Algiers: Algerian President Abdul Aziz Bouteflika, who suffered a stroke last year, will run for a fourth term in an election on April 17, Prime Minister Abdul Malek Sellal said on Saturday.
Bouteflika has yet to announce his own candidacy, but his political ally Sellal was speaking only 10 days before the deadline for formal registration on March 4.
“Bouteflika will be a candidate,” Sellal said in the northwestern city of Oran. “Bouteflika’s decision to run comes at the insistence of the people and after some deep reflection.” There has been growing speculation in Algiers that the president, who has ruled the North African oil producer since 1999, will make an announcement on his future within days.
A veteran of the independence war against France, the 76-year-old leader has the backing of the ruling National Liberation Front party and is expected to win easily if he runs.
Bouteflika loyalists see him as the man who delivered peace and economic stability after a civil war with Islamists in the 1990s. But critics say he should step aside for health reasons.
He has been president of Algeria since 1999.
Doubts have been raised about whether he is physically robust enough to get through another five-year term.
