Gulf | Yemen
Yemen official promises dialogue ahead of elections
Vice president wants national conference for all Yemenis to gather and air their grievances
- By Saeed Al Batati, Correspondent
- Published: 18:22 February 7, 2012
Sana'a: Yemen will soon be back to "normal", according to presidential hopeful Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who is serving as vice president to ousted leader Ali Abdullah Saleh.
In an inaugural speech kicking off his campaign for the February 21 presidential election, Hadi promised Yemenis that the "wheels of change were starting to move".
With the backing of the international community, Yemen will move forward with presidential elections as the "only available way out of the current crisis".
Hadi called for a national conference for all Yemenis to gather and air their grievances, including Al Houthis, southern seperatists and the youth protesters.
Speaking to Gulf News, Abdu Ghalib Al Audaini, the spokesman for the Joint Meetings Party, an umbrella group for opposition to Saleh, praised Hadi's speech; describing it as "constructive".
However, many activists do not believe Hadi is the right candidate to lead the country through the transition to democracy.
"Hadi does not represent us. Our leader should be a civilian not associated with the military," Khaled Al Ansi, a protester told Gulf News. "If Hadi wants to be our leader he should abandon his military rank and accept the demands of protesters to bring those who killed protesters to justice," he added.
Profile: Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi
Born in the southern province of Abyan in 1945, Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi is a veteran military officer. If elected, he will be the first Yemeni president hailing from the restive south.
Hadi studied military science in the UK in the 60's. Later he was sent to Cairo and former USSR. In 1994, he was appointed minister of defense and led the forces that defeated the former southern state.
Presidential powers were handed over to Hadi, following Saleh's signing of a GCC-brokered deal in November that promised elections and reform in exchange for Saleh's stepping down.
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