Algeria’s President to seek fifth term

ALGIERS: Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika said on Sunday he would seek a fifth term in a presidential election set for April 18, the state news agency APS reported on Sunday, putting an end to months of uncertainty caused by his poor health. Bouteflika, 81, who has been in office since 1999 but has been seen in public only rarely since suffering a stroke in 2013 that confined him to a wheelchair, is likely to win a fifth term as the Algerian opposition remains weak and fragmented. APS said Bouteflika wanted to amend the constitution if re-elected. It did not say which specific amendments he would seek but a source familiar with the matter said he would likely propose the creation of new post of vice-president to help him govern the large, energy-rich north African nation. Among names cited by Algerian media as a possible future vice-president are veteran former U.N. diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi and Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia.