Talks aimed at saving ruling coalition continue

The two parties in Guinea-Bissau’s ruling coalition were locked in discussions on Wednesday aimed at resolving a crisis sparked by the resignation of six cabinet members from the smaller of the two, the Resistencia da Guine-Movimento Bafata (RGB), news organisations reported. AFP said the central committees of the RGB and President Kumba Yala’s Partido da Renovacao Social (PRS) met on Wednesday to see if a consensus could be reached. The RGB ministers had resigned on Tuesday in protest against a cabinet reshuffle the day before which, they said, had been carried out without consulting them. This is the second major fallout between the coalition partners in less than four months. In September, Yala had dismissed the RGB ministers after a dispute between the two parties, but reinstated them following negotiations brokered by a mediation committee. Should the two parties fail to agree, the PRS could find itself in the minority in the 102-member legislature where it has 37 seats and has depended on the RGB’s 28 to form a parliamentary majority.