Hugues Ngouélondélé is a Congolese politician who was Mayor of Brazzaville from 2003 to 2017. He also served as a Deputy in the National Assembly of Congo-Brazzaville beginning in 2002. He has served in the government as Minister of Sports since 2017.
Ngouélondélé is a son of General Emmanuel Ngouelondélé, who was a leading figure in the regime of President Denis Sassou Nguesso prior to 1992.[1] Hugues Ngouelondélé graduated from the Marien Ngouabi University in Brazzaville with a degree in law in 1983 and subsequently studied in Algeria, France, and Belgium.[2] He worked in the customs administration[1] and represented Congo-Brazzaville at the World Customs Organization in March 1999.[2]
In the May - June 2002 parliamentary election, he was elected to the National Assembly as an independent candidate in the second constituency of Moungali, located in Brazzaville;[2] [3] he won the seat in a second round of voting.[3] In June 2002, he was elected as a municipal councillor in Brazzaville at the head of an independent candidate list in Moungali.[2] He then became Mayor of Brazzaville in February 2003,[2] [4] succeeding Benoît Moundélé-Ngollo.[4]
In the June 2007 parliamentary election, Ngouélondélé was again elected to the National Assembly as an independent candidate in Moungali II constituency; he won the seat in the first round with 50.20% of the vote.[5] Following the 29 June 2008 local elections, Ngouelondélé was re-elected as Mayor of Brazzaville by the city council on 30 July 2008. Nicéphore de Saint Eudes Fylla unsuccessfully challenged him for the position.[6]
Although his father became a determined opponent of Sassou Nguesso during the multi-party era, Ngouélondélé has remained loyal to Sassou Nguesso.[1] He married Ninelle Nguesso, a daughter of Sassou Nguesso, while his sister Michèle married Sassou Nguesso's nephew Edgar.[2]
In the July - August 2012 parliamentary election, Ngouelondélé was a candidate in Gamboma - a constituency located in Plateaux Department, rather than Brazzaville - where he faced an opposition leader, Mathias Dzon.[7] Standing as the candidate of the Congolese Labour Party (PCT) in Gamboma I constituency, Ngouelondélé was elected in the first round with 54.88% of the vote.[8]
Standing as a PCT candidate, Ngouelondélé was elected as a local councillor in Moungali in the September 2014 local elections.[9] He was re-elected for another five-year term as Mayor, without opposition, by the city council on 23 October 2014.[10] [11] He received 92 votes from the 100 councilors who voted.[11]
In the July 2017 parliamentary election, Ngouelondélé stood unopposed as a candidate in the first constituency of Gamboma, with no other candidates standing in the constituency.[12] Following the election, Sassou Nguesso appointed Ngouelondélé to the government as Minister of Sports and Physical Education on 22 August 2017.[13] [14] Christian Roger Okemba was elected to succeed Ngouelondélé as Mayor of Brazzaville on 24 August 2017.[15]