Former Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz and a dozen senior figures were indicted this Thursday, March 11 in Nouakchott for corruption and placed under judicial control. The information was confirmed by a judicial source and with the lawyer for the former head of state, inform Agence France-Presse and international radio, RFI.
investigative committee
It must be said that the subject is very sensitive, because it is unprecedented in the country and remains rare on the continent. Coming to power by a military coup, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz was elected in 2009 and re-elected in 2014 as president of this West African country of 4.5 million inhabitants. Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, his runner-up, was elected to his succession in June 2019. Since then, the former president lost in December 2019 the leadership of the Union for the Republic (UPR), a party he founded. In August 2020, he was questioned for several days by the police and left his passport deprived.
Meanwhile, a parliamentary committee has been tasked with shedding light on alleged corruption and embezzlement of public funds during the years in power of Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz. Mauritanian deputies have also adopted a jurisdiction, the High Court of Justice responsible for trying the Head of State and ministers in cases of “high treason”.
The commission looked into several aspects: management of oil revenues, sale of State estates, liquidation of a public company ensuring the supply of food to the country or the activities of a Chinese fishing company. At the end of a preliminary investigation sent to the prosecutor’s office in early March, the procedure accelerated with the summons at the beginning of the week of a host of personalities to the police premises in Nouakchott, including the former head of state. . This was heard last Wednesday by the prosecutor.
A growing list of charges
The financial investigation carried out in parallel with that of the police made it possible to identify and freeze or seize companies, buildings and apartments, vehicle fleets, sums of money, in Mauritania alone, said the prosecution. These goods are summarily valued at the equivalent of 96 million euros, including 67 million going to one of the suspects and 21 to his son-in-law, said the prosecution without specifying whether it was referring to the former. -President and his son-in-law.
It is therefore in this context that the investigating judge followed the requisitions of the prosecutor Ahmedou Ould Abdallahi who had requested the indictment and the placing under judicial supervision of the former president Ould Abdel Aziz, of one of his sons-in-law, two former prime ministers and several former ministers and businessmen, said a judicial source close to the investigation and speaking on condition of anonymity due to the confidentiality and sensitivity of the investigations. One of the lawyers of the former president, Mr.e Mohameden Ould Icheddou, confirmed the information. His client “refused to answer the judge’s questions, sticking to the immunity conferred on him by the Constitution in article 93,” he told AFP.
The judge will soon specify the conditions of the judicial review, said the same anonymous judicial source. The prosecutor requested a “thorough” judicial review.
Settling scores ?
After more than ten years in power between 2008 and 2019, this indictment represents a new stage in the fall of Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz under his successor Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani, his former chief of staff and minister, for whom he had however prepared the assumption of the presidency.
He shouts at “settling of scores”. His successor has constantly invoked the independence of the judiciary. “The list of charges drawn up against him (the former president) by the prosecution and on which the investigating judge must rule and investigate is long,” said a source close to the prosecution under cover during the day. anonymity. It “includes corruption, money laundering, illicit enrichment, the squandering of public property, the granting of undue advantages and obstruction of the conduct of justice”, according to the same source.
“It is a question of dragging a whole system and its men in front of the police and sullying their honor”, moved the collective of lawyers who defend him, in a press release published at the time of his transfer from the police to the prosecution. . Faithful to his line of defense, the former leader Ould Abdel Aziz refused to collaborate and spent the night in the police premises where he had been brought back, it is said in his entourage.
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
