Congo Republic's opposition has conditionally agreed to run against President Denis Sassou Nguesso in an election in March, even though it is widely seen as unlikely to secure what would be the first change in leadership in nearly 20 years, according to Reuters. Congo's veteran leader has ruled the oil-rich former French colony for 31 of the past 36 years in two separate spells and is widely expected to run in March and win comfortably, whether or not the opposition participates. Opposition parties boycotted an October referendum on whether the president could legally seek a third consecutive term, a vote that Sassou Nguesso won by a landslide. Some observers expected them to also refuse to participate in the March vote. "We are working on the best strategy on behalf of our political family in order to win the presidential election," said Charles Zacharie Bowao, a former defence minister now in the opposition, at the meeting late on Wednesday. He added that the opposition, which in the past has suffered from internal divisions, have not yet decided whether they will present a single opposition candidate or several. The two main opposition alliances Initiative for Democracy in Congo and The Republic Front for the Respect of the Constitutional Order and Democratic Transition (FROCAD) will participate so long as there is an independent electoral commission and voter lists are reliable, among other conditions.
