Mahamane Ousmane

Mahamane Ousmane ( born January 20, 1950 in Zinder ) is a Nigerien politician. He was 1993-1996 President of Niger.

Political career

He studied in France and Canada financial and economic science. In 1980 he returned to Niger. Following the decision of President Ali Saibou to introduce a multi-party system, Ousmane founded in January 1991, the Social Democratic Party and Social Democratic Assembly ( CDS Rahama ).

President

Ousmane was a candidate for the party CDS Rahama in the presidential election of 1993, the first free since independence from France on August 3, 1960. During the first round of voting on 27 February 1993, he was with 26.59 % of the vote, second only to the later President Tandja Mamadou. With 54.42 % he won on March 27 in the second round and was the successor to the ruling since 1987 president Ali Saibou. He was the first members of the ethnic group of the Hausa in this office. His predecessors had all been Zarma. Problems of his tenure were the weakening economy and a conflict with the Tuareg, with whom he signed a peace agreement on 24 April 1995. In the parliamentary elections on 12 January 1995 his party won only 24 of the 83 seats and the second place and he called the opposition leader Hama Amadou as Prime Minister. As a result, both blocked each other. A military coup led by Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara finished both tenure on 27 January 1996. A while both were in prison.

More career

On July 7, 1996 and on the following day presidential elections were held again, where incumbent Maïnassara was elected on the first ballot with 52.22 % of votes. Ousmane reached the second place, again followed by Tandja Mamadou with 15.65% with 19.75%. The elections were described by observers as rigged. President Maïnassara had been killed in a coup again on 7 April 1999 and Ousmane competed in the elections on 17 October 1999, a second time to the Presidency. This time he reached on the first ballot with 22.51 % only the third place and retired. In the second ballot he supported Tandja Mamadou. In November of this won the runoff election and became the new president.

In the parliamentary elections on 24 November 1999 his party won 17 of the 83 seats. Ousmane took over the office of President of the National Assembly. Also in the next presidential elections on 16 November 2004, he took up and finished with 17.43 % back in third place. Incumbent Tandja Mamadou won again in the runoff election in December. In the parliamentary elections, the CDS Rahama won 22 of 122 seats now.

On 15 January 2004 he became president of the company founded in 1976 Committee for the Human Rights of Parliamentarians of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Geneva. In October 2012 the Ousmane of Niger Council of the Republic began its work, according to the Constitution as a former State Minister belongs.