Background and career
Fradique Bandeira Melo de Menezes (born March 21, 1942) is a São Toméan politician who was the third president of São Tomé and Príncipe from 2001 to 2011.
Menezes was born on the then Portuguese colony of São Tomé in 1942, the son of a Portuguese man and a local woman. He attended high school in Portugal. He then studied at the Instituto Superior de Psicologia Aplicada in Lisbon, Portugal and Free University of Brussels.
Menezes is a businessman. He was Foreign Minister of São Tome and Príncipe from 1986 until 1987. He was elected President in July 2001 with about 55.2% of the vote, defeating Manuel Pinto da Costa, who received about 40%. Menezes took office on September 3, 2001. His eligibility as a candidate had been questioned, since he also held Portuguese citizenship, but he renounced this and his candidacy was approved.

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