Mauritania’s President, Mohamed Ould El-Ghazouani, has brushed aside the debate on his second term at the helm of the country.
Mohamed Ould El-Ghazouani, who was elected in 2019 as president of Mauritania, told the magazine Jeune Afrique that he does not project himself in 2024, saying that “the time is now for work. The successor of Ould Abdel Aziz refuses to fuel the debate on a possible candidacy in three years, even if he has the right to do so.
“When I announce my candidacy, it will create an atmosphere of electoral campaign instead of an atmosphere of work,” he said.
A former army chief of staff, President Ghazouani succeeded his friend Aziz, with whom he worked for a long time before his brushes with the Mauritanian judiciary. For some time, he has been prosecuted for “illicit enrichment” and “abuse of power.”.
Asked about the fate of his predecessor, the current head of state said he would leave it to justice. “I am not a judge to say whether Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz is guilty or not,” he said.
Responding to the Opposition on the political situation of the country, Ghazouani refuted the idea of a national dialogue which, in his eyes, is not necessary. “When we talk about national dialogue, we can think that we are in a crisis situation, and this is contrary to the situation in Mauritania,” he reassured.
CD/odl/fss/abj/APA