Algeria’s Absent President Says to Return to Country Soon

(Bloomberg) --

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune made a surprise appearance Sunday, vowing to return to the North African nation soon after having undergone treatment for Covid-19 abroad.

Tebboune, who’s 75, hadn’t been seen in public since flying to Germany in October, and little had been made public about his progress. The prolonged absence had stirred echoes of predecessor Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who had spent months in hospital and out of the public eye before his bid for re-election triggered mass uprisings that led to his resignation.

A ‘Missing’ President Is Sparking Deja Vu in Rudderless Algeria

Tebboune, in short video clips on his official Twitter account, said that he needed between a week to three weeks for full recovery. The president said work to build “a new Algeria” would continue and that the situation with the coronavirus pandemic had improved in the OPEC member state.

“My distance from the homeland doesn’t mean forgetting it,” he said, adding that he had monitored events daily. He said that had requested a new election law be drafted in 10 to 15 days.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.