Tiébilé Dramé, one of the 28 candidates in the upcoming Malian presidential race slated for July 28 has withdrawn his candidature, siting lack of conducive environment for fair elections as his reason.

During a press conference held in Bamako on Wednesday July 17, he highlighted that “I decided to withdraw my candidacy for the July 28 elections because the condition for fair elections are not in place.”

He intimated the case of Kidal – northeast of Bamako, home of the Tuareg and their rebellion, where according to him, “the conditions of holding election here are far from being met”. He added that “the electoral law has been violated” in Kidal since there was no voter list as of June 25, as specified by law.

Tiébilé Dramé was foreign minister in the transitional government from 1991 to 1992 following the 1991 coup. The 58-year-old politician stood for presidential elections in 2002 and 2007, losing both elections to Amadou Toumani Touré.

AEP

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