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Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef
يحيى ولد أحمد الواقف |
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| In office 06 May 2008 – 06 August 2008 |
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| President | Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi |
| Preceded by | Zeine Ould Zeidane |
| Succeeded by | Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf |
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| Born | 1960 Moudjéria, Mauritania |
| Political party | ADIL |
Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef (Arabic: يحيى ولد أحمد الواقف) (born 19601) is a Mauritanian politician. He was appointed as Prime Minister of Mauritania on May 6, 2008,234 serving until the August 2008 coup d'état. Waghef is also President of the National Pact for Democracy and Development (ADIL), and he was Minister Secretary-General of the Presidency of the Republic from 2007 to 2008.
Waghef was born in Moudjéria. He was Director-General of the Mauritanian Gas Company (Societé Mauritanienne de Gaz, SOMAGAZ) from January 2003 to August 2003 and then Director of the Banc d'Arguin National Park from September 20031 until he was appointed as Secretary-General of the Ministry of Hydraulics and Energy on October 27, 2004.5 He served in that capacity until April 2005, at which point he became Director-General of Air Mauritanie, remaining in that post until December 2006.1 In February 2007, he became Advisor to the Minister of Finance.1
After President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi took office in April 2007, he appointed Waghef as Minister Secretary-General of the Presidency of the Republic on April 28, 2007.6 On January 5, 2008, Waghef was elected as President of ADIL, a party that was formed to support Abdallahi, at the end of the party's constitutive congress.7
Prime Minister Zeine Ould Zeidane resigned on May 6, 2008, and Abdallahi appointed Waghef to succeed him on the same day.23 Following consultations with majority and opposition parties regarding the formation of the new government, the opposition Union of the Forces of Progress (UFP) announced on May 9 that it intended to participate in Waghef's government;8 the opposition National Coalition for Reform and Development (Tewassoul) also announced that it had decided to participate in the government on May 10.9 However, the President of the Rally of Democratic Forces (RFD), Ahmed Ould Daddah, said on May 7 that the RFD—the main opposition party—would not participate;10 the President of the Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal, Ibrahima Moctar Sarr, also said on May 10 that his party would not participate due to policy differences.11 On May 11, Waghef's government was named; it was comprised of 30 members, including 24 ministers,1213 and 12 of its members had previously served under Zeidane. Members of ADIL accounted for almost two-thirds of Waghef's government and held most of the key ministries. Four members of the government were from the two opposition parties which decided to participate.12
On June 30, 2008, 39 deputies in the National Assembly (out of a total of 95) filed a motion of censure against Waghef's government.1415 Most of these deputies were from ADIL,15 although the RFD (the main opposition party) also declared its support for the censure motion.14 The deputies complained that Waghef's government had not presented a program and that too many positions in the government had been given to opposition parties and to figures who had served under President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya.15 24 senators declared that they were in "unconditional solidarity" with the deputies who filed the censure motion.16
President Abdallahi, speaking on July 2, called on the deputies to reconsider.1417 He said that the motion was surprising because it was initated by deputies belonging to the party that headed the government,17 and also because the government's program had not even been presented yet.1417 In addition, Abdallahi argued that Waghef's government was so new that there had not been enough time to properly evaluate its performance,17 and he warned that he might dissolve the National Assembly if the censure motion was adopted.1415 Before the censure motion could be voted on, Waghef and his government resigned on July 3 in order "to preserve the cohesion of the majority which supports [Abdallahi's] programme"; he urged unity and dialogue among ADIL and the presidential majority. Waghef was reappointed by Abdallahi on the same day.15 The deputies who supported the censure motion described the resignation and reappointment as a positive step and said that the composition of the next government should properly reflect the results of the previous election.18
Waghef said following his reappointment on July 3 that he wanted to form a government of "broad consensus".19 An opposition coalition composed of a dozen parties denounced Waghef's reappointment on July 7.20 On July 8, Waghef announced that no opposition parties would be included in the new government, thereby excluding the UFP and Tawassoul.21 The new government was named on July 15;2223 there were 30 members of this government,22 including 12 who were new to the government. No members of the opposition were included in this government, and the ministers associated with Taya were also excluded.23
On August 4, 2008, 25 of ADIL's 49 deputies in the National Assembly, along with 24 of its 45 senators, announced that they were leaving the party, thereby depriving it of its parliamentary majority.24
2008 coup d'etat
On August 6, 2008 he was arrested in a military coup d'état along with Abdallahi and the interior minister.25 The coup plotters were top security forces who had been fired by Abdallahi earlier in the day; these included General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, General Muhammad Ould Al-Ghazwani, General Philippe Swikri, and Brigadier General (Aqid) Ahmad Ould Bakri.26 Member of parliament Mohammed Al Mukhtar claimed popular support for the coup, saying that Abdallahi behaved in an "authoritarian" manner and "marginalized the majority in parliament."27 Waghef was reportedly held at an army barracks immediately after the coup.28
Waghef and three other high-ranking officials were released from custody by the military on August 11, while Abdallahi remained in custody.2930 A few hours later, Waghef spoke before a rally of thousands of people and expressed defiance toward the junta, saying that Mauritanians did not accept its rule and urging the people to continue struggling to restore Abdallahi to power.30 Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf was appointed as Prime Minister by junta leader Abdel Aziz on August 14, but Waghef said at a news conference on the same day that this appointment was "illegal" and that the government he had headed was still the legitimate government.31
Waghef said in an interview with Abu Dhabi TV on August 20 that President Abdallahi had dismissed the senior officers because they had already been planning to seize power on August 9.32 He subsequently travelled to Nouadhibou in northern Mauritania in order to participate in an anti-coup protest there, but was arrested upon arrival on August 21, 2008.3233 He was reportedly arrested because he left Nouakchott without the junta's permission.33 On August 22, it was announced that he was being taken to his home village of Achram, where he would be kept under house arrest. According to Minister of Decentralization Yahya Ould Kebd, the junta sought to "rein in his activism", saying that "his contact with the outside will probably be limited but not banned".34
References
- ^ a b c d CV as Prime Minister, Agence Mauritanienne d'Information (accessed July 6, 2008) (French).
- ^ a b "Mauritanie: démission du Premier ministre Zeine Ould Zeidane", AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), May 6, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b "Mauritania: Ould Ahmed El Waghev becomes new Premier", African Press Agency, May 6, 2008.
- ^ "M. Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef nommé Premier ministre", Agence Mauritanienne d'Information, May 6, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Communiqué du conseil des ministres", Agence Mauritanienne d'Information, October 27, 2004 (French).
- ^ "Nominations à la Présidence de la République", Agence Mauritanienne d'Information, April 28, 2007 (French).
- ^ "Formation du parti de la majorité "Adel" (Ere Nouvelle de la Démocratie et du Développement) et élection de ses instances provisoires", Agence Mauritanienne d'Information, January 5, 2008 (French).
- ^ "L'UFP décide de participer au gouvernement", AMI, May 9, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Le parti "Tewassoul" annonce sa participation au gouvernement", AMI, May 10, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Le RFD décide de ne pas participer au futur gouvernement", AMI, May 9, 2008 (French).
- ^ "L'AJD/MR annonce qu'il ne participera au nouveau gouvernement", AMI, May 10, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b "Mauritanie: formation d'un gouvernement de 30 membres dont 4 de l'opposition", AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), May 11, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Désignation du nouveau gouvernement", AMI, May 11, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b c d e "Le Parlement mauritanien menacé de dissolution", African Press Agency, July 2, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b c d e "Mauritanian government quits before voting on censure motion", AFP, July 3, 2008.
- ^ "Des membres du Sénat se déclarent solidaires des députés oeuvrant pour faire aboutir une motion de censure contre le gouvernement", AMI, July 1, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b c d "Le président de la république adresse un discours à la nation", AMI, July 2, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Initiative en faveur de la motion de censure: satisfaction pour le développement des évènements", AMI, July 4, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Le Premier ministre mauritanien promet un gouvernement de large consensus", Xinhua (Jeuneafrique.com), July 3, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Une coalition de l'opposition exige le limogeage du Premier ministre mauritanien", Xinhua (Jeuneafrique.com), July 7, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Les islamistes mauritaniens restent dans la majorité malgré leur exclusion du futur gouvernement", African Press Agency, July 9, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b "Composition du nouveau gouvernement", AMI, July 15, 2008 (French).
- ^ a b "Formation d'un gouvernement sans les partis de l'opposition", AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), July 16, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Le parti au pouvoir en Mauritanie perd sa majorité au parlement", African Press Agency, August 4, 2008 (French).
- ^ "Mauritanian military stages coup", Al Jazeera (2008-08-06). Retrieved on 6 August 2008.
- ^ themedialine.org, Generals Seize Power in Mauritanian Coup
- ^ "Renegade army officers stage coup in Mauritania", Associated Press, August 6, 2008.
- ^ "President held in Mauritania coup", AFP, August 6, 2008.
- ^ "Mauritania's toppled PM released", BBC News (2008-08-11). Retrieved on 11 August 2008.
- ^ a b "Mauritania coup leaders free prime minister", Associated Press (International Herald Tribune), August 11, 2008.
- ^ "Mauritanian junta names new PM", AFP, August 14, 2008.
- ^ a b "Ousted Mauritanian prime minister re-arrested", AFP, August 21, 2008.
- ^ a b "Mauritanian former PM re-arrested", Xinhua, August 21, 2008.
- ^ "Mauritanian PM to be kept under house arrest", AFP, August 22, 2008.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Zeine Ould Zeidane |
Prime Minister of Mauritania 2008 |
Succeeded by Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf |
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by Zeine Ould Zeidane as Prime Minister |
Head of Government of Mauritania 2008 |
Succeeded by Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz as President of the High Council of State |
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Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 24 August 2008, at 18:04.
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