animals. We are not animals." (Togolese Youth)
"No, I did not want to be president. I just wanted to do some politics for maybe 10 years, then go for business because before coming into politics I was in business, and then everyone knows what happened, and then my party selected me to go for the candidacy." (Faure on his political intentions prior to his father's death)
"I am the new image of Togolese youth, the new image of Togo. I'm going to take this country to the next level. More freedom, more democracy. It's the only way we can solve our problems." (Faure Gnassingbe at campaign rallies)
"Mr Faure received 60% of the votes, while main opposition candidate Emmanuel Bob-Akitani got 38% of votes cast." (electoral commission chairwoman Kissem Tchangai Walla)
"The president said his victory would be a victory for the Togolese people. You can be sure that he will extend his hand to all citizens so that together we can build a stable Togo." (Komi Klassou, Gnassingbe’s campaign director)
"Like his father, Gnassingbe is a man of very few words. But he does have the fierce loyalty of the country's well-organized and well-equipped military. Born in 1966 to a mother who hails from Atakpame in central Togo, he is one of Eyadema's many sons and seen as the most levelheaded. He studied at France's Sorbonne University and has an MBA from the George Washington University in the United States." (Sun News Online)
Sun News Online |
Voice of America Article |
Seattle Times |
BBC News