2nd LD Writethru: Ethiopia's ruling coalition elects Abiy Ahmed to become next PM

ADDIS ABABA, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia's ruling coalition, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) on Tuesday elected Abiy Ahmed as its new chairperson effectively making him the next Prime Minister of Ethiopia.

Ahmed, chairman of Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO) which rules over Ethiopia's largest and most populous regional state of Oromia, will replace the outgoing Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn.

Desalegn had already resigned from his EPRDF chairperson position earlier in the day.

Desalegn comes from another EPRDF coalition member party, the Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement and has been leading Ethiopia after the death of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in August 2012.

The confirmation of Abiy Ahmed as the new chairperson of EPRDF and soon to be new PM ends more than a month of political uncertainty ever since Hailemariam Desalegn offered his resignation on February 15.

EPRDF and allied parties control all 547 seats in Ethiopian parliament, so Ahmed's appointment as next Ethiopian Prime Minister is expected to be a foregone conclusion.

In recent months, internal political wrangling among four coalition partners of EPRDF, including Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, Amhara National Democratic Movement, South Ethiopia People's Democratic Movement and Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO), has cast fears about the stability of the nation of about 100 million people.

Ethiopia is also reeling from persistent deadly protests since 2016 especially in the two most populous regional states of Amhara and Oromia over alleged political and economic marginalization. Enditem