Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08CONAKRY4
2008-01-02 11:24:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Conakry
Cable title:  

RESTRUCTURING DECREE ALTERED FROM WITHIN THE

Tags:  PGOV PREL KDEM GV 
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VZCZCXRO3210
PP RUEHPA
DE RUEHRY #0004/01 0021124
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 021124Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY CONAKRY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2003
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CONAKRY 000004 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM GV
SUBJECT: RESTRUCTURING DECREE ALTERED FROM WITHIN THE
PRESIDENCY

REF: A. CONAKRY 1326


B. CONAKRY 1327

Classified By: POL/ECON CHIEF SHANNON CAZEAU FOR REASON 1.4 (B) AND (D)

-------
SUMMARY
-------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CONAKRY 000004

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM GV
SUBJECT: RESTRUCTURING DECREE ALTERED FROM WITHIN THE
PRESIDENCY

REF: A. CONAKRY 1326


B. CONAKRY 1327

Classified By: POL/ECON CHIEF SHANNON CAZEAU FOR REASON 1.4 (B) AND (D)

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C) Both Finance Minister Ousmane Dore and a contact at
the Prime Minister,s office confirmed that the presidential
restructuring decree signed in early December by President
Conte (reftel A) had been altered from within the presidency.
Widespread rumors have pointed to the Secretary General of
the Presidency, Mr. Sam Soumah, as the likely author of such
alterations, which grant Mr. Soumah,s position reportedly
disproportionate and inappropriate powers of state. Despite
widespread discussion of the issue in the press, Minister
Dore remains happy that the document was finally signed and
confident that the prime minister will be able to get the
president to accept returning power to the PM. END SUMMARY.


--------------
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE ALTERED
--------------


2. (C) After several months of waiting for President
Conte,s signature on the government restructuring decree
(reftel A),Prime Minister Lansana Kouyate,s senior economic
advisor, Fofana Lamine, told poloff on December 27 that the
signed document had been altered. Lamine provided the
Embassy with a copy of the official decree, which includes
President Conte,s initials on each of the 59 pages as well
as his signature on the final page. Lamine pointed
specifically to Section XIX, which details the
responsibilities of the Secretary General of the Presidency,
a position held by Mr. Sam Soumah. &This is not the same
document we submitted to the President,8 Lamine said.
Lamine suggested that some parts of the document looked to
have been &cut and pasted.8 When asked who might have
altered the document, Lamine refused to specify a name, but
said that it had to be someone within the presidency.


3. (C) According to Lamine, the altered Section gives Sam
Soumah powers that should normally be granted to the Prime
Minister, as head of government. He noted that the text
states that the Secretary General is responsible for
&conceiving and orienting the general policies of the

Nation8 and that &he controls government action and assures
regular government functions and the continuity of the
State.8 Clearly irritated, Lamine said &Soumah isn,t even
a minister, he,s a secretary general ) he should not have
these powers.8 Another point of contention, Lamine said, is
that the decree leaves the Central Bank under the Presidency,
and specifically, under Sam Soumah,s jurisdiction.


4. (SBU) Lamine also commented on the lack of mention of the
prime minister within the decree document. He noted that out
of the 59 pages, the prime minister is specifically mentioned
in only one sentence, under Section XX, which deals with the
power of the Secretary General of the Government, where it
states that the &Secretary General of the Government,
appointed by the Prime Minister is responsible for
coordinating the actions of the government.8 Lamine said
that this section refers more to administrative
responsibility than to powers of state. However, Lamine
acknowledge that the initial letter signed by President Conte
in March that appointed Kouyate as prime minister adequately
defines the prime minister position and the powers delegated
by the president.

--------------
WE,LL GET IT FIXED
--------------


5. (C) During a December 28 meeting with the Ambassador,
Finance Minister Ousmane Dore acknowledged that the document
had been altered, but was less concerned than Lamine. Dore
confirmed that the signed decree is not the same one the
Prime Minister originally submitted to the Presidency.
However, Dore said Kouyate,s administration had caught the
error and is in the process of correcting the problem, noting
that the prime minister will be meeting with the president
privately to discuss the matter. Dore commented that the
fact that the Central Bank is under the presidency is not a
big deal since it has traditionally always been under the
presidency. However, Dore said that the prime minister,s
proposed corrections include removing the Central Bank from
the president,s jurisdiction and making it completely
independent.


CONAKRY 00000004 002 OF 002


--------------
WIDESPREAD PRESS SPECULATION
--------------


6. (U) The press, both printed and electronic, has widely
speculated on possible alterations to the decree,s original
text in recent weeks. The delay between Dore,s announcement
of the president,s signing of the decree on public radio on
December 6 and the public release of the actual text to the
press on December 12 (reftel A) raised a number of questions
regarding the content of the document. The press has
commented on the significant powers granted to Secretary
General Sam Soumah as well as the almost complete lack of
mention of the prime minister and his powers as head of
government. There have been a few press reports suggesting
that the decree had been altered in order to preserve power
within the presidency. Rampant rumors suggest that Secretary
General Sam Soumah is responsible for the alterations.

--------------
LABOR UNIONS WEIGH IN
--------------


7. (U) Union-Intersyndicale, the blanket organization
representing Guinea's labor unions, issued an open letter on
December 28 in which union leaders criticized the
restructuring decree. Citing inconsistencies with the
January 27 Accords, union leaders wrote that the powers
granted to the Secretary General of the President seriously
violate the spirit of the verbal negotiations leading to the
January 27 Accords and Prime Minister Kouyate's appointment.
In addition, union leaders suggest that the Secretary
General's stated powers are inappropriate since he does not
hold ministerial rank.

--------------
KEY PROVISIONS
--------------


8. (U) The bulk of the decree details the individual powers
of each ministry and reportedly grants each minister the
ability to reorganize his/her respective institutions.
According to Embassy contacts, the document also gives the
Ministry of Interior the ability to appoint government
officials throughout the interior, including governors,
prefects and sous-prefects. (Comment ) While Kouyate
appointed new governors and prefects in July 2007, many
contacts have stressed that the government needs to review
and/or replace the 313 sous-prefecture positions throughout
the country. End Comment).

--------------
COMMENT
--------------


9. (C) While government sources confirm that the
restructuring decree appears to have been altered, Finance
Minister Dore seemed confident that the prime minister will
be able to resolve the problem quickly. Despite critical
press reports and strong reactions from the unions and
others, it is important to recognize that the decree has
finally been signed and it does reportedly give Kouyate,s
ministers the ability to reorganize their respective
ministries, the lack of which has hampered Kouyate,s reform
efforts since his appointment in March 2007. The fact that
the document does not address Kouyate does not appear to be
especially problematic since Kouyate already has a legitimate
document detailing his appointment and his powers as head of
government. However, concerns over what should have been in
the decree may create an unwelcome diversion as ministers and
others focus on getting the decree changed rather than
capitalizing on their newly defined authorities to advance
the PM's reform agenda.


10. (C) A greater concern may be that the document appears
to have been altered within the presidency. In an earlier
meeting with the Ambassador (reftel B),Finance Minister Dore
said that Sam Soumah had sat on the decree for months and
never presented it to the president. Now, the Embassy is
hearing that Mr. Soumah may have altered the signed decree in
order to grant himself additional powers. If Kouyate
succeeds in getting the decree revised, it should send a
clear message to Sam Soumah and others of Conte,s inner
circle. At the same time, the decree,s alteration suggests
that the &old guard8 is capitalizing on opportunities to
manipulate the current political situation and preserve its
power base. END COMMENT.
CARTER