Thousands protest Niger leader

Thousands of opposition supporters took to the streets of the Niger capital Niamey on Saturday to protest corruption and media censorship, in the first major rally against President Mahamadou Issoufou’s rule since his 2011 election win. Demonstrators chanted “Down with the regime!” and “No to dictatorship” as they gathered outside parliament, with some carrying portraits of ex-president Mamadou Tandja, who was ousted in a military coup in 2010 but remains a popular figure in the west African country. The protest, organised by an alliance of opposition parties, marks the first large street demonstration against Issoufou since he came to power. He is expected to run for a second term in 2016 according to sources close to him. Opposition leader and former premier Seini Oumarou condemned “the bad governance and corruption” in a country with worsening food security, education and health systems. He also lashed out at the government’s opaque oil deals with foreign firms and the ruling Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism’s control of the media. “We are witnessing the organised looting of our national resources,” he said at an opposition meeting after the rally. He accused Issoufou of trying to build up “a war chest” to secure victory in the 2016 presidential polls. The opposition gathering was also attended by former president Mahamane Ousmane, who ruled from 1993 until his ouster in a coup in 1996.