Guinea-Bissau: more instability in cocaine hotspot

Guinea-Bissau: more instability in cocaine hotspot

In another power play, after arresting the prime minister and army chief, deputy army chief General Antonio Indjai proclaimed himself the new army head and threatened to kill the prime minister.

For Moncrieff, the events were predictable. Induta “has never had solid control over the army, it was obvious from the beginning”, he said. “General Antonio Indjai was becoming more and more powerful.” An increasing overlap between soldiers and politicians was creating an alliance that could “cause Bissau’s political balance to explode”, he added.

One surprising development was that Indjai appeared alongside ex-navy chief Jose Americo Bubo Na Tchute, a controversial figure who fled the country in 2008 after having been accused of staging a coup attempt. Tchute has also been suspected of involvement in cocaine trafficking.