Rumors ran, questions began to arise. On April 20, 2021, the news of the death of Idriss Déby was announced by a group of soldiers who appeared on television: the CMT, the Transitional Military Council, headed by Mahamat Idriss Déby, the son of the deceased president. The creation of this council, responsible for preserving the stability and permanence of the power in place, took place between April 19 and 20, following discussions between the major figures of the regime. Back in this third part of our investigation into the discussions that led to the reorganization of Chadian power.
It is 1:15 p.m. on Tuesday, April 20, 2021, when fifteen generals in sandy fatigues appear on Chadian television. Three men step out of line. The one approaching the microphone is Brigadier General Azem Bermandoa Agouna, spokesman for the army. He reads the press release announcing the death of Idriss Déby, following wounds received at the front. To his right, a modestly sized man with youthful features and small glasses. General Mahamat Idriss Déby takes the head of the Transitional Military Council (CMT). He is the son of the deceased. To his left, the large and massive stature of Major General Djimadoum Tiraina, Minister Delegate for Defense at the time of the events. He becomes the vice-president of the CMT.
The Marshal of Chad has been dead for more than a day. All Monday, the rumor circulated in the circles of power that he had been injured, but without worrying too much: ” in my generation, we have all been injured several times, we all have memories “, explains a former fierce adversary of Idriss Déby who has become his adviser, “iThere was indeed a large deployment around the presidential guard and the palace, but the city was very calm, there was no sign of panic ». « We heard that, but we had no confirmation “says a diplomat. Returning from Sarh, the President of the National Assembly, Haroun Kabadi, also notes ” tanks deployed between the airport and the presidency, but returns home without being overly moved by it.
However, the tone changed in the followingnoon. Responsible for acting as head of state in the event of a power vacuum, Haroun Kabadi was first informed that the president was ” returns without further details. In the evening, he is asked to come to the presidency. ” I am first told that he is injured, then in the night, his son Abdelkerim informs me of his death.. “ Abdelkerim Idriss Déby, known as “Kerimo”, was then the deputy director of his father’s cabinet, he was at the forefront of the transition that was taking shape. He is still, a year later, a central player since he has remained with his brother. He received RFI at the presidency for a few moments. He prefers to dodge questions on the subject “ so as not to blur the message regarding action in the present and the future ».
► To read also, the first part of our investigation: Chad: the last days of Marshal Idriss Deby
Mahamat Idriss Déby summarized the facts in November 2021 on France 24: “ Arriving in Ndjamena, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (General Daoud) informed the President of the Assembly. He asked her to come and take up her constitutional responsibilities. Which he obviously refused, taking into account the war situation in our country. He judged that it was not appropriate for a civilian to preside over the destinies of the country. The power vacuum is in any case noted by the President of the Supreme Court, Samir Adam Annour, who saw the body of the deceased. He did not respond to our requests.
« I didn’t want a security vacuum, with the war 300 km from here. Glory and 90 days in power seemed very little in the face of the risk of the country tipping over. »
Haroun Kabadi
A year later, Haroun Kabadi, now president of the National Transitional Council (which acts as a provisional parliament), supports this version. The one who is also the secretary general of the Patriotic Salvation Movement, the party of the late Idriss Déby, assures that he himself made the decision to withdraw: “ I was insulted, called a coward, but I did it by choice, faced with an exceptional situation. No one forced me, no one put a gun to my head. In this sequence, it was above all necessary to preserve the fighting spirit of the soldiers faced with the loss of their supreme leader. I didn’t want a security vacuum, with the war 300 kilometers away. Glory and 90 days in power seemed very little in the face of the risk of the country tipping over. And the facts proved me right since the troops remained mobilized and the war was won. »
Other interlocutors close to power stress that he had no other solution than to step aside. ” It was impossible to have a civilian president who had control over the military. You mightn’t put someone who never fired a shot when the war was 300 kilometers away. Sometimes reality trumps principle said an official bluntly, according to whom, in reality, it was the Chief of the Defense Staff, General Daoud, ” who managed everything, from the evacuation of the body to the organization of the transition ».
A list of fifteen generals to lead the transition
While Haroun Kabadi chooses to prioritize ” the principle of reality on the right “, a group of soldiers of the first circle and members of the clan has actually been hard at work for several hours to ” limit the damage », reduce the risks that the end of Idriss Déby creates for the country and for themselves. According to our information, there are Generals Taher Erda, a faithful thirty-year-old who heads military intelligence, Djimadoum Tiraina, now vice-president of the CMT, Bichara Issa Djadallah, the Marshal’s special chief of staff (a position that he found with his son), and Ahmat Youssouf Mahamat Itno, a nephew of the Head of State. Mahamat Idriss Déby and the Chief of Staff, General Daoud, who had returned to Ndjamena during the day, joined them, while at the same time their troops ensured the military victory over Fact in Kanem.
They put together a list of fifteen generals, called upon to lead the transition, which they submit to the President of the Assembly: “ I saw the list and told them not to touch it, because I felt that these people trusted each other “Said Haroun Kabadi today.
The ” trust is the term used by several players in this transition to justify the choice of Mahamat Idriss Déby as president of this CMT. ” He knows his men, he is respected said one of them, it was the natural choice ». « He had the advantage of being a soldier who knew the terrain, of having family ties within several ethnic groups (his mother is a Gorane) and of being presentable to partners in the country. “Summarizes a local academic. In fact, having served in Mali with the Chadian contingent gives “Kaka”, the nickname he inherited following being raised by his paternal grandmother, credit with France, underlines an adviser to the presidency, who brushes the glowing portrait of a man generous, balanced, frugal and pious ».
Outside the palace on the evening of Monday 19, MPS activists await the arrival of their champion, whom the Electoral Commission has just announced re-elected for a sixth term with 79.32% of the vote. ” It was there that we found it strange not to see him, that we understood that something was happening », a foreign diplomat recalls today.
► To (re)read: Presidential election in Chad: Idriss Déby re-elected in the first round, according to the provisional results
Results like a last posthumous legitimation? ” It’s possible “, creaks one of his opponents in the ballot. ” The Ceni people had no idea what was going on », Assures for his part a minister. Be that as it may, these provisional results will never be endorsed by the Supreme Court. They therefore have no legal value and should have led to the organization of a new election. But power is already in the hands of the military. In the early morning, the other members of the CMT, informed of their cooptation by telephone, present themselves in uniform. The communiqué is read to Chadians on the national media, the Constitution is suspended, the government and the Assembly dissolved, elections are promised within 18 months. Until then and in the hypothetical keeping of the deadlines, it is always a Déby who will preside over the destinies of the Chadians.
► « Death of Idriss Déby: investigation into the great enigma » is an investigation coordinated by François Mazet and Florence Morice, with Franck Alexandre, Madjiasra Nako and Esdras Ndikumana.
