Reuters/Bissau
Guinea-Bissau yesterday buried president Malam Bacai Sanha and its interim leader appealed to all factions in the country to avoid a power struggle before new elections to choose a successor.
Guinea Bissau president Malam Bacai Sanha’s widow Mariama Mane Sanha stands next to acting Guinea Bissau’s president Raimundo Pereira during the state funeral of Malam Bacai Sanha at the National Assembly in Bissau yesterday
Sanha’s death in a Paris clinic last week after months of poor health has prompted the US to warn of the risk of unrest in a coastal state which has suffered repeated coups and become notorious as a hub for cocaine traffic into Europe.
“I urge all Bissau-Guineans to show patriotism and tolerance, to make of Guinea-Bissau a haven of peace, well-being and brotherhood,” parliament speaker Raimundo Pereira, who under the constitution assumed the interim presidency, said in a speech.
Thousands of mourners turned out on the streets of the capital Bissau on Saturday to pay their respects when Sanha’s remains were taken from the airport to his former residence. He died aged 64.
New elections to replace Sanha must be held within 90 days and are likely to pit Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior against rivals, including former president Kumba Yala, who enjoys support from his fellow ethnic Balanta in the military.
Gomes has been running the country since Sanha left Guinea-Bissau for treatment last November and has drawn millions of dollars in donor support from Angola for reform of an army that has traditionally held sway over the country.
“Guinea-Bissau is looking for a leader that can restore peace and put the military under civilian command,” said high school student Augusto Mendes.