In Togo, there appears to be an agreement on a ‘government of national union’. Recall that in March 2010 Faure Gnassingbé was re-elected president. The opposition contested the result, and continues to do so. However, the Supreme Court has validated the result and international opinion has, in effect, recognised President Gnassingbé’s re-election.

Now, there is a report that the historic leader of the opposition in Togo, Gilchrist Olympio, has agreed to join Gnassingbé’s RPT-led government. Le Togolais is reporting that Mr Olympio as saying that his UFC party will gain 8 seats in the new government.

This would be an historic agreement. After all, Mr Olympio’s father, Sylvanus Olympio, was prime minister when he was killed during the coup in 1963. The current president’s father, later President Gnassingbé Eyadéma, participated in the coup. His role in the killing of Prime Minister Olympio is contested.

The problem with the so-called ‘government of national union’ is that the UFC contests Mr Olympio’s right to lead the party into coalition. The party’s ruling body voted not to enter into government with the RPT and suspended Mr Olympio’s membership of the UFC. For his part, Mr Olympio has challenged the party’s right to exclude him.

There is obviously a back-story. One element of this story is that in 2008 Olympio was nominated as the party’s presidential candidate. However, eventually and in a somewhat unusual context, he stepped down and Jean-Pierre Fabre was the UFC candidate against President Gnassingbé.