Algerian President-Elect Vows To Bring Fresh Blood To Cabinet Amid Renewed Protests

CAIRO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th December, 2019) Algerian President-elect Abdelmadjid Tebboune promised on Friday to have young people in his cabinet, in a bid to assuage protesters who claim the vote was rigged in favor of the old guard.

"Forming a new government will be one of the hardest tasks because it will be a reflection and the bringer of change. Young people will definitely have seats," he said in his first televised address to the nation.

Tebboune, a former prime minister, was elected with 58.12 percent of the vote on Thursday. His challengers conceded defeat, but hundreds of protesters took to the streets across the country on Friday, demanding a rerun of the vote.

In response, Tebboune promised he would amend election laws enshrined in the constitution to "uncouple business from elections," according to his tweet, cited by the Qatari news channel Al Jazeera.

The newly elected leader held several offices under President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who was deposed in April after a wave of anti-government protests swept the nation, with thousands demanding an end to corruption among the African nation's elite.