Sudan to put proposed charter changes to popular vote

By Mohamed Amin

KHARTOUM

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has said a raft of proposed constitutional changes will be put before a popular referendum but failed to provide a date for the vote.

Addressing parliament Monday, al-Bashir also neglected to say whether he planned to run in 2020 presidential elections.

“According to the recommendations that came out of the National Dialogue initiative, we should amend the constitution,” he said.

“We will hold a referendum on this, but must still decide on a date -- whether to hold it before or after the 2020 polls,” he added.

Sudan’s current constitution grants the president a maximum of two terms in office.

Al-Bashir also said that Sudan would not pull its troops out of Yemen, where they are fighting alongside a Saudi-led Arab coalition against Yemen’s Shia Houthi group.

In the same parliamentary address, al-Bashir also vowed to combat corruption within the domestic banking sector.

Sudan recently issued a raft of restrictions on trading in foreign currencies amid an ongoing economic crisis and intermittent anti-austerity protests.