Algeria’s Supreme Court on Monday ordered the arrest of two former ministers over suspected corruption charges under former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, reported Reuters.
Abdelghani Zaalane, former public works and transport minister, and Mohamed El Ghazi, ex-labor minister, are the two latest senior figures who have been detained. The corruption probe follows with the protesters’ demand for the prosecution of people involved in corruption and the departure of the ruling elite.
According to the state television, a Supreme Court judge ordered their detention over charges including “intentional waste of public property.”
Zaalane served as minister from May 2017 to March 2019. He was also appointed as Bouteflika’s campaign manager for the presidential election planned for April this year. The longstanding president was forced to forego his reelection bid due to mass public protests and pressure from the army. El Ghazi was in charge of the labor ministry from May 2014 to May 2017.
Even after Bouteflika’s stepping down, the Algerians have continued to protest across the country calling for a complete overhaul of the country’s political system. They are demanding that all Bouteflika-era officials accused of corruption must step down.
Last week, interim President Abdelkader Bensalah abruptly sacked Algeria’s justice minister, Slimane Brahmi. The minister’s ouster came amid the ongoing corruption probes. In June, the country’s Supreme Court also placed ex-prime ministers Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellak in custody over alleged corruption. Several senior figures, including eight government ministers, also appeared in court on suspicion of corruption in May.
Late last month, the interim President appointed a panel to begin a dialogue with the opposition with the aim of eventually holding a presidential election. But, protesters are not ready for any dialogue until Bensalah, a former head of the upper house of parliament, and Prime Minister Noureddine Bedoui, whom they regard as close to Bouteflika, step down from their posts.
No new date has been set for a presidential election in Algeria.
