Dinner with KEY OPPOSITION LEADER

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SUBJECT: Dinner with KEY OPPOSITION LEADER

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1. (SBU) Introduction and Summary: On July 7, Ambassador Allen
hosted Sanoussi Tambari Jackou, President of the opposition Nigerien
Party for Self-Reliance (PNA),and other senior party officials for
a dinner.. Jackou criticized the non-interactive introduction of
the draft constitution he believes would further consolidate
President Tandja's power. He regarded President Tandja as having
usurped power and said the dismissal of the National Assembly was
based on a pretext designed to end efforts to check his quest for
power. Jackou disagreed with opposition political party
resignations from the elections commission, arguing that remaining
within the body to ensure subsequent elections were administered
properly was more important than demonstrating pique. Finally, the
conversation included calls for increased pressure from the
international community mixed with the assertion that Nigeriens
themselves needed to stand up to the current, untenable political
situation. End introduction and summary.

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New Constitution Requires Brains, Time, and Popular Support
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2. (SBU) Jackou was critical of President Tandja, stating that he
was careless in the way he drafted the proposed constitution.
Jackou described the year-long process that was undertaken by
Nigeriens in 1987, when they drafted a National Charter that laid
the foundation for the 1989 constitution. He described how the
documents were disseminated throughout the country, presented and
discussed in all national languages, amended from the village to the
district level, then finalized at the national level before their
adoption by referendum as the law of the land. Jackou concluded
that President Tandja's motive behind the constitutional referendum
was not to strengthen democratic principles, but rather to remain in
power for life.


3. (SBU) Jackou viewed the draft constitution's provision of a
second legislative body, a senate composed of 60 members, of whom 20
would be appointed by the president and 40 selected through district
councils, was a bad idea. President Tandja, he thought, favored two
houses to provide additional government mechanisms through which to
apply pressure to move decisions through the political process.
Under the new constitution, which called for a presidential system
rather than the current semi-presidential one, the president would
become head of state and head of government, functions that now are
split with the prime minister. Finally, Jackou observed that Tandja
had come to power through a previous coup as a colonel in the armed
forces, rather than rising through political party ranks,
emphasizing Tandja's Mauritanian roots on his father's side.

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Justification for Emergency Powers Does Not Hold Water
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4. (SBU) According to Jackou, President Tandja's argument that the
country's independence and institutions were threatened was
fallacious. He explained that Niger is not in a state of war or
facing any foreign threats, and that all government institutions are
functioning as normal. He went on to say that Tandja's decision to
evoke Article 53, ruling by presidential decree, was not justified.
He added that under the current circumstances, with the absence of
the National Assembly to determine the duration of the decree and
monitor reasonable adherence by the executive, there is no legal
mechanism to permit the constitution's intent to be followed.


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Opposition Group Plans to Boycott CENI
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5. (SBU) On July 3, the Independent National Electoral Commission
(CENI) president informed the body's plenary that he would organize
the constitutional referendum as requested by the government. The
Front for the Defense of Democracy (FDD),a group of political
parties, labor unions, and civil society organizations, challenged
the decision and stated that they would pull their members out of
CENI to deny legitimacy to the referendum. Asked if his party would
follow FDD, Jackou responded that his party would not resign from
the CENI; he saw the FDD's decision as a bad move that would give a
blank check to the government to proceed as it wishes. Jackou
thought to block the referendum the opposition should stay within
CENI to play the role of inside opposition while ensuring upcoming
legislative and local elections are administered properly.

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Tandja's Maneuvers Against Ousted Parliament
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6. (SBU) Jackou criticized recent moves by President Tandja to have

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former National Assembly members pay back excess allowances that the
Constitutional Court had ruled improper. According to Jackou,
President Tandja was upset that deputies had appealed directly to
the Constitutional Court for advice regarding how they could stop
the president from organizing the constitutional referendum. In
addition, Tandja did not appreciate the National Assembly's move
last January to create an investigative commission on the allocation
of mining permits and management of revenues deriving from Chinese
mineral concessions. According to Jackou, President Tandja feared
some deputies intended to investigate his family and friends who
were beneficiaries of such permits. (Note: Jackou was among many
former National Assembly members who were summoned by the Ministry
of Justice through the gendarmerie to reimburse unduly received
allowances. He noted that the Treasury had not deducted the amounts
from their salaries, as it could have, in part to have something to
use as a pretext to dismiss the body. End note.)

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International Community Should Increase Pressure
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7. (SBU) The PNA Deputy Secretary General expressed her concern over
the current political situation in Niger. She stated to preserve
democratic principles and the rule of law, the international
community should pressure the government to back down. Jackou added
that it was up to all Nigeriens to step up their action. He wryly
noted, "How could we continue fighting on legal grounds while the
government clearly acts outside the legal framework."
ALLEN