General Abdourahamane Tchiani, head of the presidential guard behind the fall of President Mohamed Bazoum, presented himself this Friday, July 28 as the new strongman of Niger.
6 mins
From our regional correspondent,
After 48 hours of discussions, he won against another general. A witness to the discussions explains to RFI : “ The first day, at the presidential guard camp, it was a bit tense. For some, Abdourahame Tchania was not the right choice. In the army, people found him too close to former President Mahamadou Issoufou. He probably worked each other in the night from Thursday to Friday. »
It is true that it was the former president of Niger Mahamadou Issoufou (2011-2021) who brought to light the one who was still a colonel by appointing him at first “ aide “. He will be quickly bombarded head of the presidential guard and general. At the head of a few hundred well-trained men, he watched day and night over the Head of State who had given him the means for his policy. Then General Tchiani will be confirmed in the same position when President Mohamed Bazoum comes to power in 2021, watching over his two bosses as the apple of his eye, for example by putting down two coup attempts. In return, the two will have pampered him.
One of his classmates describes him : “ We were recruited together in the army in 1984 in Niamey, more precisely in the “commune 1″. I remember our first recruit’s outfit, blue with sandals on the first day. The recruitment per commune was eight people. After our recruitment, the next day, we went to the training center of Tombia, located at a ten kilometers from Niamey. And there, an instructor raised his voice against us. Tchiani immediately retaliated, he is a man of character. »
In any case, he knows how to maneuver. Knowing that on the first day of the coup he was not in a good position to lead the movement, he proposed that the various corps send delegates on television to announce the seizure of power by the army. His deputy was present. The next day, as the negotiations got tougher, one of his assistants threatened to no longer guarantee President Mohamed Bazoum’s security as a sign of threats.
“ General Tchiani is a real military leader “says another Nigerian officer who has been with him for 23 years. On the day of the coup, before taking action by sequestering President Mohamed Bazoum, he would have sensed a grain of sand in his plan. But determined, he would have rushed into the office of the one who was still his boss to ask him to make himself available to him.
On Friday, July 28, he appeared on national television as the new strongman, reading a statement as President of the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Fatherland (CNPS). General Tchiani justified Wednesday’s coup by “ the deterioration of the security situation “. According to him, under President Mohamed Bazoum, there was “ political discourse “who wanted to make believe that” everything’s good “. But there was “ the harsh reality with its share of dead, displaced, humiliation and frustration “. In the process, as if to show that he was taking things in hand, he summoned the secretaries general of the ministries responsible for managing current affairs.
Read alsoCoup d’etat in Niger: General Tchiani’s first appearance as “president of the CNSP”
Military training and professional background
Brigadier General Abdourahame Tchiani is a former student of the National School of Active Officers in Thiès, Senegal. He was rather an average student. The man has also completed several internships and training abroad. But he also made ground in his country. For example, in the Diffa region (Nguiguimi and Ngoourti), then Dirkou. Among the positions held, there is that of company commander at the Chadian border (1996-1997). He also served in the high command of the National Gendarmerie. In 2010, he was commander of zone number 3 in Zinder.
To thank him for his loyalty, President Bazoum dressed in white a few months ago publicly declared : “ Brigadier General Tchiani Abdourahamane, Commander of the Presidential Guard of Niger, you managed to climb all levels of command of the Niger Armed Forces, from elementary units to defense zones. You have assumed all of its responsibilities fully and with a spirit of dedication, abnegation, availability and loyalty… Standing at attention, General Tchiani listened to his chief, received his decoration and disappeared.
“ The other strong point of General Tchiani is that he knows how to be cold. You never know what he thinks “, reports an African diplomat stationed in Niamey. A personality from the sub-region who received medical treatment a few months ago in Turkey, at the same time as Niger’s new strongman, confirms : “ I underwent medical treatment at the same time as him in Turkey, a few months ago. He knows how to hide things. It can be funny, but difficult to know the bottom of his thought. »
The man does not only have friends
Abdourahamane Tchiani does not only have friends. One of them throws him the first spade after his installation in the chair of president of the CNSP : “ When he criticizes the fight against terrorism carried out by President Mohamed Bazoum, I do not agree. He was at the heart of the device. I will even tell you : sometimes, when we had to fly a helicopter to attack the jihadists, he refused, arguing that the device could actually be used to make a coup. » « galleys ! », rresponds a captain of the Nigerian army very close to him.
Others interviewed believe that he is less popular within the army than other high-ranking officers. And others pout when we recount the feats of arms of the man who was in 2010 the commander of military zone No. 3 in Zinder.
After the coup, ex-president Mahamadou Issoufou, ex-mentor of Niger’s new strongman, did not speak. This silence has been variously interpreted. Does General Tchiani work for him in a submarine ? A relative of Issoufou categorically denies.
It is in the work that we know the craftsman. We must therefore see General Tchiani govern, murmurs a supporter of Mohamed Bazoum, who announces “ surprises “.
Read alsoNiger: soldiers claim to have overthrown the president, the army staff announces “to subscribe to the declaration” of the putschists