By our Reporter,
DJIBOUTI,
Djibouti’s parliament has removed the constitutional age ceiling for presidential candidates, opening the door for President Ismail Omar Guelleh to seek a sixth term despite being 77 years old.
All 65 lawmakers present on Sunday voted to eliminate the age restriction of 75 years, a move that would allow the veteran leader to contest elections scheduled for April 2026. The amendment requires either presidential approval followed by a second parliamentary vote on November 2, or a national referendum.
Guelleh, widely known as IOG, has governed the Horn of Africa nation since 1999, succeeding Hassan Gouled Aptidon, the country’s founding president.
The age limit was introduced by Guelleh himself in 2010, as part of reforms that simultaneously abolished presidential term limits but shortened each term from six to five years.
National Assembly Speaker Dileita Mohamed Dileita defended the change as necessary to maintain stability in a volatile region. He claimed public support exceeded 80 percent for the measure, though this figure has not been independently verified.
Guelleh recently signaled his intention to stay on, saying: “All I can tell you is that I love my country too much to embark on an irresponsible adventure and be the cause of divisions.”
Rights advocates condemned the move as a step toward permanent rule. “This revision prepares a presidency for life,” said Omar Ali Ewado, head of the Djiboutian League for Human Rights, who called instead for a peaceful democratic transition.
Opposition leader Daher Ahmed Farah, of the Movement for Democratic Renewal and Development, urged international partners to reassess their stance. “The country is in a strategic position and hosts many bases, but these interests belong to the Djiboutian people, not to a single man,” he said.
Guelleh secured his fifth term in 2021 with over 98 percent of the vote after opposition parties boycotted the election. At the time, the United States congratulated him but urged the government to “further strengthen its democratic institutions and processes in line with observer recommendations.”
Guelleh is currently East Africa’s third-longest-serving leader, after Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni, in power since 1986, and Eritrea’s Isaias Afwerki, who has ruled since 1993.
