VZCZCXRO5066
PP RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHRY #0108 0421508
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 111508Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY CONAKRY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2154
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE

UNCLAS CONAKRY 000108 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PREL ASEC GV
SUBJECT: EDUCATION MINISTER IS GUINEA,S NEW OFFICIAL 
GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON 
 
 
¶1.  (U) Over national radio on February 7, Prime Minister 
Lansana Kouyate announced that the Minister of Education, 
Ousmane Souare, is the Guinean Government,s new official 
spokesperson.  The former Minister of Communication, Justin 
Morel Jr., served in that capacity until he was dismissed by 
President Lansana Conte in early January.  In the interim, 
the Minister of Economic Control has been filling in as the 
spokesperson. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶2.  (SBU) It is not necessarily unusual that the official 
Government spokesperson be someone other than the Minister of 
Communication - only one of the last five spokespersons was 
actually the Communications Minister.  However, the 
spokesperson has traditionally been someone hand picked to 
deliver the president's message.  The PM,s decision to 
appoint the Minister of Education as the official 
spokesperson, after Conte appointed a new Minister of 
Communications, suggests that the PM is looking for an 
alternative means for getting his message out.  The Minister 
of Education happens to be one of two union members in the 
current cabinet (the other is the Minister of Labor).  He is 
also Peuhl and Kouyate has been criticized for favoring his 
own ethnic Malinke group over other Guinean ethnic 
backgrounds.  When the PAO met with the new Communications 
Minister, Issa Conde, last week (septel), Conde seemed to 
want to downplay any significance in Kouyate,s decision.  At 
the same time, Conde appeared evasive and uncomfortable with 
the question, suggesting that the appointment may be more 
important than he wanted to let on.  END COMMENT. 
CARTER