In normal democracy, candidate Abdelkader Bengrina, would have already resigned due to the terrible popularity he has been facing. But in Algeria, it is about pleasing a half dozen generals, in particular their bosses, General Gaid Salah. On the ground, there is no pleasing. Of all of the five candidates handpicked by the military, none of them is able to garner any interest from voters, except to yell at them and chase them out of town. The entire population, across all segments, generations, income level, gender and political positions, has been rejecting all of them on the ground that the election planned by the military command is a shame election aimed at replicating a Bouteflika-style system.
Among the five is Bengrina, the Islamist-conservative candidate for the election scheduled 12 December, spent this Monday, 25 November being chased by populations in all the towns where he tried to campaign. He has been facing growing hostility since the launch of his campaign on 17 November. In just a single day, he was booed and chased in no less than three provinces. He began his day with a visit to the city of Lakhdaria in Bouira province, but once he arrived there, he met dozens of protesters who ask him to move on and leave their city. Approaching the population, the candidate was greeted by anti-election slogans. Surrounded from all sides, the candidate eventually left the scene under heavy security to prevent lynching from taking place. The protesters continued to follow him to his car to ensure that he leaves their town.
The incident in Lakhdaria was repeated two hours later in Bordj Aghredir in the Bordj Bou Arreridj province. Stopping in this highland locality, the candidate’s presence quickly provoked the anger of the population, who also demanded that he leaves their town. Several people approached him to advised him to withdraw from the electoral race. The security services struggled to contain the crowds.
The same drama followed the candidate to the city of Barika in Batna province. There, a large crowd organized a march through the streets of the city at the end of the afternoon to prevent Bengrina from entering their town. The vehicles carrying Bengrina’s delegation struggled to move among the angry population.
The Bengrina drama is the same for all the other candidates. It is an Algerian drama made possible by the insistence of a handful of army generals and their sponsors in Europe and in the Gulf who want to reproduce the same system that bankrupted Algeria and the southern Mediterranean region for decades.
