A group of politicians
and union leaders in Benin say they are opposed to Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou
standing for the presidency, alleging he was "parachuted in" by
former colonial power France, AFP news agency reports.
Mr Zinsou, a former
speech-writer of France's Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, stepped down last
year as head of one of Europe's biggest investment funds to become prime
minister of the West African nation in a move that surprised many, AFP reports.
In November, Mr
Zinsou, pictured above, was named presidential candidate of the governing party
in elections due on February 28.
Benin's former head of
state Nicephore Soglo is leading the coalition opposed to Mr Zinsou, AFP
reports.
He said there had been
a plot to "impose" Zinsou as a candidate and demanded an explanation
from France, it adds.
Benin's government
spokesman Alassani Tigri described the allegations as "unacceptable"
and said they appealed to "hatred, racism, fear and intolerance".
"He [Mr Zinsou]
is Franco-Beninese like a good number of our countrymen and women... No law of
the land excludes his run for the presidency," he said in a statement, AFP
reports.
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