General Abdel-Aziz's task of remaking Mauritanian democracy is hard and restoring his leadership will be harder still, writes Gamal Nkrumah Amid a dizzying variety of political parties and independent presidential contenders, General Mohamed Ould Abdel-Aziz won 53 per cent of the vote at last Saturday's Mauritanian presidential poll. Voter turnout was officially estimated to be 65 per cent of the electorate. Abdel-Aziz, president of the High Council of State stepped down in April 2009 in order to stand as presidential candidate. Few in Mauritania, however, believed that he was willing to relinquish power. In any event, the Mauritanian opposition forces agreed to participate in the presidential poll on 18 July as part of a deal with the military junta that ruled the country under the firm grip of General Abdel-Aziz. Mauritania's opposition groups see Abdel-Aziz's triumph as a hurdle that precludes a smooth transition from paternalistic parochialism to dynamic democracy. "Neither tanks, nor guns, nor live bullets can stop our fight against the usurpation of power by force," warned Speaker of the National Assembly Massoud Ould Boulkheir, himself a presidential hopeful, who came a poor second with 16.6 per cent of the vote. Boulkheir, the black African descendant of slaves, has presented himself as the champion of the underdog and of black Mauritanians -- historically disfranchised and marginalised from the political power centres of Mauritania. He is ready to lead a new Mauritania, but will others follow? "We refuse to recognise these results and call on the international community to create a commission to investigate and to expose this manipulation," declared an incensed Boulkheir upon learning of the election results. The new electoral commission formed haphazardly in April and headed by Cheikh Saadbouh Camara is widely discredited in the country. "Massive fraud" cried the losers, accusing Abdel-Aziz of tampering with the results to stay in power. Nothing in the future is certain. In a country united by Islam, the blending of the multiple racial and ethnic identities constitutes the single most animating dynamic of Mauritania's political discourse. General Abdel-Aziz has failed to usher in a new order of ethnic diversity in the political system. It was Moorish political and financial follies that got Mauritania into this mess. There are others who are more willing to cooperate with General Abdel-Aziz. The Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal led by Ibrahim Sarr declared just before the elections that the "conditions are there for a free poll." Not all the other presidential hopefuls agreed. Ba Mamadou Mbare, acting president after Abdel-Aziz, also appears to be less antagonistic to Abdel-Aziz than the likes of Boulkheir. Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdullahi, the democratically-elected president of Mauritania overthrown by General Abdel-Aziz, does not command a considerable following as was previously assumed. Abdullahi's National Front for the Defence of Democracy is widely viewed as riddled with corruption and nepotism. Parliamentarians and the military had subjected the ousted president and his hangers-on to a campaign of harassment. Abdullahi performed abysmally in the recent presidential poll. Unquestionably, the Mauritanian opposition judged correctly the gravity of the situation, the disappointment in the man they elected president and who failed to deliver. And, perhaps the contempt with the procedure that brought him to power compounded matters. The tables have turned for the Mauritanian opposition to Abdullahi, which is now soliciting the support of the very forces they abhorred. The irony is that Mauritania is perhaps better placed than most African nations to attain economic prosperity. However, development can only be achieved coupled with democracy, and Abdel-Aziz, regardless of his victory, is not seen as a champion of democracy. Nonetheless, the coup General Abdel-Aziz engineered provided a graphic example of Mauritania's central political problem: weak institutions mean that the presidency and the parliamentary system are vulnerable to powerful forces within the military establishment, and the rule of law is haphazard and subject to the dictates of military strongmen. That may not seem fair, but who said life is fair? The point is that Abdullahi failed to garner support for his cause. Boulkheir is a member of the downtrodden Haratin, an appellation with pejorative connotations of the people who make up a numerical majority of the country's population. He struck many notes that the downtrodden of Mauritania want to hear, and he struck them with a passionate appeal for social justice. The Haratin, descendant of slaves who identify ethnically with the Moorish elite, are now asking pertinent questions regarding their political future, social status and economic well-being. Boulkheir and his people are yearning for a bigger share of the national cake. Ahmed Ould Daddah, son of the first president of Mauritania Moukhtar Ould Daddah, is head of the Rally of Democratic Forces (RFD). In spite of his charismatic credentials, he will have a tough time keeping his RFD in the political arena. Daddah, with 14 per cent of the vote, trailed in third place. Ali Ould Mohamed Val, leader of the 2005 coup that deposed former Mauritanian strongman Mouaaouya Ould Sidi Ahmed Taya, who as head of state (2005-2007) established diplomatic relations with Israel, failed to make a credible showing. Moreover, the Mauritanian military establishment is taking full advantage of this Muslim nation's political morass. The theory of Mauritania's "slippery slope" has many advocates. The question of the containment of Mauritania's militant Islamists came to the fore when Christopher Ervin Leggett, an American aid worker, was recently assassinated in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott. Al-Qaeda of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claimed responsibility for the "execution" of Leggett because he was "trying to convert Muslims to Christianity". AQIM is especially active in Mauritania and appears to have strong support among certain elements of the population, especially the jobless youngsters. The Islamist militants refuse to participate in the democratic dispensation. Mauritania, a vast arid land roughly the size of Egypt, is one of only three Arab League member states that recognise Israel. Mauritanians resent the Israeli diplomatic presence in their midst, providing fuel for AQIM's fire. Floundering beneath a welter of investigations, the former Mauritanian first lady Kahtou Boukhari recoiled in horror at the prospect of the destruction of the non-governmental organisation she founded when her husband was unceremoniously deposed. The KB (the initials of her name) Association -- the largest and most moneyed humanitarian organisation in the country -- she claims, solicited funds from rich relatives and expatriate Mauritanian tycoons overseas. Allegations of double-billing for the running costs of her NGO were made, much to the chagrin of Abdullahi. Such scandal, of course, did not help the political cause of her husband. And, served to tarnish his image as a nepotistic potentate further. So: the remaking of Mauritania? Reshaping the country under the same old Moorish political and military elite is a non-starter. Mauritanians are sceptical and so are their neighbours to the south.
