Togo’s Opposition Slams Gnassingbé’s Power Shift as “Constitutional Coup”

Lomé, Togo — Togo’s main opposition parties have fiercely rejected President Faure Gnassingbé’s controversial appointment as head of the newly created Council of Ministers, calling it a “constitutional coup” that threatens to entrench authoritarian rule in the West African nation.

The backlash follows recent constitutional reforms that effectively transformed Togo’s political system from a presidential to a parliamentary model, stripping the presidency of real power and installing the Council of Ministers as the country’s new executive authority. Under the new system, Gnassingbé—already in power for nearly two decades—can now hold the top position indefinitely, as long as his party retains its parliamentary dominance.

“This is not reform. It’s a hijacking of the state,” said a spokesperson for the National Alliance for Change (ANC). “Togo is being held hostage by one family under the guise of legal restructuring.”

The 2024 elections handed Gnassingbé’s ruling Union for the Republic (UNIR) party a near-total grip on the legislature, with 108 out of 113 seats. With parliament now empowered to elect the Council president, critics say Gnassingbé has used the transition to bypass term limits and further consolidate power—extending his family’s 57-year reign.

The presidency has since become a symbolic office, now occupied by 86-year-old Jean-Lucien Savi de Tové, while Gnassingbé controls executive decisions as President of the Council of Ministers.

Opposition groups and civil society organizations have called for international condemnation and domestic mobilization. A modest protest held in Lomé over the weekend marked the beginning of what they vow will be a sustained resistance movement.

“This so-called reform lacks democratic legitimacy. There was no public consultation, no transparency, and no respect for constitutional norms,” said a representative of the Democratic Forces for the Republic.

Government media have defended the shift as a step toward modern governance and greater political stability, dismissing critics as reactionary. However, international observers warn the move reflects a growing trend of democratic regression across parts of West and Central Africa.

As the political crisis deepens, many Togolese fear the country is sliding further away from democracy, with opposition voices vowing to fight what they see as an institutional entrenchment of one-man rule.