Outspoken Comoros VP stripped of key duties

MORONI, Comoros: The vice president of the Comoros, who recently denounced President Azali Assoumani’s plans for a constitutional referendum as “illegal”, has been stripped of most of his duties as part of a cabinet reshuffle. As vice president, Ahmed Said Jaffar had been in charge of eight ministries, including the agriculture, energy and industry portfolios. But following the shakeup, he was only left with one — the social cohesion ministry, according to an official decree published on Thursday. Earlier this month, Jaffar had very publicly criticised Assoumani’s plans for a July 29 referendum which could allow the president to remain in power beyond 2021 when his term would otherwise end. Under the current constitution, there is a rotation of power every five years between the three main islands that make up this Indian Ocean archipelago which lies between Mozambique and Madagascar.