Johannesburg – Army, police and gendarmes chiefs have been fired by Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara following the two-day mutiny which rocked the country.
The mutiny, which began on Friday in Bouake before spreading to other cities including the capital Abidjan and ending on Saturday night, was instigated by disgruntled soldiers angry over the non-payment of bonuses and wage increases.
General Soumaila Bakayoko, the army chief; Gervais Kouakou Kouassi, superior commander of the National Gendarmerie; and Bredou M'Bia, director-general of the National Police, were relieved of command with immediate effect, a presidential statement said on Monday.
The dismissals came just hours after the resignation of Daniel Kablan Duncan, the prime minister, resigned and dissolved the government, a move that had been expected following last month's elections but was delayed by the army revolt, Al Jazeera reported Monday night.
"I have tendered my resignation and that of the government," Duncan said after a meeting with Ouattara.
Following a deal reached between the government and the military, the mutiny came to an end. Ouattara won a second consecutive term during December’s presidential elections.
Ivory Coast is a member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, African Union, La Francophonie, Latin Union, Economic Community of West African States and South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone.
It has for the region, a relatively high income per capita ($1014.4 in 2013) and plays a key role in transit trade for neighbouring, landlocked countries.
The country is the largest economy in the West African Economic and Monetary Union, constituting 40 percent of the monetary union’s total GDP.
It is also the world's largest exporter of cocoa beans, and the fourth-largest exporter of goods, in general, in sub-Saharan Africa (following South Africa, Nigeria, and Angola).