Algeria: Tebboune visits Tizi Ouzou before announcing candidacy

Posted on July 11, 2024

Lecture: 3 minutes.

the last timeAbdelmadjid Tebboune In June 1991, he went to Tizi Ouzou, 90 km west of Algiers. At the time, he was the wali (governor). That was yesterday, that is forever gone. On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, he went again, this time as President of the Republic and soon to be candidate for his own successor.

Precautions

Visited the Kabyle capital several times Second-rate It was announced and postponed several times. Organizing a visit by the head of state to this rebellious region was not an easy task, although Tebboune revealed once or twice that he knew the region very well, having served there for two years. We first had to take every precaution to prevent the president’s brief visit from sparking protests by the residents of Tizi Ouzou. or Villages dot the Kabylia Mountains.

There is no shortage of reasons for protest, in particular: the forest fires that ravaged the region in the summers of 2021 and 2023 killed dozens of people and caused significant damage, leaving people with a sense of government absence during and after the fires. Tragedy. Larba Nath 38 people sentenced to death Irason In connection with the murder of Djamel Bensmail in August 2021 It continues to stir anger and indignation among the families of the sentenced as well as residents of the area.

Therefore, it is important to ensure that possible protests do not spill over into the President’s planned visit. As the government and security services have known for decades, crowds Massage The people who cheered the head of state with flags and shouts on the sidewalks of the town of Tizi Ouzou were carefully selected to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

One of the highlights of this “working and inspection” visit was the inauguration of Abdelmadjid Tebboune, accompanied by the President’s Chief of Staff, a few weeks before the start of campaigning for the September 7 presidential elections. army Sayyid Chenglihanamed after the new Tizi Ouzou Stadium Hossein Ait AhmedOne of the revolutionary figures, founder of the FFS (Socialist Forces Front), died in December 2015. This is where the Kabyle Sports Youth (JSK) club will develop.

Built by businessman Ali Haddad’s ERTHB Group, He has been serving a 12-year prison sentence since the summer of 2019.This stadium one of The cost of the 50,000-seat capacity is no less than 350 million euros. The stadium was built and almost completed between 2010 and 2019, when President Bouteflika was still in power, just like the other two stadiums inaugurated by Tebboune, the Douela Stadium in early July and the Balaki Stadium in January 2023.

Dams and desalination plants

The Head of State also received pole The Azazga urban project (30 km west of Tizi Ouzou), and another project to build a desalination station in Tamda Ouguemoun, were also launched during Bouteflika’s presidency. The Sidi Khelifa dam project in the town of Azeffoun, also commissioned in 2018 to ETRHB for an investment of 8.4 billion dinars (about 57.7 million euros), and the Souk N’Tleta dam project, Matt Kass, The award was given to the Turkish company Nurol-Ozaltin in 2014 and was presented to the head of state. He also listened to theEast-West Expresswaywas entrusted to the Özgün-Nurol lnşaat and Engoa consortium in 2014 for EUR 500 million.

Abdelmadjid Tebboune walked a few hundred meters between two lines of waiting onlookers, as is customary. this The Presidential procession was provided with flags, pennants and hats by local authorities. The Head of State concluded his visit with a meeting with equally carefully selected members of civil society at the Mulu-Mameri Cultural House, named after the famous writer, known for his commitment to the recognition of language and culture. culture Berber.