Bamako [Mali], July 24: The head of the junta in Mali brought in a new constitution for the West African nation on Saturday, prompting protests from concerned political and civil opponents.
The military leaders have made the constitution a cornerstone for the rebuilding of Mali, which is facing the spread of jihadism and a deep, multi-faceted crisis. Ninety-seven percent of the referendum votes were cast in favour of the changes last month, according to the electoral authority. However turnout was put at 38 percent in the landlocked Sahel country, which is struggling with an 11-year jihadist insurgency.
The new constitution became legal when it was promulgated in the official gazette on Saturday by Colonel AssimiGoita, head of the military junta in power since 2020.
A number of petitions lodged with the Constitutional Court were rejected, including one calling for the referendum to be annulled because it had not been held throughout the country.
A movement critical of the colonels in power said on Saturday that it deplored how the court had dealt with "the relevant and well-founded petitions of its members, going so far as to ignore the evidence put forward". The new constitution will strengthen the role of the president, a change that has spurred expectations that Goita intends to vie for the job.
Source: Qatar Tribune