Mali: Musician Salif Keïta Drops Transitional Council for Role in Mali Junta's Govt

16 August 2023

Harare — The musician known as The Golden Voice of Africa, Salif Keita, is now a special advisor to the military junta's leader in Mali, AFP reports.

On August 11, the well-known Mali musician was listed as one of the military junta's five special advisors in a proclamation by Colonel Assimi Goita, the president of the military junta. Keita's new position was not explicitly described in the decree. Goita was in charge of the military coup that resulted in Ibrahim Boubacar Keita's removal as president in 2020.

Keita earlier affirmed the junta's claim to national sovereignty and advocated for the withdrawal of U.N. peacekeeping forces from Mali after he resigned from the Assembly that the military, in charge since 2020, established to serve as a legislative body.

Keta was quoted in a message read aloud in open session as saying, "I hereby submit my resignation effective July 31, 2023 as a member of the National Transitional Council for purely personal reasons."

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