 In 1978, president Ali Soilih, who had a firm anti-French line, was killed and Ahmed Abdallah came to power.Under the reign of Abdallah, Denard was commander of the Presidential Guard (PG) and "de facto" ruler of the country.He was trained, supported and funded by the white regimes in South Africa (SA) and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in return for permission to set up a secret listening post on the islands.