Gbagbo used violence as a political weapon - Soro

Guillaume Soro has described Laurent Gbagbo as an anti democrat who paid only lip services to the panafrican course.

Speaking to the Cameroonian press at the Yaoundé Hilton hotel hours before his departure for the Ivory Coast last Saturday, the former remember of Gbagbo accession government said that Gbagbo accession to power in 2000 was not through a fair and transparent eviction.

“Veritable rivals were eliminated leaving Gbagbo to challenge coup leader Robert Guel alone.

Gbagbo himself called the elections a calamity. Only the socialist regime in France declared the free and fair.”

Soro has dropped his guard because in his own words, he had suffered too much persecution in his political life in Ivory Coast.

Making a gun gesture with his left hand, he continued the tirade.

“Do you feel that you know Gbagbo better than I who was by his side for such a long time? Gbagbo institutionalized the ‘Ivoirete’ concept which is the root cause of the problems of Cote d’Ivoire today.

The Front Populaire Ivoirien(Gbagbo party has been violent since its creation,” Soro said.

Soro went on to discredit Gbagbo as a Pan African leader.

“Gbagbo sought military help from France who had earlier declined to deploy its troops to the Ivory Coast when the West African team was in dire need.

We seized French military equipment from Gbagbo’s fighters during the conflict. Our country was the big loser in the agreements which Gbagbo signed with the French.

President Ouattara has reviewed some of these agreements.

Guillaume Soro was invited in Cameroon by the Speaker of national Assembly Cavaye Yegue Djibril.

He seized the opportunity to ask for support for the reconciliation and reconstruction process in his country.

During his stay he met with politicians, businessmen, Christian and Muslim leaders and traditional rulers.