Since February, Algerians have waged a steady popular revolt against former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and an opaque group of power-brokers that have run the country since its independence from France in 1962.
On August 22, former minister of justice Tayeb Louh appeared before the new Minister of Justice Belkacem Zeghmati for an examination into charges of corruption. Zeghmati is one of the rising stars of Algeria’s post-Bouteflika regime. He replaced the most recent minister of justice Slimane Brahimi, after the latter's removal from power by Algeria’s Interim President Abdelkader Bensalah.
In the grip of revolutionary times, he was renamed as Prosecutor General of Algiers on May 16, before being appointed as Minister of Justice on July 31. “There’s something different in the air here. Only a year ago, it was all connections and friendships. You’d never be able to apply for anything without a phone call, and possibly a bribe. We had a case where a mayor would call up a housing and development commissar, and ask him to set aside 100 housing units for himself. If he had sold them, he’d be a billionaire,” says Amin, a self-described member of an anonymous civilian investigative task force that researches former corruption.
As their roster grows, larger portions of Algeria are technically represented in what many expect could eventually give rise to a form of people’s assembly. With it, comes incredible clout and a large voting bloc that could convince their local voters to choose any given candidate.