DISCONTENT IN THE RANKS: PARLIAMENTARIANS

C O N F I D E N T I A L NOUAKCHOTT 000400

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/31/2013
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KMCA MR
SUBJECT: DISCONTENT IN THE RANKS: PARLIAMENTARIANS
ABANDONING PRESIDENT'S PARTY

Classified By: Ambassador Mark M. Boulware for reasons 1.4 (b and d)


1. (SBU) Tension continues to mount between President
Abdallahi and the Parliament following the installation of a
new Government on 15 July 2008. The new Government was the
President's attempt to placate Parliamentarians from his
PNDD-ADIL party who introduced a motion of censure against
Prime Minister Waghef's previous Government in late June

2008. It met most of their demands by removing from office
several key Ministers who were closely connected to former
President Taya and removing the opposition from the new
Government. The Parliamentarians claimed, however, that
neither the President nor the Prime Minister consulted them
in a satisfactory manner before installing the new
Government. Subsequently, 20 members of PNDD-ADIL announced
their intentions to break away and form a new party whose
stated goal was to gain a majority in the National Assembly
and force the President to appoint a Prime Minister from its
new majority party. As of 31 July, 30 of 40 PNDD-ADIL
Deputies in the National Assembly and 24 of 36 PNDD-ADIL
Senators announced their intention to break away and form a
new party.


2. (SBU) There has been a significant amount of discontent
within the PNDD-ADIL party since the appointment of the first
Government of Prime Minister Waghef, which succeeded the
technocratic Government of former Prime Minister Zeidane.
Soon after Waghef was installed as PM, the Secretary General
of PNDD-ADIL and several other key allies of Zeidane
resigned. This was followed closely by the introduction of
the motion of censure against the Government, which was
signed by 15 Deputies from PNDD-ADIL and 24 Deputies from
other parties. In the latest sign that the President has
lost the support of his party, several members of PNDD-ADIL
have again joined with the opposition in petitioning for an
extraordinary session of Parliament. The Government rejected
the petition on technical grounds, as it was signed by the
second Vice President of the National Assembly. By law, the
petition for an extraordinary session must be signed by the
President of the National Assembly before submission to the
President of the Republic. The Parliamentarians said they
would have the petition signed by the President of the
Assembly and resubmit it. While Abdallahi's obligations to
announce the extraordinary session are not clearly defined in
the Mauritanian Constitution, it is generally understood that
he must allow it to go forward after receiving the petition
from the National Assembly. The session can last up to 30
days.


3. (SBU) The deputies calling for the extraordinary session
have identified the following goals for the extraordinary
session:


A. Amendment and codification of the rules of
procedure for the National Assembly

B. Election of members to the High Court of Justice

C. Examination of the management of Senate resources

D. Creation of a commission to investigate the
management of state oil revenues

E. Creation of a commission to investigate the NGO of
Khattou Mint Boukhary

F. Creation of a commission to examine the Special
Intervention Program

G. Creation of a commission to examine the refugee
repatriation initiative


4. (SBU) The investigation of the NGO of President
Abdallahi's wife, Khattou Mint Boukhary, is widely viewed as
an attack on the President himself, as the Parliamentarians
allege that Boukhary used state funds to support the NGO.
Boukhary has publicly condemned both the allegations the
Senators who made them and the President has said he welcomes
an investigation because he is confident that state money was
not used to support his wife's foundation.


5. (C) COMMENT: The recent defections from PNDD-ADIL and
the petition for an extraordinary session have placed the
President in an uncomfortable position. He said in an
interview with Al-Jazeera on 28 July that he may be forced to
dissolve the National Assembly if the crisis continues. It
is not clear, at this point, if the President is prepared to
carry out his threat. We believe he would rather find
another solution to the current impasse given that there are
limited donor funds to support new Parliamentary elections
and there is little popular support for the Government
infighting that seems to have overshadowed other important
national issues. Although all parties seem to be commendably
committed to the democratic process and constitutional
methods, both sides have taken positions that tended to
escalate rather than to defuse the crisis. The recent
turmoil is likely nothing more than the growing pains of a
young democracy as the Government, the President, and the
Parliament seek to define their individual roles.
Nonetheless, we will continue to urge restraint, compromise
and continued focus on Mauritania's development challenges as
the Ambassdor did today in a call on the Minister for
Relations with Parliament and Civil Society. END COMMENT.


Boulware