The Financial Times story appeared on Tuesday. Leaders of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, began a two-day summit in Nigeria's capital, Abuja, a day later. Twelve from 12 of the 15 member states attended.
The day the summit ended was supposed to be the African Union and Ecowas's deadline for
Laurent Gbagbo... President of Ivory Coast since 2000. Gbagbo lost to Alassane Ouattara in 2010 but his representtive tore up the results on the teevee and Laurent has refused to leave despite the international community's hemming, hawing, and broad hints...
to step down.
Since November, he has refused to let Alassane Ouattara, the internationally recognized winner of the November presidential elections, take office.
According to the Times, Mr Gbagbo wants international cocoa traders to pay export taxes on cocoa stocks worth $1.3 billion. Cote d'Ivoire produces 40 per cent of the global crop.
Cocoa isn't anywhere close to petroleum in world trade. Nonetheless, millions of sweet teeth abound. The commodity fetches good money.
Gbagbo's demand has caused jitters among some traders. They are inclined to pay. Reasons vary: Gbagbo might confiscate the stocks or have them destroyed.
One trader, Ricardo Leiman, head of a Hong Kong-based trading house, the Noble Group, reportedly said, "If the local government who is in charge tells us to pay the taxes, we will pay the taxes."
The Times said the stocks are about 400,000 metric tons. At 22 per cent taxation rate, Gbagbo would pocket nearly $300 million. Diplomats believe he needs $150 million a month to pay the military and civil servants.
If Gbagbo can't pay, he would become expendable. It isn't an accident that one of the anti-Gbagbo measures the Frenchie-loving, West African states who use the CFA franc, did was freeze Cote d'Ivoire's money at their central bank in Senegal.
... a nation of about 14 million on the west coast of Africa bordering Mauretania to the north, Mali to the east, and a pair of Guineas to the south, one of them Bissau. It is 90 percent Mohammedan and has more than 80 political parties. Its primary purpose seems to be absorbing refugees...
Already, due to sanctions imposed by various countries and organizations, Gbagbo can't boast of an economy. Businesses, including banks, have shut down; employees continue being laid off, and little activity exists at the once busy Abidjan port. That means loss of revenue for the government.
Reasons exist why Gbagbo shouldn't get any money, at least not enough to maintain loyalty of the army and civil servants.
Gbagbo has obviously taken advantage of the African Union, the European Union and the United Nations
... aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society...
' et al preoccupation with Libya's Muammar Qadaffy benga benga (alleyways and alleyways) slaughter.
In Cote d'Ivoire, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said on Friday 700,000 people have decamped their homes.
Louise Arbour, president, International Crisis Group, said last week, "Ivory Coast is no longer on the brink of s civil war; it has already begun."
The ECOWAS leaders whined about "incendiary rhetoric" against themselves by Gbagbo's supporters and then passed the buck to the UN, with Nigeria and La Belle France as emissaries to seek tougher sanctions against Gbagbo & Co.
Just as they abandon their threat to use "legitimate force" to oust Gbagbo, ECOWAS states failed to give support to cocoa traders who plan to deny Gbagbo one thing he needs most: money. That's some support for Gbagbo.