Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef
Encyclopedia
Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef (born 1960) is a Mauritania
n politician. He was appointed as Prime Minister of Mauritania on May 6, 2008, 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 2003 until he was appointed as Secretary-General of the Ministry of Hydraulics and Energy on October 27, 2004. 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. In February 2007, he became Advisor to the Minister of Finance.
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. 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.
Prime Minister Zeine Ould Zeidane
resigned on May 6, 2008, and Abdallahi appointed Waghef to succeed him on the same day. 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; the opposition National Coalition for Reform and Development (Tewassoul) also announced that it had decided to participate in the government on May 10. 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; 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. On May 11, Waghef's government was named; it had 30 members, including 24 ministers, 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.
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. Most of these deputies were from ADIL, although the RFD (the main opposition party) also declared its support for the censure motion. 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
. 24 senators
declared that they were in "unconditional solidarity" with the deputies who filed the censure motion.
President Abdallahi, speaking on July 2, called on the deputies to reconsider. He said that the motion was surprising because it was initiated by deputies belonging to the party that headed the government, and also because the government's program had not even been presented yet. In addition, Abdallahi argued that Waghef's government was so new that there had not been enough time to properly evaluate its performance, and he warned that he might dissolve the National Assembly if the censure motion was adopted. 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. 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.
Waghef said following his reappointment on July 3 that he wanted to form a government of "broad consensus". An opposition coalition composed of a dozen parties denounced Waghef's reappointment on July 7. On July 8, Waghef announced that no opposition parties would be included in the new government, thereby excluding the UFP and Tawassoul. The new government was named on July 15; there were 30 members of this government, 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.
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.
along with Abdallahi and the interior minister. 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. 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." Waghef was reportedly held at an army barracks immediately after the coup.
Waghef and three other high-ranking officials were released from custody by the military on August 11, while Abdallahi remained in custody. 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. 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.
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. 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. He was reportedly arrested because he left Nouakchott without the junta's permission. 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".
In November 2008, Waghef and four others were charged with intentionally bankrupting Air Mauritanie while Waghef was its Director-General. In early December, bail for Waghef and his co-defendants was set at 100 million ouguiyas; this was reportedly the highest level of bail ever set by a court in Mauritania. Waghef was also charged with corruption in a case involving spoiled food; the bail set in that case was five million ouguiyas.
Dozens of protesters called for Waghef's release in a demonstration near the Supreme Court on April 29, 2009. The police broke up the protest. Subsequently, in negotiations between the junta and the opposition, the opposition demanded Waghef's release as a condition for an agreement. After a deal was reached, the junta released Waghef on 4 June 2009. He was greeted by a crowd as he emerged from the Dar Naim prison in Nouakchott.
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
n politician. He was appointed as Prime Minister of Mauritania on May 6, 2008, serving until the August 2008 coup d'état
2008 Mauritanian coup d'état
A coup d'état took place in Mauritania on 6 August 2008 when Mauritanian President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi was ousted from power by a group of high ranking generals he had dismissed from office earlier that day.-Background:...
. 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
Moudjeria
Moudjeria is a town and commune in the Tagant Region of southern-central Mauritania. Temperatures during the summer are among the highest in the world and can easily crack the 55 celsius mark.-Transport:The town is served by Letfotar Airport....
. 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
Banc d'Arguin National Park
The Banc d'Arguin National Park lies in Western Africa on the west coast of Mauritania between Nouakchott and Nouadhibou. The World Heritage Site is a major breeding site for migratory birds. A wide range of species include flamingos, broad-billed sandpipers, pelicans and terns. Much of the...
from September 2003 until he was appointed as Secretary-General of the Ministry of Hydraulics and Energy on October 27, 2004. He served in that capacity until April 2005, at which point he became Director-General of Air Mauritanie
Air Mauritanie
Air Mauritanie was an airline based in Nouakchott, Mauritania. It was the national airline and operated domestic and regional services. A VIP-configured Boeing 727-200 was flown for the Mauritanian government. Its main base was Nouakchott International Airport....
, remaining in that post until December 2006. In February 2007, he became Advisor to the Minister of Finance.
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. 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.
Prime Minister Zeine Ould Zeidane
Zeine Ould Zeidane
Zeine Ould Zeidane is a Mauritanian economist and politician. He placed third as a candidate in the March 2007 presidential election, and he subsequently served as Prime Minister from April 2007 to May 2008....
resigned on May 6, 2008, and Abdallahi appointed Waghef to succeed him on the same day. 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; the opposition National Coalition for Reform and Development (Tewassoul) also announced that it had decided to participate in the government on May 10. However, the President of the Rally of Democratic Forces
Rally of Democratic Forces
The Rally of Democratic Forces is a political party in Mauritania. It is led by Ahmed Ould Daddah.In October 2000, the Union of Democratic Forces-New Era, which was led by Daddah, was dissolved by the government for allegedly inciting violence and harming the country's interests...
(RFD), Ahmed Ould Daddah
Ahmed Ould Daddah
Ahmed Ould Daddah is a Mauritanian economist, politician and civil servant. He is a half-brother of Moktar Ould Daddah, the first President of Mauritania, and belongs to the Marabout Ouled Birri tribe...
, said on May 7 that the RFD—the main opposition party—would not participate; the President of the Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal
Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal
The Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal is a political party in Mauritania...
, Ibrahima Moctar Sarr
Ibrahima Moctar Sarr
Ibrahima Moctar Sarr is a Mauritanian journalist and politician. Running as an independent, he placed fifth in the March 2007 presidential election, and he has been the President of the Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal since August 2007.After studying in Cesti, Senegal,...
, also said on May 10 that his party would not participate due to policy differences. On May 11, Waghef's government was named; it had 30 members, including 24 ministers, 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.
On June 30, 2008, 39 deputies in the National Assembly
National Assembly of Mauritania
The Parliament has two chambers. The National Assembly has 81 members, elected for a five year term in single-seat constituencies. From 1961-1978, the only legal party was the Parti du Peuple Mauritanien . In the 1990s, a multiparty system was introduced in Mauritania...
(out of a total of 95) filed a motion of censure against Waghef's government. Most of these deputies were from ADIL, although the RFD (the main opposition party) also declared its support for the censure motion. 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
Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya
Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya , was Prime Minister of Mauritania from 1981 to 1984 and president from 1984 to 2005. He guided Mauritania from military rule to democracy, and took a pro-Western stance in foreign affairs...
. 24 senators
Senate of Mauritania
The Parliament has two chambers. The upper house is the Senate . The Senate has 56 members, 53 members elected for a six year term by municipal councillors with one third renewed every two years and 3 members elected by Mauritanians abroad.-See also:*List of Presidents of the Senate of Mauritania...
declared that they were in "unconditional solidarity" with the deputies who filed the censure motion.
President Abdallahi, speaking on July 2, called on the deputies to reconsider. He said that the motion was surprising because it was initiated by deputies belonging to the party that headed the government, and also because the government's program had not even been presented yet. In addition, Abdallahi argued that Waghef's government was so new that there had not been enough time to properly evaluate its performance, and he warned that he might dissolve the National Assembly if the censure motion was adopted. 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. 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.
Waghef said following his reappointment on July 3 that he wanted to form a government of "broad consensus". An opposition coalition composed of a dozen parties denounced Waghef's reappointment on July 7. On July 8, Waghef announced that no opposition parties would be included in the new government, thereby excluding the UFP and Tawassoul. The new government was named on July 15; there were 30 members of this government, 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.
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.
2008 coup d'etat
On August 6, 2008, Waghef was arrested in a military coup d'étatCoup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
along with Abdallahi and the interior minister. The coup plotters were top security forces who had been fired by Abdallahi earlier in the day; these included General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz
Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz
General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is a Mauritanian politician, currently serving as President of Mauritania...
, General Muhammad Ould Al-Ghazwani, General Philippe Swikri, and Brigadier General (Aqid) Ahmad Ould Bakri. 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." Waghef was reportedly held at an army barracks immediately after the coup.
Waghef and three other high-ranking officials were released from custody by the military on August 11, while Abdallahi remained in custody. 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. Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf
Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf
Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf has served as the Prime Minister of Mauritania since August 2008.Laghdaf was born in Néma. An engineer and a member of the Tajakant tribe, he became Mauritania's Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union in 2006 before being appointed as Prime Minister by junta...
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.
Waghef said in an interview with Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi , literally Father of Gazelle, is the capital and the second largest city of the United Arab Emirates in terms of population and the largest of the seven member emirates of the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western...
TV on August 20 that President Abdallahi had dismissed the senior officers because they had already been planning to seize power on August 9. He subsequently travelled to Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou is the second largest city in Mauritania and serves as a major commercial centre. The city itself has about 75,000 inhabitants expanding to over 90,000 in the larger metropolitan area. It is situated on a 40-mile peninsula or headland called Ras Nouadhibou, Cap Blanc, or Cabo Blanco, of...
in northern Mauritania in order to participate in an anti-coup protest there, but was arrested upon arrival on August 21, 2008. He was reportedly arrested because he left Nouakchott without the junta's permission. 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".
In November 2008, Waghef and four others were charged with intentionally bankrupting Air Mauritanie while Waghef was its Director-General. In early December, bail for Waghef and his co-defendants was set at 100 million ouguiyas; this was reportedly the highest level of bail ever set by a court in Mauritania. Waghef was also charged with corruption in a case involving spoiled food; the bail set in that case was five million ouguiyas.
Dozens of protesters called for Waghef's release in a demonstration near the Supreme Court on April 29, 2009. The police broke up the protest. Subsequently, in negotiations between the junta and the opposition, the opposition demanded Waghef's release as a condition for an agreement. After a deal was reached, the junta released Waghef on 4 June 2009. He was greeted by a crowd as he emerged from the Dar Naim prison in Nouakchott.