ICoast,sched Uncertainty over Ivory Coast transition after attack on junta head by Caspar Leighton ABIDJAN, Sept 19 (AFP) - An alleged assassination attempt this week on Ivory Coast military leader General Robert Guei has cast further uncertainty over the country's return to civilian rule. Voters are set to choose their new president in elections slated for October 22, a date which has already been deferred once by the military regime which seized power here last December. After Monday's attack on his residence, which left two guards dead and has led to a series of arrests, Guei reaffirmed the military regime's commitment to holding the elections, in which he himself is running. The attack has revealed deep divisions within the presidential guard just one month ahead of the elections, with tension already running high over the eligibility of popular opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara and exacerbated by the country's worsening financial situation. Some of those arrested were supporters of a staff sergeant believed to be close to Ouattara, who was Monday implicitly blamed for the attack by Communications Minister Henri Sama. Earlier this month, ten members of the guard close to the same staff sergeant -- Ibrahim Coulibaly -- were arrested, and six of them charged with threatening state security. Soldiers meanwhile have mutinied at least twice since the Christmas Eve coup, complaining in the last incident in early July that they had received no financial compensation for having brought Guei to power. Government commissioner Captain Ange Kessi Kouame told AFP that some of the guards arrested -- 20 according to military sources -- had already been involved in a series of unsuccessful coups. "Most of the suspects were already the object of investigation by the military court concerning several other aborted coups that were not revealed to the press," Kessi said. "In very little time, three or four days, we will be able to wrap up the the inquest," Kessi said. Communications Minister Sama has left little doubt as to whom he believes is behind this latest attack. He has denounced "masterminds hiding in the dark" who "had been spreading rumours about their arrest for a few days". On Friday hundreds of people gathered outside Ouattara's home in Abidjan amid rumours that the opposition leader had been arrested. Guei however has been slower to point to any culprit for Monday's raid on his residence, saying he preferred to await the conclusion of the investigation. If the volatility of the military establishment is casting doubt over whether elections will go ahead as planned, Ivory Coast's crippling financial situation could also hinder the smooth running of the electoral process. When the electoral commission requested that the presidential election, originally scheduled for September 17 be postponed, it cited organisational problems. Voting materials were not ready, it said, voter registration had not been completed and there were budgetary problems. Ivory Coast's financial situation has got progressively worse after most donors suspended support after the coup and many businesses reduced or suspended operations. Another major donor, the French Development Agency (AFD) meanwhile suspended funding to Ivory Coast last week, after the country failed to pay its debts. The suspension of AFD funding will deprive Ivory Coast of another 150 million dollars of financial aid. The International Monetary Fund has expressed concern over the accumulation of payment arrears, underlining "the necessity of normalising relations with creditors as soon as possible". The IMF also "noted that financial and economic conditions had worsened considerably in Ivory Coast in a climate of social and political tension". Tensions have meanwhile been mounting over the question of the eligibility of the 19 presidential candidates, and in particular, the eligibility of Ouattara. The junta in July passed a referendum tightening eligibility requirements for candidates, saying that both parents of candidates had to be Ivorian and no candidate should have availed himself of any other nationality. The move was seen as a direct attack on Ouattara, whose opponents claim he has Burkina parentage and has used Burkina nationality throughout his working career. The Constitutional Court is due to rule on the eligibility issue on October 7, two weeks before the election, when tension is expected to reach its peak. If Guei is seen to bar Ouattara from standing, it is impossible to predict how Ouattara's supporters outside and within the military will react. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------