The Parti des Peuples Africains – Côte d’Ivoire (PPA-CI), founded by former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo, has strongly condemned what it describes as the “arbitrary arrests” of its members, following violent incidents in the Yopougon district of Abidjan.
During a press conference on Sunday, August 3, 2025, the party’s executive president, Professor Sébastien Dano Djédjé, claimed the detentions were part of a strategy to block a planned opposition protest scheduled for August 9, a joint march with the Democratic Party of Côte d’Ivoire (PDCI).
“These arrests are aimed at preventing the PPA-CI and PDCI’s united march from taking place,” said Djédjé.
According to the public prosecutor, a group armed with machetes, clubs, and firearms set fire to a public bus belonging to the Abidjan Transport Company (SOTRA) late on the night of August 1. The attackers, described as masked individuals wielding Molotov cocktails, reportedly also vandalised a police vehicle and assaulted its occupants before being confronted by security forces. Two suspects were arrested on the scene.
While condemning the violence and expressing sympathy for the victims, Djédjé denied any involvement by PPA-CI members. “We cannot accept being told that PPA-CI militants carried out this aggression. Until proven otherwise, our members are not involved,” he stated.
He criticised what he described as illegal repression carried out against party cadres, despite expectations that legal procedures would be followed. “Comrades such as Pascale Zaholy, deputy for Yopougon, Kado Gnegbré, Josué Kouamé, Kouassi Brou, Éric Kogo, Fofana Souleymane, and Zoh Inza were abducted and taken to unknown locations,” Djédjé said.
Labeling the arrests “unconstitutional” and reminiscent of the country’s darker past, he accused the ruling RHDP government of persisting in political intimidation and repression.
Djédjé reiterated the party’s stance that all citizens are entitled to the presumption of innocence and protection against arbitrary arrest. “Freedom of expression, association, peaceful assembly, and movement must not be criminalised,” he added.
He insisted that authorities must immediately disclose the reasons for any arrest, ensure access to legal representation, and allow family and medical contact.
“These arbitrary arrests violate not only citizens’ fundamental rights but also undermine political easing and national cohesion, which the Ivorian people so desperately seek,” he warned.
With just three months to go before the presidential election, the PPA-CI has raised alarms over increasing violations of constitutional freedoms and warned against any attempt to politicise the judiciary or security forces.
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