Background and 1970 election On December 10, 1969,
Émile Derlin Zinsou was overthrown by
Maurice Kouandété, who had installed him as president in the first place. The military, however, refused to recognize Kouandété, and as the two men could not reach agreement, a Military Directorate was established with
Paul-Émile de Souza as its chairman. An election was held on March 28, 1970, to determine the true president. On this occasion, the triumvirate was allowed to campaign, and they did not miss the chance. It was also marked by a series of violent outbursts; invalidated reports state that six people were killed or wounded at incidents in Parakou on the eve of the elections. Fellow candidate Zinsou asserted that Maga supporters had killed one of his supporters during said incidents. These charges did not affect Maga's standing in the polls; he received a majority of the vote in the north, and Apithy and Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin received a majority in the southeast and southwest/central, respectively. In the entire south, Maga received 24,000 votes compared to the 180,000 who voted for him in the
Borgou Department, obtaining 97.3 percent of the 78 percent turnout. Zinsou, running to counter the constant tribal clashes, received 3 percent, with 17,551 votes. Outraged, Maga formed the Assembly of the Peoples of the North, which threatened to secede unless he was declared president. He refused to leave his campaign headquarters at Parakou even to attend political meetings. Maga's reaction to the nullification prompted many southern workers to flee the north. explaining that he rejected the idea of a coalition "for personal reasons". The other former presidents, on the other hand, agreed to a hasty compromise on April 13 to prevent a civil war. Each man agreed to not use the military to extend their term or use any other means toward that consequence. If decisions were not unanimous during the first round of voting, a two councilman majority would suffice on the second round. The council served as the executive and legislative branch of Dahomey. Maga's economic policies during his chairmanship helped quiet union leaders whose protests during his presidency had been intense. He helped create a tax plan that would finance their salaries By decree of Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin and the rest of the council, Togolese opposition leader
Noe Kutuklui was officially expelled from Dahomey on October 27, 1971, where he had been practicing law since the late 1960s. It was at the request of General
Étienne Eyadéma, president of Togo, as Kutuklui had been involved in several plots against Eyadema's military government. The council's decision to extradite him spurred demonstrations in Cotonou. Maga was unable to carry out his decision; Alphonse Alley protected Kutuklui and took him to an unknown place outside of Dahomey. Col. Alley received no punishment whatsoever for his role in the Affair. The military was also aroused. The formation of a presidential council only further enraged the army. Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin was ambushed while traveling to a rally in Abomey on May 7, 1971. Maga initially denied its existence, and to this day details are unclear. An artillery camp at
Ouidah was the location of another military uprising on January 28, 1972. The president sent two officers to overpower the rebels although no punishment was undertaken. Both Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin and Maga believed that the latter incident was an attempted coup. Kouandété attempted to usurp power again at dawn on February 23. When he first heard of the mutiny, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin believed that it was an attempt by Maga to remain in power. A 12-member military commission would soon discover another plot, that would have been undertaken simultaneous to Kouandété's. The recent events epitomised the council's "fear and contempt" for the military.
Under Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin Maga transferred power to Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin on May 7, 1972. This was the first time in 12 years that the head of Dahomey was succeeded in a nonmilitary fashion. The new chairman congratulated Maga and praised the triumvirate as "one of
Dahomey's most beneficial institutions." It was believed that the triumvirate would continually undermine each other, and the simple transition of power was viewed as a positive step toward Dahomeyan unity. The punishments were announced on May 16. Kouandété received the death penalty, as did Captains Josué and Glélé, Quartermaster Sergeant Agboton, and a corporal and a sergeant
in absentia. Lesser sentences were handed to five men who were given life imprisonment, two who would serve 20 years in prison, another with 15 years, two with ten, and two with five. An additional four were acquitted. The sentences were never carried out; the jurors believed that Kouandété would seize power in another coup. One of the most notable aspects of Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin's time in power was the Kovacs Affair. It began with
Pascal Chabi Kao being given a monopoly over selling official stationery to the Presidential Council and spread to claims of bribery and embezzlement. Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin tried to fire Chabi Kao, but Maga, who was Chabi Kao's mentor, refused. Maga convinced Apithy to help and the bill was vetoed. , who overthrew the Presidential Council in 1972, in a 2006 photograph Another coup was launched by soldiers of the Ouidah garrison on October 26. Kérékou had served as Maga's aide-de-camp in 1961. According to reports at the scene, soldiers abruptly arrived in the Cabinet room of the presidential palace and started firing bullets, but no one was injured. Maga, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin, and Apithy spent more than nine years in prison before being freed by Kérékou in 1981. ==Later life and death==