Testimony on the relationship between Chadli and El -Ghazali

Late president Chadli Benjedid passed away discreetly without hailing goodbye. The man kept away from the frenzy of the political life and the hypocrisy of its worshipers convinced that politics is harmful and politician corrupt.

• Being close to him for six years long, I can testify that he was always avoiding conferring with officials except his friends from the revolutionary period. He died, but his foes who were insulting him openly or secretly, were paying tribute to him at the cemetery out of hypocrisy or looking forward to return to the political spotlights.

• Chadli Benjedid left this world with dignity not looking for revenge or squaring up with anyone. He died keeping in the bottom of his heart one word” Algeria” with its achievements and setbacks.

• I will not delve in the secrets of the late president that accompanied him to his grave, but just shed light on some achievements including his close relationship with the late Egyptian religious scholar Mohammed El –Ghazali.

• “I can, state that I’m the first who thought of building a high standard religious education system in Algeria. I found it necessary to prepare a new generation of religious elite open to modernity in order to cleanse up our religion from its charlatanism that engulfed it a long period of obscurantism”, he said.

• Chadli Benjedid felt the danger that was looming on the horizon with the emergence of the extremists from both the Islamic and the so called leftist sides regardless of their trends. The late president was aware that religion will be used for political purposes.

• The project was a kind of an adventure especially that Algeria was lacking religious scholars then. The president decided to build the University of Islamic Science in the province of Constantine, eastern Algeria.

• The university has been inaugurated in 1984 and it was decide to appoint the Egyptian scholar Mohamed El- Ghazali as its head after thorough discussions with the doctor Ahmed Taleb El Ibrahimi and the late Mouloud kacem Nait Belkacem.

• Chadli Ben Djedid intensified his meeting with the scholar and used to delve in lengthy conversations with El- Ghazali concerning religious matters. He was very keen on listening to the story of the prophet David.

• The late president used to talk about Mohammed El Ghazali saying” El- Ghazali is too famous to be introduced, he masters perfectly all the issues pertaining to religion, he has always followed a moderate path”.

• Bendjedid was keen on following El Ghazali’s preaches the Algerian TV used to air during the holly month of Ramadan. The lectures were a formidable opportunity for the Algerian people to know about the sound principles of their religion.

• When illness took over him, the scholar humbly asked from the president to let him return to his home country after advising him to appoint his fellow citizen Youcef Al Karadhaoui to replace him in his post.

• One day, the president asked him about his salary but the scholar uneasily replied “Please M president I don’t like talking with you on those issues”. He was, as the president said, a humble and honest man.

• Besides, he was very funny and jovial like all the Egyptians, the president added.