Mauritania’s former president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, has warned the ruling Union For the Republic against the temptation to establish itself as a Party-State, saying that such a move would be a threat to democracy in Mauritanian.
“The President of the Republic cannot be the president of a party,” Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz told a press briefing held on Thursday evening in his home in Nouakchott.
The former head of state, whose relations with his successor are a bit strained, indicated that “Mohamed Ould Ghazouani is not even a member of UPR and his candidacy for the presidential election was not made under (the) banner” of this political party.
In any case, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz and Mohamed Ould Ghazouani seem to be fighting for the control of UPR. Indeed, returning from a long trip after the presidential election, the former leader convened a UPR meeting to ask the party’s management committee, to testify his self-proclamation as the party leader.
This initiative immediately provoked strong protests from many elected members of the ruling party who, through press releases and meetings, announced that Ould Ghazouani is the only “reference” of UPR.
In his remarks, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz said he had been harassed on several occasions, as he was trying to hold his press briefing, adding that hotels had refused to host the meeting, and local television stations were reluctant to broadcast it live.
MOO/id/cat/fss/abj/APA