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Chadian opposition leader Succès Masra called for national reconciliation and unity during an address to hundreds of supporters at his Transformers party headquarters in N’Djamena on Saturday, shortly after his release from prison.
President Mahamat Idriss Déby issued a presidential pardon on Friday that freed Masra and eight other jailed opposition figures, cancelling their sentences while maintaining their criminal records.
Masra, who served over a year of a 20-year sentence following a trial that Human Rights Watch characterised as politically motivated, declared his readiness to collaborate with the government, emphasising that “nothing can be built in the future without us.”
The 42-year-old economist returned to Chad from exile in late 2023 under a government agreement and briefly served as prime minister before placing second against Déby in the May 2024 presidential election.
Déby, who assumed leadership in 2021 following the death of his father, Idriss Déby Itno, has maintained control over the nation of 20 million people amid mounting political tension.
Although Masra’s pardon grants him freedom, the remaining legal convictions prevent him from seeking public office under current regulations.
