Prime Minister of Dahomey, but Apithy was not going to listen to his demands. Maga was chosen as a compromise for the premiership and was voted into this post on May 22, 1959. Independence and dissent On August 1, 1960 Dahomey gained its independence and Maga became its first president. Shortly after independence, the three parties united into the "Patriotic Action Front" and redistricted Dahomey into one electoral constituency. Under this system, they would provide a list of candidates of whom whoever received a majority would win all legislative seats. It did not last long; soon, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin broke from the union and, using the discontent among people over the increasing rarity of jobs in the country, incited demonstrations. In September 1960 he claimed that a single-party state was the only solution to the stagnation of the economy; since he had just broken from one, he was looking for another party to be led by him. Meanwhile, Maga made Houphouët-Boigny recognise the RDD as the Dahomeyan wing of his African Democratic Rally. Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin had always believed that the UDD was the sole representative of the Rally. At the end of September Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin convinced the trade unions that he owned to begin another strike for Maga's inability to promote national development and ensure the welfare of the working class. The strike, which existed in Dahomey's capital of Porto-Novo and its largest city of Cotonou, became so serious that police forces used tear gas and ended when Maga sent down some faithful Northerners, carrying around bows and arrows and patrolling the streets at night. At the same time members of the UDD organised a motion of censure in the National Assembly. Maga relied on Apithy for help in opposing the motion, and it was ultimately rejected. Right after the motion was rejected, UDD deputies began quitting their jobs. They were in turn replaced by deputies of the PRD Shortly after this the PRD and RDD merged to form the Dahomeyan Unity Party (PDU) and Maga was naturally elected its leader. On December 11, Maga was formally elected president and Apithy vice president. In the parliamentary elections the PDU received 69% of the vote and UDD 31%, although it was not represented in the National Assembly. Maga assassination plot On May 26 Information Minister Albert Tévoédjrè notified Maga that Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin had plotted to assassinate the president but he and 11 other dissidents had been