Algeria’s president Abdelaziz Bouteflika will resign before his mandate ends on April 28, reports official press agency APS.
The agency, quoting a statement from the Algerian presidency, said Bouteflika would take measures to ensure the continuation of state institutions during a transition period and that he would before the expiration of his term.
However, he delayed the presidential vote saying that he would resign only after the conclusion of a “national conference”. The conference would be tasked with planning a date for the vote and drafting a new constitution for Algeria.
Bouteflika’s resignation announcement on Monday came a day after Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaid Salah called, once again, for invoking a provision in the constitution that could remove the president on account of ill health.
Under article 102 of the Algerian constitution, the Constitutional Council can deem a sitting president no longer fit to carry out his duties. Members of the council can also move to declare the presidency vacant pending parliamentary approval.
