Equatorial Guinea’s President launches bid for a sixth term

Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang, who has ruled the country for 43 years, has launched his bid for a sixth term

Obiang, 80, seized power in 1979 from President Francisco Macias who was the leader at independence and whose rule prompted a mass exodus and thousands of deaths.

The general elections are scheduled for 20 November.

The president told a rally that his party had chosen him to run “because is the symbol of peace that reigns in Equatorial Guinea.