Patrice Archer told CitiNews that Mr Gbagbo’s call was necessitated by the defection of several officers and men in the army, including the top brass to the camp of Mr Ouattara, the internationally acclaimed winner of last November’s polls. This has led to a political deadlock in that country.
Mr Quattara controls the northern part of the country while Gbagbo is in firm grip of the south. The international community has been calling on Mr Gbagbo to stand down as president of the country and allow the will of the people to prevail. According to Mr Archer, the call for party youth to join the army came as a surprise to Ouattara’s camp.
He said, “we’re very shocked that someone who has been president of this country for the past 10 years can call upon kids who are between 14 to 16 years who do not know anything about military or arms to go for a civil war. That shows something very important which is that all the people in the army have defected and when he sends people somewhere, 80 percent of the troops don’t go, they just stay at home. He has lost military control, which is the last step of his departure”.
Patrice Archer further noted that “after Gbagbo used these military people who were really close to him to kill people, he has no money to pay them and most of the people in his army, after hearing what the African Union said, have decided to backtrack and Gbagbos’s actions shows a sign of someone who is hopeless”.
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