Justin Lekoundzou
Encyclopedia
Justin Lekoundzou Itihi Ossetoumba is a Congolese
politician. He is a founding member of the Congolese Labour Party (PCT), and during the PCT's single-party rule he held important party and government positions in the 1970s and 1980s. He served in the government again from 1997 to 2002 and has been a member of the National Assembly of the Republic of the Congo
since 2002.
, located in the Cuvette Region
of northern Congo-Brazzaville. Under Marien Ngouabi
, he was included on the five-member Executive Committee of the ruling National Revolutionary Council (CNR) as President of the Organization Commission on 21 June 1969. When the PCT was founded in December 1969, he became a member of its Political Bureau and was assigned responsibility for state enterprises; he remained on the Political Bureau until December 1971. Lekoundzou was then Minister of Industry, Mines, and Tourism from December 1971 to 30 August 1973. He was also director of the Pointe-Noire
oil refinery
for a time.
In 1979 Lekoundzou was again elected to the PCT Political Bureau; at that point the body consisted of ten members, and he was assigned responsibility for planning and the economy. Lekoundzou was Minister of Finance from December 1980 until he was instead appointed as Minister of Rural Development on 21 August 1987; he held the latter post until he was replaced in the government named on 13 August 1989. Also in 1989, he was assigned responsibility for organization in the PCT Political Bureau and became the regime's second-ranking figure, under President Denis Sassou Nguesso
. In the multiparty 1992 parliamentary election
, he was elected to the National Assembly as a PCT candidate.
After Sassou Nguesso returned to power in October 1997 at the end of the 1997 civil war, Lekoundzou was appointed as Minister of State for Reconstruction and Urban Development on 2 November 1997. After a little more than a year, he was instead appointed as Minister to the Presidency in charge of National Defense on 12 January 1999. In the May 2002 parliamentary election
, Lekoundzou was elected to the National Assembly as the PCT candidate in Boundji constituency; he received 58.09% of the vote and won the seat in the first round. Following the election, Jacques-Yvon Ndolou was appointed to replace Lekoundzou as Minister to the Presidency in charge of National Defense on 18 August 2002; Ndolou succeeded Lekoundzou in that position on 21 August. Lekoundzou was then chosen as President of the Parliamentary Group of the Presidential Majority on 24 August 2002.
, to transform it into a broader party in the mid-2000s. In doing so, he was apparently also at odds with President Sassou Nguesso, who favored the reform initiative. Lekoundzou and his supporters dominated the PCT Central Committee, while Noumazalaye and his supporters dominated the Political Bureau; their differing visions for the future of the party produced an extended round of intra-party squabbling.
On 31 January 2006, Lekoundzou was flown to France for emergency medical treatment due to a "cerebral affliction", while one of his aides also fell ill; some suspected that they were victims of poisoning. Although it was widely believed that Lekoundzou would die, he survived and returned home to a hero's welcome later in 2006. His return initiated an escalation of the intra-party dispute; trying to gain the upper hand, Lekoundzou called for a party congress, and his faction held its own congress in October 2006. The situation was at least superficially resolved by December 2006, when a party congress involving both factions was held; Lekoundzou was elected to the Political Bureau, but the power of the conservatives in general was weakened. In an early 2007 interview, Sassou Nguesso said that Lekoundzou, who had been living in France for some months, was there for health reasons as far as he knew, not as a result of any bitterness between them.
Together with Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya
, the President of the National Assembly, Lekoundzou (who was still President of the Parliamentary Group of the Presidential Majority, but was out of the country due to illness) sent a letter to President Sassou Nguesso on 24 March 2007. In this letter, Lekoundzou and Tchicaya urged the establishment of an independent national electoral commission to oversee the 2007 parliamentary election
. The members of the Presidential Majority Parliamentary Group were critical of the approach employed by Lekoundzou and Tchicaya, however.
Lekoundzou was still in France due to illness when the June 2007 parliamentary election was held, but he nevertheless stood for re-election to the National Assembly as the PCT candidate in Boundji constituency. Although he was unable to campaign, he was easily re-elected; he won his seat in the first round with 68.82% of the vote.
As part of his opposition to the "renovation" of the PCT, Lekoundzou founded the "Marien Ngouabi and Ethics" Association; this association has had a difficult relationship with the rest of the PCT and the authorities. The association's spokesman, Jean-Pierre Lokénia, was arrested on 6 May 2008, and in response, Lekoundzou—who was ill and being treated in Cotonou
, Benin
—said that he was considering returning to Congo to take Lokénia's place as a prisoner. His wife, Emilienne Lekoundzou, said that the association was founded only as a means of organizing PCT conservatives and was not hostile to the government; she also said that Lekoundzou had obtained Sassou Nguesso's approval before founding the association.
Republic of the Congo
The Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
politician. He is a founding member of the Congolese Labour Party (PCT), and during the PCT's single-party rule he held important party and government positions in the 1970s and 1980s. He served in the government again from 1997 to 2002 and has been a member of the National Assembly of the Republic of the Congo
National Assembly of the Republic of the Congo
The Parliament of the Republic of Congo has two chambers. The lower house is the National Assembly . It has 153 members, for a five year term in single-seat constituencies.-See also:...
since 2002.
Political career
Lekoundzou was born in BoundjiBoundji
Boundji is a city in the Cuvette Region of northeastern Republic of the Congo.The city is served by Boundji Airport....
, located in the Cuvette Region
Cuvette Region
Cuvette is a department of the Republic of the Congo in the central part of the country. It borders the departments of Cuvette-Ouest, Likouala, Plateaux, and Sangha, and internationally, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital is Owando...
of northern Congo-Brazzaville. Under Marien Ngouabi
Marien Ngouabi
Marien Ngouabi was the military President of the Republic of the Congo from January 1, 1969 to March 18, 1977.-Origins:...
, he was included on the five-member Executive Committee of the ruling National Revolutionary Council (CNR) as President of the Organization Commission on 21 June 1969. When the PCT was founded in December 1969, he became a member of its Political Bureau and was assigned responsibility for state enterprises; he remained on the Political Bureau until December 1971. Lekoundzou was then Minister of Industry, Mines, and Tourism from December 1971 to 30 August 1973. He was also director of the Pointe-Noire
Pointe-Noire
Pointe-Noire is the second largest city in the Republic of the Congo, following the capital of Brazzaville, and an autonomous department since 2004. Before this date it was the capital of the Kouilou region . It is situated on a headland between Pointe-Noire Bay and the Atlantic Ocean...
oil refinery
Oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt base, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas...
for a time.
In 1979 Lekoundzou was again elected to the PCT Political Bureau; at that point the body consisted of ten members, and he was assigned responsibility for planning and the economy. Lekoundzou was Minister of Finance from December 1980 until he was instead appointed as Minister of Rural Development on 21 August 1987; he held the latter post until he was replaced in the government named on 13 August 1989. Also in 1989, he was assigned responsibility for organization in the PCT Political Bureau and became the regime's second-ranking figure, under President Denis Sassou Nguesso
Denis Sassou Nguesso
Denis Sassou Nguesso is a Congolese politician who has been the President of Congo-Brazzaville since 1997; he was previously President from 1979 to 1992. During his first period as President, he headed the single-party regime of the Congolese Labour Party for 12 years...
. In the multiparty 1992 parliamentary election
Republic of the Congo parliamentary election, 1992
Parliamentary elections were held in the Republic of the Congo in 1992, along with a presidential election, marking the end of the transition to multiparty politics. The election was held in two rounds, the first on 24 June 1992 and the second on 19 July 1992...
, he was elected to the National Assembly as a PCT candidate.
After Sassou Nguesso returned to power in October 1997 at the end of the 1997 civil war, Lekoundzou was appointed as Minister of State for Reconstruction and Urban Development on 2 November 1997. After a little more than a year, he was instead appointed as Minister to the Presidency in charge of National Defense on 12 January 1999. In the May 2002 parliamentary election
Republic of the Congo parliamentary election, 2002
A parliamentary election was held in the Republic of the Congo in 2002; the first round was held on 26 May and the second round on 20 June. The Congolese Labour Party and its allies won a majority of seats in the National Assembly....
, Lekoundzou was elected to the National Assembly as the PCT candidate in Boundji constituency; he received 58.09% of the vote and won the seat in the first round. Following the election, Jacques-Yvon Ndolou was appointed to replace Lekoundzou as Minister to the Presidency in charge of National Defense on 18 August 2002; Ndolou succeeded Lekoundzou in that position on 21 August. Lekoundzou was then chosen as President of the Parliamentary Group of the Presidential Majority on 24 August 2002.
Factionalism and political activities in the 2000s
Leading the conservative faction of the PCT, Lekoundzou opposed moves by the reformist faction in the party, led by PCT Secretary-General Ambroise NoumazalayeAmbroise Noumazalaye
Ambroise Édouard Noumazalaye was a Congolese politician who was Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo from 1966 to 1968, under President Alphonse Massamba-Débat. Later in life he served as Secretary-General of the Congolese Labour Party and was a supporter of President Denis Sassou Nguesso...
, to transform it into a broader party in the mid-2000s. In doing so, he was apparently also at odds with President Sassou Nguesso, who favored the reform initiative. Lekoundzou and his supporters dominated the PCT Central Committee, while Noumazalaye and his supporters dominated the Political Bureau; their differing visions for the future of the party produced an extended round of intra-party squabbling.
On 31 January 2006, Lekoundzou was flown to France for emergency medical treatment due to a "cerebral affliction", while one of his aides also fell ill; some suspected that they were victims of poisoning. Although it was widely believed that Lekoundzou would die, he survived and returned home to a hero's welcome later in 2006. His return initiated an escalation of the intra-party dispute; trying to gain the upper hand, Lekoundzou called for a party congress, and his faction held its own congress in October 2006. The situation was at least superficially resolved by December 2006, when a party congress involving both factions was held; Lekoundzou was elected to the Political Bureau, but the power of the conservatives in general was weakened. In an early 2007 interview, Sassou Nguesso said that Lekoundzou, who had been living in France for some months, was there for health reasons as far as he knew, not as a result of any bitterness between them.
Together with Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya
Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya
Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya was a Congolese politician. He was briefly Acting Head of State of the Republic of the Congo in February 1979 and was President of the National Assembly of the Republic of the Congo from 2002 to 2007...
, the President of the National Assembly, Lekoundzou (who was still President of the Parliamentary Group of the Presidential Majority, but was out of the country due to illness) sent a letter to President Sassou Nguesso on 24 March 2007. In this letter, Lekoundzou and Tchicaya urged the establishment of an independent national electoral commission to oversee the 2007 parliamentary election
Republic of the Congo parliamentary election, 2007
A parliamentary election was held in the Republic of the Congo on 24 June 2007, with a second round initially planned for 22 July 2007, but then postponed to 5 August 2007. According to the National Commission of the Organization of the Elections , 1,807 candidates stood in the first round for 137...
. The members of the Presidential Majority Parliamentary Group were critical of the approach employed by Lekoundzou and Tchicaya, however.
Lekoundzou was still in France due to illness when the June 2007 parliamentary election was held, but he nevertheless stood for re-election to the National Assembly as the PCT candidate in Boundji constituency. Although he was unable to campaign, he was easily re-elected; he won his seat in the first round with 68.82% of the vote.
As part of his opposition to the "renovation" of the PCT, Lekoundzou founded the "Marien Ngouabi and Ethics" Association; this association has had a difficult relationship with the rest of the PCT and the authorities. The association's spokesman, Jean-Pierre Lokénia, was arrested on 6 May 2008, and in response, Lekoundzou—who was ill and being treated 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:...
, Benin
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...
—said that he was considering returning to Congo to take Lokénia's place as a prisoner. His wife, Emilienne Lekoundzou, said that the association was founded only as a means of organizing PCT conservatives and was not hostile to the government; she also said that Lekoundzou had obtained Sassou Nguesso's approval before founding the association.