The world's 5 longest-serving presidents

(Baonghean.vn) - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has just agreed to resign after 37 years in power. Besides him, there are 4 leaders in Africa with the longest reign in the world.

1. Paul Biya – President of Cameroon (42 years)

Cameroon President Paul Biya. Photo: Reuters.

Paul BiyaBorn February 13, 1933, has been President of Cameroon since November 6, 1982. A native of southern Cameroon, Biya rose rapidly from an official under President Ahmadou Ahidjo in the 1960s, serving as secretary-general of the Office of the President from 1968 to 1975 and then as Prime Minister of Cameroon from 1975 to 1982.

He succeeded Ahidjo as president andintroduced political reforms within the context of a one-party system in the 1980s. Under pressure, he accepted the introduction of multi-party political regime in the early 1990s. He narrowly won the 1992 presidential election with 40% of the plurality vote, and was re-elected with large margins in 1997, 2004, and 2011.

Opposition politicians and Western governments accuse him of holding on to power through electoral fraud. Biya has maintained close ties with France, Cameroon's former ruler.

2. Muammar al-Gaddafi – former leader of Libya (42 years)

Libyan President Muammar al-Gaddafi.

Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi1 known simply as Colonel Gaddafi; born 1942, is the de facto leader of Libya since a coup in 1969.

Since 1972, when Gaddafi stepped down as prime minister, he has been given the titles "Guide of the First Great September Revolution of the Libyan People's Socialist Arab Jamahiriya" or "Leader and Brotherly Guide of the Revolution" in state documents and official press.

He took control of the Libyan government and ruled the country as a dictator for over 40 years before being overthrown in 2011. During his years in power, he denounced international relations with the West and broke diplomatic relations with many countries. An uprising followed and he was overthrown and killed in 2011.

3. Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo - President of Equatorial Guinea (38 years)

President of Equatorial Guinea Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo.

President Teodoro Nguema (born June 5, 1942) is an Equatorial Guinean politician who has served as President of Equatorial Guinea since 1979. He overthrew his uncle, Francisco Macías Nguema, in a military coup in August 1979.

Since then, he has won 90% of the vote in elections. However, many human rights organizations and the opposition doubt the credibility of the election results. Mr. Nguema recently chose his son, Teodorin Obiang, as vice president.

Tổng thống Obiang cũng từng là Chủ tịch của Liên minh châu Phi từ ngày 31/11/2011 đến 29/1/2012.

4. Jose Eduardo dos Santos – cựu Tổng thống Angola (38 năm)

Cựu Tổng thống Angola Jose dos Santos.

José Eduardo dos Santos sinh ngày 28/8/1942, được bầu làm Tổng thống sau cái chết của vị tổng thống đầu tiên của Angola, Agostinho Nesto. Ông tại vị từ năm 1979 đến ngày 26/9/2017. Ông cũng là Chủ tịch phong trào giải phóng Angola - Đảng lao động (MPLA).

Eduardo dos Santos sinh ở Luanda, cha là công nhân xây dựng từ São Tomé and Príncipe. Khi ông vẫn đang ở trong trường học, đã tham gia MPLA vào năm 1956 bắt đầu hoạt động sự nghiệp chính trị.

Sự áp bức về thuế của chính phủ thuộc địa, Eduardo dos Santos đã đi tha hương sang Pháp năm 1961. Sau đó tới nước cộng hòa Congo. Từ đó ông phối hợp với MPLA, sớm trở thành phó chủ tịch. Tiếp tục với sự nghiệp giáo dục một lần nữa ông đã đến các nước Xô viết, nơi đây ông đã nhận được một bằng kỹ thuật máy móc hóa dầu Azerbaijan và Viện nghiên cứu hóa học ở Baku, Azerbaijan.

Năm 1970 ông trở về Angola và tham gia EPA (Exército Popular de Libertação de Angola), một nhánh của MPLA. Sau cái chết của chủ tịch đầu tiên của MPLA là Agostinho Neto, vào 10/09/1979. José Eduardo dos Santos đã trúng cử Chủ tịch 20/9/1979. Được bầu làm chủ tịch hội đồng nhân dân vào 09/10/1980.

Ông Santos từng bị cáo buộc tích trữ tài sản cá nhân và đàn áp phe đối lập trong suốt 38 năm nắm giữ quyền lực. Ông từ chức hồi đầu năm nay nhưng vẫn là chủ tịch đảng cầm quyền nước này.

5. Robert Mugabe - President of Zimbabwe (37 years)

President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe.

Robert Gabriel MugabeBorn 21 February 1924, is the President of Zimbabwe. He served as Prime Minister from 1980 to 1987 and as First Executive President from 1987. He came to prominence in the 1960s as the leader of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) in its guerrilla war against the white minority in Rhodesia (1964–1979).

Mugabe is an outspoken, controversial figure. Famous for his wartime exploits, he is seen by many Africans as an independence hero as well as a highly educated leader.

During his years in power, Robert Mugabe replaced white minority rule with black minority rule rallied around his own personal interests.

He also believed that God had given him power and that no one could take it back. His crackdowns in the 1980s left 20,000 people dead. In 1998, Mugabe's army suppressed protests against rising food prices. In 2005, nearly 600,000 Zimbabweans were left homeless by "cleansing" operations.

On November 14, he was overthrown by the military and accepted to resign as president after 37 years in power.

Peace

(Synthetic)