Mali’s minister of territorial administration, Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga has been appointed acting prime minister, a government statement said.
Abdoulaye Maiga who is currently the government’s spokesman is to act in place of leader Choguel Maiga, who is resting amid media reports that he had been hospitalised.
Earlier this month, Paris-based Jeune Afrique magazine reported that Choguel Maiga had suffered a stroke, citing sources close to him.
When contacted, one of Choguel Maiga’s advisors refuted this and said he would be back to work by the next week. But the leader did not.
A military junta that came to power in a 2020 coup governed Mali and has promised to organise democratic elections in 2024.
Choguel Maiga has been one of the government’s loudest critics in numerous public disputes with West African neighbours and international partners who criticised its military cooperation with Russian mercenaries and repeated election delays.
As the government’s spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga has also made strident public declarations against the former colonial power France, including ordering President Macron to stop acting in a “neocolonial” and “condescending” manner in July.
