Aristides Gomes
Encyclopedia
Aristides Gomes is the President of the Republican Party of Independence for Development (PRID) in Guinea-Bissau
. He was the Prime Minister
of Guinea-Bissau from 2 November 2005 until 13 April 2007.
Born in 1954 in Canchungo
, Cacheu Region
, Gomes attended the University of Paris VIII, where he received a degree in sociology
and political science
.
A former director-general at Televisão Experimental da Guiné-Bissau (1990–1992), Gomes served as the Minister of Planning and International Cooperation in a past government of President
João Bernardo Vieira
.
He was a long-time member of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde
(PAIGC), which he joined on 18 December 1973. He was a delegate to the party's Second Extraordinary Congress in January 1991, and at its Sixth Ordinary Congress in May 1998 he was elected to the party's Political Bureau. At PAIGC's Fourth Extraordinary Congress, held in January–February 2002, he was elected as the First Vice-President of the party.
In the March 2004 parliamentary election, Gomes was elected to the National People's Assembly
. He was then a candidate for the post of President of the National People's Assembly, but was defeated by Francisco Benante
in a vote held by the PAIGC Central Committee in April 2004; he received 71 votes against 106 votes for Benante. Subsequently he was appointed to the government of PAIGC Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Júnior
as Minister of Territorial Administration, Administrative Reform, the Civil Service, and Labor on May 11, 2004, but he refused to accept the appointment due to what he described as continued military influence over the government. Later, Gomes was one of the PAIGC leaders on hand to greet Vieira when he returned to Guinea-Bissau from exile on April 7, 2005, and on May 8, 2005 he was suspended from the party (along with 36 other leading members) for openly supporting Vieira's candidacy against the PAIGC's Malam Bacai Sanhá
in the presidential election
that took place in June and July 2005. Soon after Vieira's election, Gomes defected from the party, and following Vieira's dismissal of Prime Minister Gomes Júnior on 28 October 2005, he named Gomes as Prime Minister on 2 November. The PAIGC appealed this appointment to the country's Supreme Court, which ruled on 26 January 2006 that Vieira was not required to appoint a PAIGC member as prime minister, validating his appointment of Gomes. The PAIGC denounced the ruling, however.
On 12 March 2007, the PAIGC, Party of Social Renewal (PRS), and United Social Democratic Party
agreed to form a new government together. Vieira appeared unwilling to dissolve Gomes' government, however; the director of the cabinet said that there was "no valid reason" to do so, and Vieira's allies rejected the pact between the parties, saying that they would try to have it legally annulled. On 19 March, parliament passed a motion of no confidence
against Gomes' government, with 54 votes in favor of the motion and 28 against it; eight deputies abstained, and ten were not present. Although the three parties together held a total of 97 out of 100 seats, some of their deputies supported Gomes. Gomes announced on 29 March that he had presented his resignation to Vieira and said that he was still awaiting a response from Vieira. He said that he would be willing to continue as Prime Minister if he had Vieira's confidence, and he blamed the PRS for his difficult situation. On 9 April, Vieira appointed the three-party coalition's proposed candidate, Martinho Ndafa Kabi
of the PAIGC, as the new prime minister, and Kabi took office on 13 April.
After leaving office, Gomes faced a legal issue regarding 734 kilograms of drugs that disappeared while he was Prime Minister. According to Gomes, he had ordered the drugs to be stored by the Treasury for safekeeping.
A political party founded by Gomes, the Republican Party of Independence for Development (PRID), opened its constitutive congress on March 7, 2008. Gomes is the President of PRID, which supported Vieira and participated in the November 2008 parliamentary election
. PRID won three out of 100 seats in that election, while PAIGC won a majority of seats; Gomes himself won a seat in the National People's Assembly as a PRID candidate in the Cantchungo e Caio constituency, and he accepted the results.
Following Vieira's assassination on March 2, 2009, Gomes left Guinea-Bissau. He filed to run as the PRID candidate in the June 2009 presidential election
, but on May 14, 2009, the Supreme Court announced his candidacy had been rejected on the grounds that he had been out of the country during the 90 days before he filed his candidacy.
Guinea-Bissau
The Republic of Guinea-Bissau is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Senegal to the north, and Guinea to the south and east, with the Atlantic Ocean to its west....
. He was the Prime Minister
Heads of government of Guinea-Bissau
-Prime Ministers of Guinea-Bissau :-Affiliations:-See also:*Guinea-Bissau**List of heads of state of Guinea-Bissau**List of colonial heads of Portuguese Guinea...
of Guinea-Bissau from 2 November 2005 until 13 April 2007.
Born in 1954 in Canchungo
Canchungo
Canchungo is a town located in the western Cacheu Region of Guinea-Bissau formerly known as Vila Teixeira Pinto after Major Teixeira Pinto, the colonial officer that pacified the area.Population 6,434 ....
, Cacheu Region
Cacheu Region
Cacheu is a region in western Guinea-Bissau, on the border with Senegal. It has an area of 5,175 km2 and a population estimated in 2004 at 164,676. Its capital is Cacheu.Cacheu is divided into 6 administrative sectors:*Bigene*Bula*Cacheu*Caió...
, Gomes attended the University of Paris VIII, where he received a degree in sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
and political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
.
A former director-general at Televisão Experimental da Guiné-Bissau (1990–1992), Gomes served as the Minister of Planning and International Cooperation in a past government of President
Heads of state of Guinea-Bissau
-Presidents of Guinea-Bissau :-Affiliations:-Latest election:-See also:*Guinea-Bissau**List of heads of government of Guinea-Bissau...
João Bernardo Vieira
João Bernardo Vieira
João Bernardo "Nino" Vieira was the President of Guinea-Bissau from 1980 to 1999 and again from 2005 to 2009. After seizing power in 1980, Vieira ruled for 19 years, and he won a multiparty presidential election in 1994. He was ousted at the end of the 1998–1999 civil war and went into exile...
.
He was a long-time member of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde
African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde
The African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde or PAIGC is a political party that governed Guinea-Bissau from the independence of the then Portuguese Guinea in 1974, until the late 1990s, and from 2004 to 2005. Currently it is the party with the largest number of seats in the...
(PAIGC), which he joined on 18 December 1973. He was a delegate to the party's Second Extraordinary Congress in January 1991, and at its Sixth Ordinary Congress in May 1998 he was elected to the party's Political Bureau. At PAIGC's Fourth Extraordinary Congress, held in January–February 2002, he was elected as the First Vice-President of the party.
In the March 2004 parliamentary election, Gomes was elected to the National People's Assembly
National People's Assembly of Guinea-Bissau
The unicameral National People's Assembly of Guinea-Bissau is the country's legislative body.The current National People's Assembly, formed following elections held on 28 March 2004, has a total of 102 seats. 100 members are elected through a system of party-list proportional representation...
. He was then a candidate for the post of President of the National People's Assembly, but was defeated by Francisco Benante
Francisco Benante
Francisco Benante is a politician in Guinea-Bissau and a member of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde . He was President of PAIGC from 1999 to 2002 and President of the National People's Assembly of Guinea-Bissau from 2004 to 2008.Benante is a lawyer by profession...
in a vote held by the PAIGC Central Committee in April 2004; he received 71 votes against 106 votes for Benante. Subsequently he was appointed to the government of PAIGC Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Júnior
Carlos Gomes Júnior
Carlos Domingos Gomes Júnior is the Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau. He was previously Prime Minister from 10 May 2004 to 2 November 2005, and he was again appointed to that post on 25 December 2008...
as Minister of Territorial Administration, Administrative Reform, the Civil Service, and Labor on May 11, 2004, but he refused to accept the appointment due to what he described as continued military influence over the government. Later, Gomes was one of the PAIGC leaders on hand to greet Vieira when he returned to Guinea-Bissau from exile on April 7, 2005, and on May 8, 2005 he was suspended from the party (along with 36 other leading members) for openly supporting Vieira's candidacy against the PAIGC's Malam Bacai Sanhá
Malam Bacai Sanhá
Malam Bacai Sanhá is a Guinea-Bissau politician who has been President of Guinea-Bissau since 8 September 2009. A member of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde , Sanhá was President of the National People's Assembly from 1994 to 1999 and then served as acting President...
in the presidential election
Guinea-Bissau presidential election, 2005
Guinea-Bissau held a presidential election on 19 June 2005, and a second round run-off vote was held on 24 July. The election marked the end of a transition to democratic rule after the previously elected government was overthrown in a September 2003 military coup led by General Veríssimo Correia...
that took place in June and July 2005. Soon after Vieira's election, Gomes defected from the party, and following Vieira's dismissal of Prime Minister Gomes Júnior on 28 October 2005, he named Gomes as Prime Minister on 2 November. The PAIGC appealed this appointment to the country's Supreme Court, which ruled on 26 January 2006 that Vieira was not required to appoint a PAIGC member as prime minister, validating his appointment of Gomes. The PAIGC denounced the ruling, however.
On 12 March 2007, the PAIGC, Party of Social Renewal (PRS), and United Social Democratic Party
United Social Democratic Party
The United Social Democratic Party is a centre-left social democratic political party in Guinea-Bissau.Former Prime Minister Francisco Fadul was elected as the President of the PUSD on 18 December 2002 at a party convention in Bissau....
agreed to form a new government together. Vieira appeared unwilling to dissolve Gomes' government, however; the director of the cabinet said that there was "no valid reason" to do so, and Vieira's allies rejected the pact between the parties, saying that they would try to have it legally annulled. On 19 March, parliament passed a motion of no confidence
Motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...
against Gomes' government, with 54 votes in favor of the motion and 28 against it; eight deputies abstained, and ten were not present. Although the three parties together held a total of 97 out of 100 seats, some of their deputies supported Gomes. Gomes announced on 29 March that he had presented his resignation to Vieira and said that he was still awaiting a response from Vieira. He said that he would be willing to continue as Prime Minister if he had Vieira's confidence, and he blamed the PRS for his difficult situation. On 9 April, Vieira appointed the three-party coalition's proposed candidate, Martinho Ndafa Kabi
Martinho Ndafa Kabi
Martinho Ndafa Kabi was the Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau from 13 April 2007 to 5 August 2008. He is a leading member of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde ....
of the PAIGC, as the new prime minister, and Kabi took office on 13 April.
After leaving office, Gomes faced a legal issue regarding 734 kilograms of drugs that disappeared while he was Prime Minister. According to Gomes, he had ordered the drugs to be stored by the Treasury for safekeeping.
A political party founded by Gomes, the Republican Party of Independence for Development (PRID), opened its constitutive congress on March 7, 2008. Gomes is the President of PRID, which supported Vieira and participated in the November 2008 parliamentary election
Guinea-Bissau legislative election, 2008
A parliamentary election was held on 16 November 2008 in Guinea-Bissau. The African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde won a majority of 67 out of 100 seats, while the Party for Social Renewal won 28 seats.-Chronology:...
. PRID won three out of 100 seats in that election, while PAIGC won a majority of seats; Gomes himself won a seat in the National People's Assembly as a PRID candidate in the Cantchungo e Caio constituency, and he accepted the results.
Following Vieira's assassination on March 2, 2009, Gomes left Guinea-Bissau. He filed to run as the PRID candidate in the June 2009 presidential election
Guinea-Bissau presidential election, 2009
A presidential election was held in Guinea-Bissau on 28 June 2009 following the assassination of President João Bernardo Vieira on 2 March 2009...
, but on May 14, 2009, the Supreme Court announced his candidacy had been rejected on the grounds that he had been out of the country during the 90 days before he filed his candidacy.