Adrien Houngbédji
Encyclopedia
Adrien Houngbédji is a Benin
ese politician
and the leader of the Democratic Renewal Party
(Parti du renouveau démocratique, PRD), one of Benin's main political parties. He was President of the National Assembly of Benin
from 1991 to 1995, Prime Minister of Benin from 1996 to 1998, and President of the National Assembly for a second time from 1999 to 2003. He has stood as a candidate in every presidential election since 1991.
(Benin) in 1942. He earned a Doctorate in Law from the University of Paris
in 1967 and graduated the same year from the French National School of Magistrate, first in his class. In August 1968 he joined the bar in Cotonou
where he ran a prominent law office. After agreeing to represent an opponent of the regime of Mathieu Kérékou
, he was arrested in February 1975. On March 5, 1975, Houngbédji escaped from prison and fled into exile; shortly afterward he was sentenced to death. He went to Paris
, then to Dakar
, Senegal
, where he taught law, before going to Libreville
, Gabon
, where he again practiced law.
In Gabon he was close to President Omar Bongo
, and Bongo encouraged Houngbédji to return to Benin in December 1989 after an amnesty was issued by the Kérékou regime, providing him with a plane and sending a Gabonese Minister of State to accompany him. Houngbédji participated in the February 1990 National Conference that led the country towards a multi-party democracy. He was favored by Kérékou to become prime minister at the National Conference, but Nicéphore Soglo
found more favor with the delegates, and Houngbédji withdrew from the contest prior to the vote, in which Soglo was elected. Although considered by many to have been an ally of the Kérékou regime at the time of the National Conference, Houngbédji has written that he was actually an "enlightened adversary" of the regime. In March 1990 he founded the Democratic Renewal Party, and in early 1991 he was elected to the National Assembly of Benin. He ran in the March 1991 presidential election
, taking fifth place with 4.54% of the vote. He was elected as President of the National Assembly in 1991, serving until 1995.
In the March 1995 parliamentary election
, the PRD, along with other parties opposed to President Nicéphore Soglo, won a majority of seats in the National Assembly, and Houngbédji was re-elected to the Assembly. He took third place, with 19.71% of the vote, in the first round of the March 1996 presidential election
, and he supported Kérékou in the second round of the election. Houngbédji was then appointed Prime Minister
(a position which was recreated on this occasion) by Kérékou in April 1996, serving in that position for two years. On May 8, 1998, Houngbédji resigned, along with the three other PRD ministers in the government; the position of prime minister was eliminated in the next government, named on May 14.
Houngbédji and the PRD were part of the opposition in the March 1999 parliamentary election
, and the opposition succeeded in winning a majority of seats; Houngbédji was re-elected to the National Assembly and was elected President of the National Assembly for a second time on April 29, defeating Kérékou's favored candidate Bruno Amoussou
with 45 votes against Amoussou's 38 votes. He remained in the post until 2003. He was also elected co-president of the Africa Caribbean Pacific - European Union (ACP-EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly in 2001.
In the March 2001 presidential election
, he took third place and 12.62% of the vote; along with former President Soglo, who finished second, he refused to participate in a second round because of alleged fraud. Fourth-place candidate Bruno Amoussou
therefore faced Kérékou in the second round, and Amoussou lost by a large margin.
On February 13, 2003, Houngbédji was elected as mayor of Benin's administrative capital, Porto Novo, by the city's council; he took office on the same day. Houngbédji was re-elected to the National Assembly in the March 2003 parliamentary election
, and in April 2003 he left the opposition to join the presidential majority. He resigned as Mayor of Porto Novo in June 2003.
Houngbédji ran for president again in the March 2006 presidential election
, and on this occasion an article in the constitution excluding Kérékou and Soglo from the race made Houngbédji a favorite. In the first round, held on March 5, he placed second, with about 24% of the vote according to official results, behind Yayi Boni
with about 35%; therefore a run-off between Houngbédji and Boni was held on March 19. Houngbédji lost this round, with Yayi Boni receiving almost 75% of the vote.
Houngbédji was re-elected to the National Assembly in the March 2007 parliamentary election
.
A member of the "Académie des Sciences d’Outre Mer", Houngbédji wrote a book in October 2005 presenting his political vision of Benin and Africa titled "Il n’y a de richesse que d’hommes" (publisher: éditions l'Archipel).
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
ese politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and the leader of the Democratic Renewal Party
Democratic Renewal Party (Benin)
The Democratic Renewal Party is a political party of Benin led by Adrien Houngbédji. Houngbédji lived in exile for several years, but returned to Benin to take part in the National Conference of 1990. He built up his party largely around other exiled Beninese...
(Parti du renouveau démocratique, PRD), one of Benin's main political parties. He was President of the National Assembly of Benin
National Assembly of Benin
The unicameral National Assembly of Benin is the country's legislative body.The current National Assembly has 83 members who are directly elected through a system of party-list proportional representation and serve five-year terms.-See also:...
from 1991 to 1995, Prime Minister of Benin from 1996 to 1998, and President of the National Assembly for a second time from 1999 to 2003. He has stood as a candidate in every presidential election since 1991.
Political career
Adrien Houngbédji was born in AplahouéAplahoué
Aplahoué is a town and arrondissement located in the Kouffo Department of Benin. The commune covers an area of 572 square kilometres and as of 2002 had a population of 116,988 people.-References:...
(Benin) in 1942. He earned a Doctorate in Law from the University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
in 1967 and graduated the same year from the French National School of Magistrate, first in his class. In August 1968 he joined the bar in Cotonou
Cotonou
-Demographics:*1979: 320,348 *1992: 536,827 *2002: 665,100 *2005: 690,584 The main languages spoken in Cotonou include the Fon language, Aja language, Yoruba language and French.-Transport:...
where he ran a prominent law office. After agreeing to represent an opponent of the regime of Mathieu Kérékou
Mathieu Kérékou
Mathieu Kérékou, was President of Benin from 1972 to 1991 and again from 1996 to 2006. After seizing power in a military coup, he ruled the country for 17 years, for most of that time under an officially Marxist-Leninist ideology, before he was stripped of his powers by the National Conference of...
, he was arrested in February 1975. On March 5, 1975, Houngbédji escaped from prison and fled into exile; shortly afterward he was sentenced to death. He went to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, then to Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
, Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
, where he taught law, before going to Libreville
Libreville
Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon, in west central Africa. The city is a port on the Komo River, near the Gulf of Guinea, and a trade center for a timber region. As of 2005, it has a population of 578,156.- History :...
, Gabon
Gabon
Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
, where he again practiced law.
In Gabon he was close to President Omar Bongo
Omar Bongo
El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba , born as Albert-Bernard Bongo, was a Gabonese politician who was President of Gabon for 42 years from 1967 until his death in office in 2009....
, and Bongo encouraged Houngbédji to return to Benin in December 1989 after an amnesty was issued by the Kérékou regime, providing him with a plane and sending a Gabonese Minister of State to accompany him. Houngbédji participated in the February 1990 National Conference that led the country towards a multi-party democracy. He was favored by Kérékou to become prime minister at the National Conference, but Nicéphore Soglo
Nicéphore Soglo
Nicéphore Dieudonné Soglo is a Beninois politician who was Prime Minister of Benin from 1990 to 1991 and President from 1991 to 1996. He has been the Mayor of Cotonou since 2003.-Biography:Soglo was born in Togo...
found more favor with the delegates, and Houngbédji withdrew from the contest prior to the vote, in which Soglo was elected. Although considered by many to have been an ally of the Kérékou regime at the time of the National Conference, Houngbédji has written that he was actually an "enlightened adversary" of the regime. In March 1990 he founded the Democratic Renewal Party, and in early 1991 he was elected to the National Assembly of Benin. He ran in the March 1991 presidential election
Beninese presidential election, 1991
Presidential elections were held in Benin in March 1991, the first such election since 1970. The first round, held on 10 March, saw no candidate receive more than 37% of the vote; the second round on 24 March resulted in Nicéphore Soglo being declared the winner, with almost two-thirds of the vote...
, taking fifth place with 4.54% of the vote. He was elected as President of the National Assembly in 1991, serving until 1995.
In the March 1995 parliamentary election
Beninese parliamentary election, 1995
Elections for the National Assembly were held in Benin on 28 March 1995. Voting for 13 seats was re-run on 28 May after the Supreme Court had invalidated the results due to irregularities. Voter turnout was 75.8%.-Results:...
, the PRD, along with other parties opposed to President Nicéphore Soglo, won a majority of seats in the National Assembly, and Houngbédji was re-elected to the Assembly. He took third place, with 19.71% of the vote, in the first round of the March 1996 presidential election
Beninese presidential election, 1996
Presidential elections were held in Benin in March 1996. The first round, held on 3 March, saw no candidate gain over 50% of the vote, resulting in a second round held on 18 March...
, and he supported Kérékou in the second round of the election. Houngbédji was then appointed Prime Minister
Heads of government of Benin
-Prime Ministers of Benin :-Affiliations:-Sources:*http://www.rulers.org/rulb1.html#benin*http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Benin.html*http://news.bbc.co.uk/...
(a position which was recreated on this occasion) by Kérékou in April 1996, serving in that position for two years. On May 8, 1998, Houngbédji resigned, along with the three other PRD ministers in the government; the position of prime minister was eliminated in the next government, named on May 14.
Houngbédji and the PRD were part of the opposition in the March 1999 parliamentary election
Beninese parliamentary election, 1999
Elections for the National Assembly were held in Benin on 30 March 1999. The Renaissance Party of Benin retained its status as the largest party in the Assembly, increasing its number of seats from 21 to 27, whilst the Democratic Renewal Party won only 11 seats, a reduction of seven.Voter turnout...
, and the opposition succeeded in winning a majority of seats; Houngbédji was re-elected to the National Assembly and was elected President of the National Assembly for a second time on April 29, defeating Kérékou's favored candidate Bruno Amoussou
Bruno Amoussou
Bruno Ange-Marie Amoussou is a Beninese politician and President of the Social Democratic Party . He was the President of the National Assembly from April 1995 to April 1999 and Minister of State in charge of Planning and Prospective Development under President Mathieu Kérékou from 1999 to 2005;...
with 45 votes against Amoussou's 38 votes. He remained in the post until 2003. He was also elected co-president of the Africa Caribbean Pacific - European Union (ACP-EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly in 2001.
In the March 2001 presidential election
Benin presidential election, 2001
The presidential election held in Benin in March 2001 controversially resulted in the re-election of Mathieu Kérékou to a second term. Kérékou's rival Nicéphore Soglo, who had been president from 1991 to 1996, failed in his bid to reclaim the presidency; although he qualified to participate in the...
, he took third place and 12.62% of the vote; along with former President Soglo, who finished second, he refused to participate in a second round because of alleged fraud. Fourth-place candidate Bruno Amoussou
Bruno Amoussou
Bruno Ange-Marie Amoussou is a Beninese politician and President of the Social Democratic Party . He was the President of the National Assembly from April 1995 to April 1999 and Minister of State in charge of Planning and Prospective Development under President Mathieu Kérékou from 1999 to 2005;...
therefore faced Kérékou in the second round, and Amoussou lost by a large margin.
On February 13, 2003, Houngbédji was elected as mayor of Benin's administrative capital, Porto Novo, by the city's council; he took office on the same day. Houngbédji was re-elected to the National Assembly in the March 2003 parliamentary election
Beninese parliamentary election, 2003
A parliamentary election was held in Benin in 30 March 2003. The 83 seats in the National Assembly of Benin were split between twelve parties and two main alliances....
, and in April 2003 he left the opposition to join the presidential majority. He resigned as Mayor of Porto Novo in June 2003.
Houngbédji ran for president again in the March 2006 presidential election
Beninese presidential election, 2006
A presidential election was held in the West African state of Benin on March 5, 2006. Long-time president Mathieu Kérékou was barred from running again by a two term limit and an age limit of 70 years for candidates; in July 2005 he signalled that he would not seek to change the constitution, as...
, and on this occasion an article in the constitution excluding Kérékou and Soglo from the race made Houngbédji a favorite. In the first round, held on March 5, he placed second, with about 24% of the vote according to official results, behind Yayi Boni
Yayi Boni
Dr. Thomas Yayi Boni , a Beninese banker and politician, is the current President of Benin. He took office on 6 April 2006 after winning elections held in the previous month.-Biography:...
with about 35%; therefore a run-off between Houngbédji and Boni was held on March 19. Houngbédji lost this round, with Yayi Boni receiving almost 75% of the vote.
Houngbédji was re-elected to the National Assembly in the March 2007 parliamentary election
Beninese parliamentary election, 2007
A parliamentary election was held in Benin on 31 March 2007, having been delayed from an earlier date of 25 March due to difficulties in organizing it. 26 political parties and alliances took part in the election...
.
A member of the "Académie des Sciences d’Outre Mer", Houngbédji wrote a book in October 2005 presenting his political vision of Benin and Africa titled "Il n’y a de richesse que d’hommes" (publisher: éditions l'Archipel).