Mauritania on Thursday witnessed the first handover of power between two elected presidents, with former general Mohamed Ould El Ghazouani sworn in to replace his friend and comrade Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.

The new Mauritanian president was inaugurated by the President of the Constitutional Council during an official ceremony at the Mourabitoun Palace near Nouakchott after winning the presidential election on 22 June with the support of his predecessor.

"I swear by God Almighty to perform my functions faithfully and fully, and to respect them, while respecting the Constitution and the laws of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, to respect the interests of the Mauritanian people, to preserve the independence and sovereignty of the country," Ould El-Ghazouani, 62, And the unity of the homeland and its land possession. "

Mauritania has never known a rotation of power between two elected presidents. A military coup in 2008 led by then-generals Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz and Mohamed Ould El Ghazouani ended a democratic experiment that brought the first civilian president to power through the ballot box.

Presence and absence
The lack of Arab representation and the absence of Arab leaders were the most important manifestations of the international presence of the inauguration. The official Arab presence was limited to officials of varying ranks. The head of the Moroccan government, Sa'd al-Din al-Othmani, attended the inauguration ceremony, while Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi sent an Egyptian general to represent him at the inauguration ceremony. And the UAE and Bahrain to send eminent figures of advisers and members of government, while no invitation was made to Qatar because Nouakchott cut its relations with Doha.

The only Arab president present was the President of the Sahrawi Republic, which is not recognized by most Arab countries and most of the world.

The absence of the Arab was not without resentment and anger from the Mauritanian bloggers, who saw it as a continuing disdain for Mauritania, which also bears the name of the southern gate of the Arab world.

While absence and weak Arab representation were noticeable, 11 African presidents attended, mostly from neighboring countries, and the Europeans were also represented by a low representation of officials, deputy ministers and advisers.

Absence and attendance
Not only were the Arab and European leaders absent, but they also included four former opposition candidates for the president-elect, who have not yet recognized the election results.

Although this move seems to be important for the consolidation of democratic practice and the consolidation of the principle of the two presidential mandates enshrined in the Constitution, the absence of opposition candidates has been a continuation of a syndrome that has shaped the democratic process since its inception here three decades ago.

Consultations by the ruling majority with second-ranked candidate Peram Ould Abid have not succeeded in adjusting his position and bypassing what he and candidates opposed to a young rig say are electoral processes.

Sources close to the committee overseeing the inauguration ceremony said they had invited the opposition, but the latter decided, for political reasons, to boycott the inauguration of Mauritania's third civil president.

In the absence of opposition candidates and leaders of their main parties, such as the presence of some of the deputies of the National Rally for Reform and Development (Tariq) Islamic Party - the largest opposition parties in parliament - what may be considered a meaningful message on the nature of the relationship between the majority and the opposition in the coming days.

Pledges of the new president
In his speech at the inauguration ceremony, the new Mauritanian president pledged to promote justice, to be president of all Mauritanians and to achieve a comprehensive development renaissance in the country.

He said that the winner of these elections is the Mauritanian people by expressing political maturity and promoting the consolidation of democracy.

Ould Ghazouani stressed his intention to strengthen channels of communication with all political parties, whether through the parties or the democratic opposition organization, noting that he would be "open to the entire political spectrum."

He pointed out that the work to strengthen the national cohesion will be a priority, pointing out that it will work firmly on the unity of belonging and destiny and the value of the joint. He also praised the respect of his predecessor, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, of the constitution, which prohibits the candidacy for a third term.

A farewell speech
Former Mauritanian President Ould Abdel Aziz said the Mauritanians had chosen to consolidate the gains made during his tenure by electing Ould El Ghazouani, adding that his successor had great morals and had a wide experience at the local and international levels to help him run the country.

The number of the child Abdel Aziz achievements that he said it was achieved in his reign, and explained that the situation of Mauritania has changed since he took power, stressing that the country has witnessed major developments during his rule.

He affirmed that he has established a reconciled Mauritania with itself and its human heritage, firmly stands against extremism, is victorious over terrorism, and contributes to peacekeeping in the region within the group of the five Sahel countries.

French .. again
The lengthy speech by Constitutional Council President Gallo Amadou Bhatia sparked heated debate among Mauritanians over the insistence of the country's top constitutional authority on his speech in French, while many bloggers dismissed it as a clear violation of the constitution, which states that Arabic is the official language of the country.

With the birth of Abdel Aziz from power and the entry of Ould El Ghazouani into the "gray palace", a new era of government and power is beginning in Mauritania, which some say represents a unique and perhaps strange experience in the Arab world that reinforces the democratic experience and smooth transition of power in the country.

However, others believe that what is happening in depth is a continuation of the dominance of the military establishment in various parts of the government, and continuing to the same class that ruled Mauritania since 2005.