A diplomatic delegation from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is visiting Togo from Monday. The country is experiencing strong political tensions, after the adoption of a new Constitution.
The Togolese opposition sees this as a way for President Faure Gnassingbé to stay in power as long as possible. The opposition is now counting on the legislative and regional elections, initially scheduled for April 20 then postponed to April 29, to express its dissatisfaction with the latest major political and legislative decisions in Togo. The National Assembly is currently dominated by the ruling Union for the Republic (UNIR) party, with the main opposition parties having boycotted the last legislative elections in 2018. Demonstrations on public roads have been banned in the country since 2022, after an attack in a market in Lomé in which a gendarme lost his life. The draft new Constitution, which would move the country from a presidential regime to a parliamentary regime, has agitated Togo since its adoption at first reading by deputies at the end of March.