On Twitter Wednesday, President Alassane Ouattara said: “I pay tribute to my young brother, my son, Amadou Gon Coulibaly, who was, for 30 years, my closest collaborator.”
“I salute the memory of a statesman, of great loyalty, devotion and love for the homeland. He embodied this young generation of Ivorian leaders of great skill and extreme loyalty to the Nation.”
Coulibaly, 61, had been chosen to run as the ruling party’s candidate in this year’s October presidential election.
According to his official biography, he leaves behind a wife and five children.
This is a developing story.