Ivory Coast Opposition named Tidzne Thiam as presidential candidate

Abidjan: The main opposition party of Ivory Coast on Thursday formally nominated its leader Tidzne Thiam as its candidate for the October presidential election. The 62-year-old former Credit Suisse Bank’s Chief Executive Officer was the only contender for the Center-Right Democratic Party (PDCI).
The tension in the rich West African country has been running high for six months from the scheduled polling date. Businessman and former minister Thiyam, who is currently outside the Ivory Coast, had to stop a line on his nationality, the opponents said that his previous French citizenship disqualified him from the competition.
Three other major figures, including former President Laurent Gagbo, prevent running. According to provisional results, Thiam received 99.5 percent of the votes at a party conference on Wednesday.
More than 5,000 PDCI members voted across the country. Thiam thanked his supporters, who despite his nationality and his character “all poison which was spread”, “respected” him. He said, “October 2025 is still a long way; I know I will not be spared,” he said, in an interview posted on social media.
Suit and Tie Drops:
Political scientist Jyfroy Koao warned that Thiam was not “famous for the Evorian”, who spent more than 20 years from the country chasing his business career. Thiam became the first Evorian to pass the entrance examination for the prestigious French Engineering School Polytechnic.
He later returned to Abidadan, where he started his political career and became a minister of the plan at the age of 36.
He became a director in companies like Aviva, Prudential and then ran Credit Suisse from 2015 to 2020. Although there was no indication in an initial investigation that Thiam was forced to resign from a credit suis, who was to draw a line to spy on a large -scale spying against a former money management head, which jumped on the ship for Ekadivas UBS.
After his return to Evorian politics, he assumed the leadership of PDCI in December 2023. “PDCI must resume its efforts in meeting people and communicating its policies,” said political scientist Koao.
In political rallies, Thiam swaps his suit and tied for a green shirt, the color of his party. He has rejected concerns about the lack of relationship with the country after two decades abroad, and demanded to convert his international experience into a property, indicating “separate governance”.
Born in the Ivory Coast, he acquired French nationality in 1987, arguing with his opponents that he seized his Evorian citizenship when he became a French. Thiam said in March that he had given up his French citizenship to stand in the election. The ruling RHDP party has indicated that it will soon nominate the 83 -year -old President Alasen Autara for the fourth term for the fourth term.