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Justin Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin
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 President Justin Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin |
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| In office January 25, 1964 – November 29, 1965 |
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| Preceded by | Christophe Soglo |
| Succeeded by | Christophe Soglo |
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| In office May 7, 1972 – October 26, 1972 |
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| Preceded by | Hubert Maga |
| Succeeded by | Mathieu Kérékou (usurped) |
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| Born | January 16, 1917 Abomey, Dahomey |
| Died | March 8, 2002 (aged 85) Cotonou |
Justin Ahomadegbé-Tomêtin (January 16, 1917 in Abomey–March 8, 2002 in Cotonou) was a Beninese politician. He served as the prime minister of Benin from 1964 to 1965.
Ahomadégbé became President as part of a system that rotated the office between three leading political figures: Ahomadégbé, Hubert Maga, and Sourou-Migan Apithy. Maga peacefully handed power to Ahomadégbé on May 7, 1972. On October 26, 1972 he was overthrown in a coup d'état led by Mathieu Kérékou.1 All three remained under house arrest until 1981.2
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Early life and entry into politics
Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin was a direct decendant of the kings of Abomey, the town of his birth. He attended the French West Africa School of Medicine in Dakar and, using his popularity as a royal figure, was elected to the Dahomey territorial assembly in 1952. He was a vocal critic of the French rule, and gained influence upon allying himself with trade unions. Using this, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin was elected Mayor of Abomey in November 1956 elections.3
Deputy to the French National Assembly
The results of the territorial elections of 1969 were as such: the P.R.D., led by Sourou-Migan Apithy received 37 seats with 144,038 votes; the R.D.D., led by Hubert Maga received 22 seats with 62,132 votes; and Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin's Dahomey Democratic Union (U.D.D.) receiving 11 deputies for its 162,179 votes. What followed was described by journalist Robert Matthews as "an immediate explosion." Supporters of Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin started riots that were so severe that French soldiers were called in to quell them. Apithy and Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin agreed to split the contested 18 seats in a southwest constituency among themselves as a result of a mediation performed by Félix Houphouët-Boigny.4 However, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin made it clear that he would not allow Apithy to remain the Prime Minister of Dahomey, but Apithy was not going to listen to his demands. Maga was chosen as a compromise for the premiership and was voted into this post on May 22, 1959.5
Independence and dissent
On August 1, 1960 Dahomey gained its independence and Maga became its first president. Shortly after independence, the three parties united into the "Patriotic Action Front" and redistricted Dahomey into one electoral constituency. Under this system, they would provide a list of candidates of whom whoever received a majority would win all legislative seats. It did not last long; soon, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin broke from the union and, using the discontent among people over the increasing rarity of jobs in the country, incited demonstrations. In September 1960 he claimed that a single-party state was the only solution to the stagnation of the economy; since he had just broken from one, he was looking for another party to be led by him.6
Meanwhile, Maga made Houphouët-Boigny recognise the R.D.D. as the Dahomeyan wing of his African Democratic Rally. Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin had always believed that the U.D.D. was the sole representative of the Rally.6
At the end of September Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin convinced the trade unions that he owned to begin another strike for Maga's inability to promote national development and ensure the welfare of the working class. The strike, which existed in Dahomey's capital of Porto Novo and its largest city of Cotonou, became so serious that police forces used tear gas and ended when Maga sent down some faithful Northerners, carrying around bows and arrows and patrolling the streets at night. At the same time members of the U.D.D. organised a motion of censure in the National Assembly. Maga relied on Apithy for help in opposing the motion, and it was ultimately rejected.7
Right after the motion was rejected, U.D.D. deputies began quitting their jobs. They were in turn replaced by deputies of the P.R.D. Shortly after this the P.R.D. and R.D.D. merged to form the Dahomeyan Unity Party (P.D.U.) and Maga was naturally elected its leader. On December 11, Maga was formally elected president and Apithy vice president. The P.D.U. received 69 percent of the vote and U.D.D. thirty one percent,7 although it was not represented in the National Assembly.8
Maga assassination plot
On May 26 Information Minister Albert Teveodjré notified Maga that Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin had plotted to assassinate the president but he and 11 other dissidents had been arrested. The trial date was set for December. It differed from many political trials in Africa being that it was held in public and the defence was allowed a lawyer from Paris. In any event, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin received five years for his role in the conspiracy, and the others were dealt from one to ten year sentences.9 Maga ultimately released them in November 1962, saying in a broadcastnote 1 that it was not only due to their good behavior in jail but also to reconcile with his former enemies.10
Presidential council
On December 10, 1969, Émile Derlin Zinsou was overthrown by Maurice Kouandété, though the military did not recognise the latter. Since the the two men could not end their quarrels, an election were held to determine the true president. Maga received a majority of the vote in the north, and Apithy and Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin received a majority in the southeast and southwest/central respectively. Each region threatened to secede until the three former Presidents agreed to compromise.11
A presidential council, comprising Maga, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin, and Apithy, with a presidency that changed every two years, was set up on May 7, 1970. Maga inaugurated this system for the first two years, before passing the power, on May 7, 1972, to Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin.1 This system saw corruption and mismanagemant of fiscal resources.11 Under Maga's regime, Kouandété attempted to usurp to power again on February 23, 1972, though this plot was foiled.12 On October 26, another coup was lanched by soldiers of the Ouidah garrison. This one, however, was successful, and Major Mathieu Kérékou was installed as president.13 Maga, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin, and Apithy spent more than nine years in prison before being freed by Kérékou in 1981.1
Notes
- ^ It is unclear what type of broadcast this was.
References
- ^ a b c (French) Kpatindé, Francis (2002-03-25), "Justin Tomêtin Ahomadégbé Éphémère chef de l'État", Jeune Afrique (Groupe Jeune Afrique), http://www.jeuneafrique.com/jeune_afrique/article_jeune_afrique.asp?art_cle=LIN25033justitatled0, retrieved on 14 November 2008.
- ^ Samuel Decalo, "Benin: First of the New Democracies", in Political Reform in Francophone Africa (1997), ed. Clark and Gardinier, pages 46–47.
- ^ Matthews 1966, p. 139.
- ^ Matthews 1966, p. 141.
- ^ Matthews 1966, p. 142.
- ^ a b Matthews 1966, p. 143.
- ^ a b Matthews 1966, p. 144.
- ^ Matthews 1966, p. 145.
- ^ Matthews 1966, p. 146.
- ^ Matthews 1966, p. 147.
- ^ a b Kneib 2007, p. 21.
- ^ World Book 1973, p. 289.
- ^ Kneib 2007, p. 22.
Bibliography
- Kneib, Martha (2007), Benin, Cultures of the World, Tarrytown, New York: Marshall Cavendish, ISBN 0761423281, OCLC 62109915.
- Matthews, Ronald (1966), African Powder Keg: Revolt and Dissent in Six Emergent Nations, London: The Bodley Head, OCLC 246401461.
- World Book (1973), The 1973 World Book Year Book, World Book Year Books, Chicago: Field Enterprises Educational Corporation, ISBN 0716604736, OCLC 39652511.
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