Seychelles president says to resign on Oct 16 - state house

VICTORIA (Reuters) - Seychelles President James Alix Michel said on Tuesday he would resign on Oct. 16 after a constitutional amendment to limit the number of presidential terms to two, a statement published by the state house showed.

This month, opposition parties swept to victory in the country's parliamentary elections, shaking up the political landscape after decades of control by Michel’s party, Parti Lepep, which has been in power since 1977.

"Tonight I am announcing my decision to resign from the post of President of the Republic,” Michel said in the statement.

It was unclear if Michel's resignation stemmed from his party's defeat in the parliamentary polls.

The statement said vice president, Danny Faure, would be sworn in as the new president after Michel steps down and did not say if any elections would follow.

In April this year Seychelles' 33-seat parliament unanimously passed a constitutional amendment to limit the president's tenure to two five-year terms from the previous three.

Michel is currently in his second term, which he narrowly secured in December last year.

The parliamentary election win this month by the opposition coalition, Linyon Demokratik (LDS), followed growing public frustration over economic inequality, analysts said.

The Indian Ocean nation of 115 islands and 93,000 people relies on tourism for revenues but recently has sought to offer a low-tax environment for companies registered on its territory to promote itself as a financial services hub.

(Reporting by George Thande; writing by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

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