Ivory Coast’s prime minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly was evacuated to Paris where he plans to undergo some medical tests, said presidential press office.
The health condition of the 61-year-old first minister arouse questions, so, the Ivorian doctors recommended to undergo the medical checks in France. Despite the health issues, PM Gon Coulibaly remains the ruling party’s candidate in October’s presidential election.
The brief statement from the presidency on Sunday provided no additional details about Gon Coulibaly’s health status. In fact, the first minister preferred to isolate himself in late March because of possible exposure to the coronavirus. As the later medical tests showed, he did not test positive.
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara designated Gon Coulibaly in March as the ruling RHDP party’s candidate for the presidential election after ruling out seeking a third term himself, Reuters said.
In absence of prime minister in the country, Defence Minister Hamed Bakayoko will serve as interim prime minister in Gon Coulibaly’s absence, the statement said. Actually, Mr Bakayoko just recovered from the novel virus last month.
The African country’s health ministry has recorded more than 1,300 cases of the COVID-19, one of the highest totals in the west of a continent, and 15 deaths.
