Dominique Aplogan (April 25, 1913 – November 3, 1989) was a

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

ese physician and

political figure A politician is a person who participates in policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles or duties tha ...

most active when his country was known as

Dahomey The Kingdom of Dahomey () was a West African List of kingdoms in Africa throughout history, kingdom located within present-day Benin that existed from approximately 1600 until 1904. It developed on the Abomey Plateau amongst the Fon people in ...

Biography

Dominique Aplogan was born on April 25, 1913, in

Abomey Agbome or Abomey is the capital of the Zou Department of Benin. The commune of Abomey covers an area of 142 square kilometres and, as of 2012, had a population of 90,195 people. Abomey houses the Royal Palaces of Abomey, a collection of small tr ...

to an influential chiefly family. He attended William Ponty school in

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

and subsequently became a physician. Moving back to Dahomey to practice his profession, Dominique Aplogan quickly entered politics. He ran under the label of the

Dahomeyan Progressive Union The Dahomeyean Progressive Union (, UPD) was a political party in Dahomey. History The party was established in April 1946 by Augustin Kokou Azango and Émile Derlin Zinsou, and was the first political party in the territory.Patrick Manning (2 ...

for the first Territorial Council elections of his country and was elected on January 5, 1947. He failed to be re-elected in

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, ...

but became Deputy in 1959 for the last legislative elections under French supervision before the independence of Dahomey. In the meantime, he was

Émile Poisson Émile Poisson (25 May 1905 in Ouidah, Dahomey – 4 June 1999 in Paris) was a politician from Benin who served in the French Senate from 1947 to 1955. He was a Multiracial people, métis. Prior to election to the French Senate he had been a s ...

’s running mate, leader of the list of the African People's Bloc, in the French legislative elections of 1951 but both lost out to

Sourou-Migan Apithy Sourou-Migan Marcellin Joseph Apithy (8 April 1913 – 3 December 1989) was a Beninese political figure most active when his country was known as Dahomey. He arose on a political scene where one's power was dictated by what region in Dahomey one ...

of the List of the French Union and

Hubert Maga Hubert Coutoucou Maga (August 10, 1916 – May 8, 2000) was a politician from Dahomey (now known as Benin). Born a peasant in 1916, Maga served as a schoolmaster from 1936 to 1945, during which time he gradually gained considerable influence among ...

of the

Ethnic Group of the North The Dahomeyan Democratic Movement (, MDD) was a political party in French Dahomey. History The MDD was established in northern Dahomey by Hubert Maga in 1951 as the Ethnic Group of the North (''Groupement Ethnique du Nord'', GEN). Maga had prev ...

who became the two deputies of Dahomey at the

French National Assembly The National Assembly (, ) is the lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral French Parliament under the French Fifth Republic, Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (France), Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known ...

. Despite his political commitment, Dominique Aplogan never stopped practicing his professional activity and was promoted on March 28, 1962, as chief physician of the Cotonou medical district. A few months later, Hubert Maga asked him to join his government, first as Secretary of State in charge of African and Malagasy Affairs on November 16, 1962, then as Minister of Posts and Telecommunications from September 11 to October 28, 1963 when Colonel Christophe Soglo took control of the country to prevent a civil war. The latter appointed him, on March 30, 1967, Minister delegated to the President in charge of Defence, then on May 16 of the same year, Minister of Transport and Posts and Telecommunications until a new military putsch on December 17, 1967. Dominique Aplogan was replaced by Captain Issa Raïmi Lawani. Dominique Aplogan died on November 3, 1989.

Awards and honors

BEN National Order of Dahomey - Officer BAR

Officer of the National Order of Dahomey * BEN National Order of Dahomey - Grand Officer BAR

Grand Officer of the National Order of Dahomey

Notes

Footnotes

References

Websites

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Law

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Books

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aplogan, Dominique 1913 births 1989 deaths Government ministers of Benin 20th-century Beninese politicians People of French West Africa