Crisis within the Les Démocrates party: Rachidi Gbadamassi lashes out at Boni Yayi
The Minister–Advisor for Security and political leader of the Bloc Républicain (BR) in the 8th electoral constituency, Rachidi Gbadamassi, stepped forward to respond to the recent statements by Boni Yayi, president of the party Les Démocrates (LD).
Rachidi Gbadamassi, ministre conseiller à la défense et à la sécurité, @: Fraternité FM
The former head of state had accused President Patrice Talon of being responsible for the rejection of his ticket’s candidacy file for the 2026 presidential election.
In an interview with the media outlet BL, Rachidi Gbadamassi firmly rejected those accusations, pointing to the opposition party’s internal management. According to him, the real reasons for the rejection of the candidacy lie in LD’s internal dysfunctions, and not in any supposed interference by the authorities.
“While the young lawyer Renaud Agbodjo acknowledged that the rejection of his candidacy is due to internal dysfunctions, Boni Yayi, on the other hand, refuses to take responsibility and blames President Talon,” he said, adding that it is paradoxical that a party called Les Démocrates would be unable to apply the basic rules of democracy within its own ranks.
For Gbadamassi, the former president must show lucidity and accept the decision of the Constitutional Court, a symbol of respect for the rule of law.
He believes that Boni Yayi’s approach to the head of state in an attempt to obtain a political favor is “a trap that President Talon will not fall into.”
The minister–advisor further accuses Boni Yayi of having weakened his own party through “manipulation, hatred, the desire for revenge and the illusion of a return to power.” According to him, the party leadership made a historic mistake by bringing the former president to its head.