The Transformers party, led by former Prime Minister and opposition figure Succès Masra, continues to face severe challenges following his arrest. In August 2025, Masra was sentenced to 20 years in prison on charges related to inciting communal violence in southern Chad.

Party members and supporters mark this grim anniversary with heavy hearts. Masra was seized from his home in the early hours of May 16, 2025—a day that now symbolizes a year of relentless repression against dissent in the country.

Despite his imprisonment, the party’s leadership remains defiant. Dr. Tog-Yeum Nagorngar, the party’s Secretary-General, insists that Masra’s detention is unjustified and lacks credible evidence.

“President Succès Masra remains a guiding presence within our movement despite his imprisonment. The party is not only resilient but continues to pursue its goals with unwavering focus. Not a shred of evidence supports the charges against him. We firmly believe this is a grave miscarriage of justice. The only person capable of rectifying this injustice is Marshal Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno—and we urge him to act decisively.”

Multiple opposition figures behind bars

Last week, eight more opposition leaders from the Political Actors Consultation Group (GCAP)—arrested for organizing a peaceful protest—were handed eight-year prison sentences for alleged ‘conspiracy to commit crimes, insurrection, rebellion, and illegal weapons possession.’ Among them was Sosthène Mbernodji, Coordinator of the Citizens’ Movement for the Preservation of Liberties (MCPL), who warned that Chad’s political opposition is effectively being dismantled.

“Since Succès Masra was jailed a year ago, the Transformers party has operated under severe constraints. The GCAP was the last coalition giving voice to alternative perspectives—until the government dismantled it through the courts and imprisoned its leaders. Chad is no longer a democracy; it is sliding into a prolonged monarchy. This regression—nearly 50 years backward—has revived the era of single-party rule reminiscent of independence days. The time has come to ease political and social tensions before irreparable damage is done.”

In response to these sweeping arrests and convictions, over twenty opposition parties jointly condemned what they describe as a systematic silencing of dissent and the weaponization of the judiciary.