MAURITANIA: Celebrating Tayas Ouster? Musical Chairs No Longer Fashionable In Africa

A few hours ago, Colonel Ely Ould Mohamed Vall, the National Director of Security of Mauritania, launched himself into power and shut his boss, President Maaoya Taya, out of Nouakchott.

This action, brought the 21-year rule of Taya to a dramatic and calculated end, in this 3 million peopled desert of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.

It must however be early, quickly and clearly pointed out before the euphoria subsides, that Colonel Vall and his 16-member Military Junta for 'Justice and Democracy', have arrived a little too late, on the stage of political history.

Much as the people of Mauritania may have been wearied by the lack-lustre regime of Taya, as it was begining to show through an unprecedentedly free and fair elections of 2003, the unconstitutional overthrow of this elected government is nothing but a hijack of due democratic process by an ambitious self-appointed messiahnic group of the specialized paramilitary gendarmerie, known as Presidential Guards, headed by Vall.

Though, Taya's Democratic Social Republican Party (PRDS) still holds sway with a 79% majority in the legislature, the begining of real opposition by about 15 political parties that contested the last elections with growing sympaties amongst the populace, has dawned on Mauritania. There is no way Taya and his party would have won a fourth straight victory at the next elections using the yardstick of the last polls of 2003.

It this growing popular democracy that the ambitious elements in the Mauritanian Army attempts to abort. It is very probable that colonel Vall and his junta would try to seek popular base of support by anti-western sentiments, but this political line, if towed, would spell untold disaster for the new regime. Ask Sadam, who tried it in 1991 and was humiliated for it.

The questions which this self-styled 'Justice and Democracy' Messiahs of the 3 million poverty-sapped people of Muritania could not or ever answer in the days to come are: What happens to the legislative elections due next year, 2006? What happens to the 20 seats- 21%of the National Assembly and the Senate, controlled by the opposition parties? Is the 2-year time-table of restoration of 'true elections' by the junta not a ploy to gain a breathing space and legitimise its own rule? After 18 years in the saddle as National security Director, Is Colonel Vall just realising now that Taya is 'dictatorial and repressive'?

Could it be that the real lure for the junta to take over power is the recently discovered one billion barrels deposit of crude oil? Can we be assured that junta greed for self-enrichment is not traceable to the 30 billion cubit feet of natural gas just discovered? Wont this make the junta to prolong and postpone the promised 'true elctions' like in the case of its Nigerian counterpart which plauged and devoured national and peoples resouces for 30 years before being forced to abdicate power? Can Colonel Vall boldly tell the world that this coup was not the climax of his carefully planned ambition of 6 years ago that got a fillip when he travelled to all the 12 regions(Wilaya) of Mauritania in 1999, as the commander of the militarized police force, to inspect and reinforce (prepare) them for this day?

One thing though is certain, our people in Africa are tired of the musical chairs of dictators. We yearn for true development and progress. We are not ready for another experimental adventure in failure in the hands of some opportunistic leaders.

Aderemi Ojikutu (Aderaskeey) is a Motivational Author and Youth Mentor. He is a minister of the Word of God. A political economist and political leader. He is President of the TREASURE WRITERS CLUB in Nigeria (http://treasurewriters.50megs.com). He is also the current President of the National Democratic Forum (N.D.F). He was National Mobilisation Officer of the National Association of Nigerian Students (N.A.N.S) for several years. A revolutionary of over two decades, he was also the political secretary of the defunct Nigerian Labour Party in 1991.

---

Interview With A Former ACLU Office

I had the benefit of getting an interview with Mr.... Read More

The Fed and Other Garbage

"The Jesuit priest John H. Surratt, proven to be the... Read More

Reprisal of the Bill of Proposed Electronic Crime Act 2004

The clause (c) of Electronic Crime Act 2004 has been... Read More

The Protocols of Sion #1

There is a lot of debate about who made the... Read More

The Protocols of Sion # 2

-The Protocol plan 'will remain invisible until the moment when... Read More

Will Cloning of Super Families Lead to Slavery

If slavery has not worked well, then cloning if it... Read More

Doorstops and Paperweights

Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, has... Read More

Union Members Don t Be Fooled, Conservative Talkers Have it in for You

Ever wonder why labor unions consistently endorse democrats over republicans... Read More

Oil Pipelines and Rates of Flow

How much oil can travel through a pipeline? It depends... Read More

Public Sector Economies in Transition

In the previous article, we described the various methods developed... Read More

Think You Dont Need A License for A Wireless Microphone? Think Again

Believe it or not, every theatre, church, or Britney Spears... Read More

Simple Middle East Peace Plan

I. WARS ARE BASIC CONFLICTS OVER LAND. II. BOUNDARIES. THE... Read More

NASA and the Crisis Aboard MIR

Some people say that we cannot put a colony on... Read More

The Absurdity of the Public School Monopoly

The notion that local governments should have almost total monopoly... Read More

Shooting Around Corners with New Concept

Currently the United States has weapons, which can shoot around... Read More

DC Lawyers; Have I Got a Case for You?

This is no time for the Black community to sue... Read More

UAV Materials and Thoughts on New Technologies and Keeping Up With Our Opponents

Possible UAV materials are infinite: Foam, Composite, Balsa Wood, Plastic,... Read More

Bushs Election Victory: Ethics, Morality and Religion Defeated War, Economy and Foreign Policy

President George W. Bush has unofficially won his re-election bid... Read More

Fury and Sound as GM Seeds Abound

We have all heard of the huge debates surrounding genetically... Read More

Voters are to Blame for Bad Politics

When I was growing up, I actually considered a career... Read More

Suicide Prevention in Prisons

Prison guards and corrections professionals are hard at work insuring... Read More

Fuel Prices and Trucking; A Reality Check On What Drives America

It appears we are having a terrible situation with the... Read More

We Do Not Have An Upside Down Trade Deficit Because We Cannot Compete

Our trade deficit is directly proportional to our attacks on... Read More

Connecticut Does Not Need Further Income Tax Hikes!

Industrial Recruiting. The absence of a state income tax in... Read More

Anarchy: Law, Order, and Authority

[Author's Note: Another essay that I wrote on notebook paper... Read More

Kudos For Monsanto Company

I applaud Monsanto for their R and D. I would... Read More

Pilot-Less and High Speed Train Transportation Systems; Better Strategy Needed

We recently saw another ferry accident, this one in NY... Read More

The History of Trade and Using it as a Weapon for Peace

The Flow of Trade is a major consideration of civilizations... Read More

Harmonic Beams to Pre-Detonate Shoulder Launched Surface to Air Missiles

Using Harmonic Beams to Pre-Detonate Shoulder Launched Surface to Air... Read More

Voting Pro-Environment is Good For Jobs, Health, and Security

There are many issues on the minds of US voters... Read More

Emminent Domain May Hit Close to Home

IN A DAY AND AGE where one voice screaming among... Read More

Slovenia - The Star Pupil

The most exciting event in Slovenia last week was when... Read More

The Transformation Of Political Science And The Rise In Crime Rates

The current field of political sciences is dominated by a... Read More