Togo's leader Faure Gnassingbé was sworn in as “Chairman of the Council of Ministers”, a new position, the highest position in the administration of the government, with no formal term limits.
This is a constitutional reform that ended the presidential election and introduced the parliamentary system.
The opposition said the change was intended to allow President Gnassingbé to rule indefinitely.
His family has ruled the country for 58 years – Faure Gnassingbé took over in 2005 from his father Gnassingbé Eyadéma, who ruled for nearly forty years.
The latest change is caused by a new constitution approved by lawmakers last year, marked as an “institutional coup” by critics and opposition figures.
Gnassingbé's government paused some changes after a huge rebound, but his new role was ahead of schedule.
Municipal elections in July will be the first under the new constitution, which has been replaced by a parliamentary meeting of the presidential system.
Theoretically, the role of the president of the Republic is now just a title of honor, but analysts say Gnassingbé's power is more entrenched than ever before than the new position of his council president.
His party, The Union of Republics, won the vast majority of seats in last year's parliamentary elections, with 108 out of 113 seats in the National Assembly.
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