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 “Knitting Our Social Worries in One Story”: A Review of Francis B. Nyamnjoh’s Souls Forgotten
By Nixon K. Takor* (Mphil Research Student), ASC- University of Leiden
 Is Nyamnjoh a sociologist or novelist? This enquiry among others has lingered in the minds of many who happen to stumble on any of his works. Track him along any genre of scholarship, leave him with any academic trade mark, he in my opinion is just a social pedagogue who has the uphill task to film society as it is, query it to expose the invisible, at times visible but unspeakable and unthinkable facets of human society. Nyamnjoh does this in different ways depending on where his imagination intuits him. He has a piquant parcel of words which he situates in context to attract the widest audience in the social environment he sets out to examine. In the novel Souls Forgotten, Nyamnjoh’s approach is ‘infotainment’ where he informs his audience about the social issues inherent in a mythic state society called Mimboland, and at the same time tries to capture and sustain their attention through literary entertainment .
Nyamnjoh’s Souls Forgotten, in my opinion is a contemporary genre of literary imagination where readers are taken into a mental trip passing through diverse but intriguing intellectual shops which translate social themes like tradition versus modernity, chieftaincy problems, university life, state corruption, administrative ineptitude, road usage and security measures, disaster causes and management, etc. He knits all these aspects skillfully without diverting the plot of the story that centers on the wild expectations and fate of the young and exuberant Mimbolander- Emmanuel Kwanga. Nyamnjoh exposes his thematic knitting approach in the novel when he says: […] the social and the geographical, the normal and the mysterious, the rational and the supernatural [are] blended together to form the marvelous mixture called life (p.26).
In one short narrative technique, Nyamnjoh handles diverse themes affecting a fictional society which in my appreciation hinges on a background closest to his land of birth. Abehema can be the locality while Mimboland is the country. There are many reasons to think that the setting of the novel is Cameroon. If onomastics is any indication to go by, then, it is truism that names of persons (anthroponyms) like Kwanga, Ngonsu, Tam (especially) Tala Andre Marie and places (toponyms), like Nyamandem, Massajeng, Tunga Division, Zingraft town, Abehema can be quickly inferred and positioned in Cameroon. Complementing this is the linguistic cultural identity which is expressed in the novel as Muzungulandaise (something like the French language) and Tougalish (the English language) coupled with pidgin Tougalish (pidgin English).To think that Nyamnjoh’s social arrow is pointing aggressively only on Cameroon will mean demeaning the scope of his social scanner. There’s no gainsaying that his message like any academic endeavor is a case of something, at least the case of social and political life in Black Africa.
What fascinates me with Nyamnjoh’s literary style is his deep imagination of the real themes that affect social life in his constructed Mimboland society. Without any intention to pretend to film and project the mind of the author, I will attempt to inter-lace and appreciate some of the major themes that animate his story line. My thought pattern will simply be personal and in no way should be associated with the views of the author which at best can only be appreciated by conjecturing.
Chieftaincy enmeshes in superstition to produce one of the social-cum-political themes that the novel Souls Forgotten touches. Using the voice and/or imaginations of Kwanga, Nyamnjoh re-visits the chieftaincy issue which has been raised by scholars, publicly addressed in writing, though remaining bait for research. Here the author brings to the chessboard, the tension between traditional and modern administration which has been proven to be spurious as Terence Ranger’s ‘Invention of Tradition’ posits. This is justified by the comparison he makes between modern governing structures like the gendarmes and police force with traditional conflict regulatory institutions like the kwifon and nwerong in the Abehema community.
Nyamnjoh does well to present the institutional value collision between tradition and modernity as a suspicious encounter but continues to maintain a background of African belief system where superstition and witchcraft occupy a central place in society. Much has been done to show the place of superstition in African social circles but its scientific simplification for a global anchorage to erase the difference in perception of what is western and African is perhaps underrated. Traditional practices like wizards and witches flying in the wind and destroying crops and roof tops, ‘nyongo’ where people live prosperously by sacrificing themselves or others in afterworlds, divination, the sasswood poison ordeal, leaves readers with a picture of a pristine Africa not distant from the corpus of Eurocentric tales on Africa as a ‘dark continent’. Such a conclusion is perhaps an indication that despite attempts at emulsifying the friction between modernity and tradition, Africanists’ still crusade the message of African distinctiveness which can only be pristine if interpreted from an etic position.
Complementing the issue of chieftaincy and superstition is the politics of co-existence between traditional polities that accommodated themselves in traditional Abehama but who are no longer compelled to do that due to dissatisfaction with the policies of the centre. It runs in line with the oft quoted philosophy that ‘when the centre can no longer hold, things fall apart’. The wrangling and suspicion between chief Ngain and the other chiefs in the novel is a pointer to this view. It shows new levels of power competition where the ancient intractable issues of tribute and sovereignty is rendered somewhat different by the inevitable forces of change.
Nyamnjoh in his social-knitting fashion links up the chieftaincy feat that had trapped the Abehema society and divided the society with vices like villainy and greed. Without giving room for his audience to follow such social backlashes to the level of contamination, he quickly exposes the fate of rulers like Chief Ndze of Tchang and Ngain of Abehema when he says: “Vice was no good, and that no leader, no matter his tact could eternally pester and prey upon his people with callous impunity”.
This for certain confirms the view of the French philosopher Rousseau, that in a social contract when a ruler can no longer rule in the interest of his people, a revolution is right. The revolution could take any form like the abandonment that the Chief of Abehema experiences expressed, partly, in terms of bush paths that lead to the seat of political decisions in the village.
Another important theme that the author fully captures is university life in Mimboland. Through Kwanga’s narrative, readers are dragged into a world of academics that intertwines other social problems. The University of Nyamandem that Kwanga describes goes beyond a milieu of universal knowledge acquisition. It bridges other relevant themes associated with the fragile relations between the state and university authorities with students. This is expressed in terms of infrastructural neglect, favoritism, political victimization and other social deviance like STMs (sexually transmitted marks) that accumulate and enrage students who go on the streets to challenge the state of affairs. Closely linked to the in-campus worries is the accommodation in the university residential area in Nyamandem which is projected as a bare-face sample of the excruciating problems of 21st century urbanization challenge. The squalor that has stubbornly survived urban reforms has exacerbated waste management and other accommodation problems like congestion and its correlates such as prostitution and robbery.
The problem of integration equally attracts some related themes such as linguistic tension and imbalanced development. The linguistic tension that exists between speakers of Muzungulandaise and Tougalish is proof of the fact that in the political and social blend that took place in Mimboland, a state was created, yet national integration has not been fully attained. Language affiliation continues to influence politics and the way people relate and treat each other. This is shown in the different encounters that Kwanga has with people of the Muzungulandaise speaking expressions. An example of note is the law enforcement officer that intercepts him in the University of Asieyam campus. Closely linked to this is Kwanga’s enclaved locality of birth which at best is only made known to the public after the devastating lake Abehema disaster. The nightmarish journey that Kwanga describes from Zingraft town to Abehema is clear testimony of national politics of neglect and abandonment against certain parts of the country. This for certain is the stance of an unconcerned political center, governed by a sit-tight gerontocrat called President Long Stay in the novel.
Journalistic frivolity and corruption go hand in glove in the type of society in which Kwanga finds himself. Remote controlled journalism or what is commonly called ngombo (reward seeking) journalism is the deviant communication ethics that whops the protagonist’ mind. News of the lake Abehema disaster that came four days late and which gave a death toll of 40 far below the real toll of about 2000 confirms the view that there is always a dent in what is revealed as official information. This is quite similar to the verdict of one time state authority (serving as Communication Minister) in a country in CEMAC Africa who reporting on the casualties of university strike in the capital city said, ‘il a eu zero mort à l’université’ when everyone knew about six students had been killed.
Souls Forgotten captions this type of reporting as ‘arm-chair wait-and-see journalism of indifference’. Such distorted versions of social reality can be incendiary and may be one of the near causes of deepening social unrest. The tension over the cause of the lake Abehema disaster is perhaps one of the greatest attractions in the whole piece of work. The author carefully illustrates the tug-of-war that goes on between the traditional and the modern versions of the cause of the disaster. Suspicion and scorn, disbelief and disillusionment surround Kwanga’s mind concerning the disaster. His distrust for Ravageur and Vanunu only heightened this view.
Was the lake Abehema saga, a staged event or a natural occurrence? Hypotheses are rife but the political atmosphere is still heavily frightening as to giving in room for a verdict from the human conscience.
Everyone’s worldview [is] shaped by their particular experience of the society and circumstances into which they were born (p.234) so too is Nyamnjoh’s in Souls Forgotten. Souls Forgotten is a master piece. The diction is simple though some of the interjection in Pidgin English reduces his readership; most of the chapters are short for quick reading, though some are quite lengthy, posing a structural discordance. Suspense remains one of his main literary techniques which he uses to sustain attention while humor maintains the interest. His use of proverbs is superb for they widen the central moral messages but reduces the worded content of the novel.
Nyamnjoh’s social tale is perhaps too hard on certain issues, not to say it is exaggerated. His message is dominated by gloom for the Abehema community and the people of Mimboland desperately seeking development and a share of the good life for which they have sacrificed body and soul. The university system in Asieyam is completely marred even when we know out of the chaotic system sound minds have been nurtured.
This is not to say the system was good. Rather it was a system that constrained students to adapt to new coping strategies which at best were endurance and extreme hard work to be distinguished from a crowd of academic shoppers. Perhaps I am too generous to a system which Nyamnjoh indicts for limiting success only to a handful of supposedly hardworking, determined, intelligent, mostly urban-based students.
Also, Nyamnjoh’s presentation of gloom lends very little space for the efforts by the international community and the reluctant government of Mimboland to come to the assistance of the victims of the Lake Abehema disaster, which is quite similar to the Lake Nyos gas disaster of August 21, 1986 in Cameroon.
This is not to say the victims have been fully re-habilitated. Administrative bottlenecks couple with conscious bad faith, neglect and abandonment make the title Souls Forgotten, ideal. Nyamnjoh is consumed by gloom over the greed of those in power leaving little room for aid to trickle down to the victims who need it most. His imagination and literary savoir faire bring to the fore the natural and political challenges facing ordinary Africans trapped at the margins.
Souls Forgotten is an irresistible read. My proposed sequel to this brilliant social message is: Hope for Souls Forgotten.
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by fidelisa | 766 Views | Rating: (0 rates)
PAV Editorial Vol 15: October 2008
Mugabe, Thabo Mbeki And The Quest for Worthy Legacies in Africa
In the face of pressure from opponents at home and the international community whose sanctions have had a damaging effect on the economy, President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe finally went into a power sharing agreement with the opposition in Zimbabwe. Old age is usually associated with wisdom in Africa. This has certainly not been true with all the leaders in the continent but we want to believe that President Mugabe acted in wisdom. For all he has done for Zimbabwe and Africa, his deserves to be a better legacy, one that leaves Zimbabwe with smiles and not tears, one that makes the country the beacon of hope that it was for Africa. The peace deal as of the moment may not have resulted in the formation of a government but there is denying that it represents a huge step forward.
Accepting to dialogue was itself a very salutary move. For a leader who is arguably the most educated in Africa, one who not only fought hard for the independence of his country but fought hard for other Southern African countries to be liberated including breaking the shackles of apartheid in South Africa, Robert Mugabe approaching the sunset and not the dawn of his political career deserves to leave behind a better legacy for the country and continent of his heart. Dialogue and reconciliation, we at PAV believe, is a sign of strength and not weakness, it is the trade mark of visionary leadership, an act of patriotism, putting country first to borrow from politicians on the other side of the Atlantic. While all acts of electoral malpractices deserve to be condemned, it is worth pointing out that it is a government of unity between the ruling party and the opposition that saved Kenya from the brink of civil war. For the sake of peace, for the sake of Zimbabweans and for the sake of a legacy he has sacrificed so much to build, President Mugabe should stick to the path of dialogue and collaboration with the opposition that he has embarked upon.
 Talking about legacies, Thabo Mbeki, who brokered the truce between Mugabe and the opposition in Zimbabwe stepped aside as President of South Africa at the request of the African National Congress-ANC that gave him the mandate to rule South Africa. Events that culminated in his resignation are a different story altogether but by accepting to step aside with such grace and humility, Thabo Mbeki has written a glorious chapter in African politics creating a legacy of his own. Filling the shoes of Nelson Mandela was already a very assiduous task, and for all he achieved for South Africa.Often times in Africa we tend to forget who our heroes and role models are. Achievements tend to be neglected. Go to a country like Cameroon and you will find nothing that epitomises the epic struggles of Ernest Ouandie, Bishop Ndongmo, ST Muna, J N Foncha, EML Endeley, A N Jua and others who played prominent roles in the struggle for independence. In the height of the conflict between President Biya and his predecessor Amadou Ahidjo, it was a taboo to affix Ahidjo's name to the football stadium in Yaounde named after him. Not only has President Biya for instance failed to show recognition for heroes who staked their lives for Cameroon but has failed to dialogue with the opposition or meet with leaders of a movement like the Southern Cameroons National who have a very legitimate case. In other parts of the world we have airports like Charles De Gaulle in Paris, JFK in New York and Regan National in Washington DC to immortalised historic leaders. In some parts of Africa, some countries have done a lot in this direction but in many heroes are left to die with nothing to remind future generations of what they achieved. In some countries meaningless relics of colonialism are still glorified.
Nigeria recently took a mark departure from this and decided to name streets in the federal capital of Abuja in honour of some great heroes both dead and living. Dr Aliyu Modibo the Minister incharge of the Federal Capital Territory has named streets after icons like Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, the late Journalist Dele Giwa, musicians Sonny Okosun, Fela and Bob Marley,footballers Nwankwo Kanu and JJ Okocha, etc. These are all personalities who have contributed significantly to the life of Nigeria. Other countries ought to do same , this pays a debt of gratitude to them, and serves as incentive for greater commitment from others to the course of national development.
That Africa is at the centre of world attention today is an open secret. The huge unprecedented turn out in Washington DC recently for the third Annual U.S-Africa Infrastructure Conference under the theme connecting the continent is indicative of the strong interest of the USA to do business with Africa. The attention is a good thing. The more American, Japanese, European, Indian firms and others come in, the better for Africa.However unless our leaderships show more seriousness, unless they place collective interest of the citizens first above their own selfish political machinations, Africa will only succeed to turn away potential investors or will continue to benefit from lopsided sour deals that leave it more impoverish. In the heat of competition it is time for the continent to get the best and nothing but the best. As Ed Kostentski (upcoming interview in Vol 16) President of Nationwide Equipment a company with a presence of 25 years in the continent told PAV, Africa should definitely not be a dumping ground.
To those in power especially the ones who have been in power for decades with nothing to show, history will continue to be the judge. Question to them, why does the image of some like Mandela, Nasser, Nkrumah, Nyerere, et al continue to stand tall while others have a name that is either barely recognisable or viewed with scorn? The act of Thabo Mbeki in stepping down is not one of cowardice or failure but one of maturity. One that should remind all that hanging to power for endless years for the sake of it is becoming less and less of a menu on the table of African politics. Mandela left his legacy, Mbeki has left his and the spot light on President in the waiting of South Africa will be so strong that he will be expected to leave his in what ever way. Happy reading and remember we cherish your contributions, suggestions adverts and all that will keep us riding high.
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by fidelisa | 699 Views | Rating: (0 rates)
Thabo Mbeki's Resignation and the Changing Face of Leadership in Africa
By Ajong Mbapndah L*
 It was predicted by some newspapers but few thought it feasible that President Thabo Mbeki will be forced to resign from office by his party, the ruling African National Congress. To doubting Thomases, the rarity of such a precedence in African politics tailored thinking. Effectively, the ANC , the party that Mbeki grew within the ranks and used as a platform to serve as two term President of the Republic of South Africa had served him a quit notice. With a few more months left to the expiration of his second and last mandate, President Thabo Mbeki wrote a glorious chapter in the history of African politics by yielding to the dictates of his party and stepping down with grace. In a continent where many leaders still find it anathema to consider life after or without the presidency, Thabo Mbeki's resignation marks a huge milestone in the struggle for democracy in Africa.
Africa boasts some of the longest serving leaders in any part of the world. Omar Bongo of Gabon has been in power for 36 years, Paul Biya since 1982, Eduado Dos Santos since 1979, Paul Biya of Cameroon since 1982, Mubarak of Egypt since 1981, Mugabe of Zimbabwe since 1980,etc.Unfortunately the lengthy sojourns of most of these leaders in power only rivals with the porosity of their achievements. In the midst of huge resources denied many parts of the world, some of the leaders have excelled in driving potentially prosperous nations to the brink of collapse and ruin. In the face of their calamitous balance sheets, the people have limited options in effecting change as flawed elections are used by the leaders to perpetrate their grip on power. By bowing out without rancourous resistance to the decision of the ANC, Mbeki has set an example that is salutary and worth emulating.
President Mbeki's undoing? He fired his former deputy and now the all powerful ANC leader Jacob Zuma who was embroid in a corruption scandal. ANC people believe that Jacob Zuma did not benefit enough from the presumption of innocence and his legal woes were a machination of President Mbeki to bar him from running for office when Presidential elections are due in early 2009.Signs that the sun was setting for President Mbeki were perceptible as early as last February when in a hot contested election for the leadership of the ruling ANC, he was trounced by his former deputy Jacob Zuma despite his legal woes. The victory of Zuma created conflicting centres of power in South Africa. For instance where as President Mbeki was more cautious of his critique of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, the ANC through its leader Jacob Zuma took a much more vocal hard stance .A High Court decision dropping the case against against Zuma because of its political undertones was the last nail on the political coffin of Mbeki. This paved the way for his resignation as President of South Africa though with a strong commitment in his ANC militancy.
Although people like Nobel Laureate thought the ANC put its interest above that of the country, there is no denying that Mbeki's popularity ratings had dropped very significantly. Sure there are others around the continent way more unpopular than him who have continued to hang on to power and some may even have a good laugh at the ouster of Mbeki, but hey at the end of day, Mbeki cuts a picture of a great statesman with a legacy of his own. Succeeding an iconic figure like Nelson Mandela was no easy feat at all. The style of leaderships was different, and by serving just one term despite the opportunities to serve another, Mandela set the bar very high too. By bowing out in style, Mbeki set a legacy of his own.
 The African continent to many may not be making enough progress or fast enough despite its huge human and natural resources that make it a centre of great attention from the rest of the world. In the past, Europe thought it had everything under control, but of recent Chinese, Japanese, Indians, Koreans, and even the USA are showing greater interest .So how does the continent ensure that the increase attention serves as a catalyst to transform and move the continent forward? Certainly not with the old brand of leaders who have been around since the early days of independence.
Fortunately the emergence of a dynamic generation of young leaders offers rays of hope. In Senegal in 2000, a serving President Abdou Diouf was defeated by the opposition and he accepted the verdict of the polls. The civility with which he facilitated the transition of power to his successor and long time opposition challenger Abdoulaye Wade was historic. In Mali term limits imposed by the constitution were firmly respected by President Alpha Omar Konare who despite his relatively young age stepped aside after two four year terms. In Benin Mathieu Kerekpu set the stage for a flourishing democratic experience .His is a case worth citing over and over. Beaten by an opposition challenger in the first democratic election of his over a decade one man rule, he came back five years later and won another mandate. He went ahead to serve two terms and bowed out in consonance with constitutional provisions. In other former Presidents like Jerry Rawlings of Ghana, Joachim Chissano of Mozambique, Kenneth Kaounda of Zambia, Sam Nujoma of Namibia, Benjamin Nkapa of Tanzania, Quett Masire, and Festus Mogae of Botswana , Africa is building its own fair share of respectable elder statesmen around the world.
 Progress is still certainly too slow for comfort and this explains the surprise of many in Africa and around the world on the resignation of President Mbeki. So strong is the skepticism about Africa that attention was so focused on the elections and the ensuing crisis that gripped Zimbabwe and little or no attention at all to the exit of President Festus Mogae of Botswana in neighbouring Botswana. One of the most efficient leaders who presided over great economic growth and development in his country, President Mogae was leaving power in fulfillment of term limits imposed by the constitution of Botswana.
 Examples like those of Mogae are however overshadowed by those of people like Paul Biya of Cameroon who despite a porous legacy after 25 years in power recently did away with term limits imposed by the constitution to facilitate more years in office for himself. Huge riots in February of 2008 to air amongst other frustrations the desire by Biya to change the constitution, brought the country to a standstill, took a heavy toll on human live but did not stop Biya from pushing through his agenda using his majority obtained under questionable circumstances in parliament. Many pundits saw in the unrest warning signals for a serious showdown in the next Presidential elections billed for 2011.
Taking the will of the people for granted is proving increasingly costly and embarrassing for leaders. President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya can tell the story better, rigging the presidential polls of December 2007 when it was clear that it was Raila Odinga who actually won brought about unprecedented violence in the recent history of that country. A power sharing deal was the only way that bailed him out of a most uncomfortable situation with the entire world watching. Recently in Zimbabwe, even President Robert Mugabe agreed to a power sharing deal with the opposition after a stalemate resulting from elections. In Nigeria, attempts by President Obasanjo to grab a third term contrary to the dictates of the constitution were soundly rejected by the the Nigerian legislature despite the fact that his party had a majority in the house. The rejection was based on pressure from Nigerians who promise hell to legislators who voted for it. Even the successor he hand picked to replace him has been a torn to his flesh with probes from the legislature that have exposed the galore of corruption and embezzlement that characterised his tenure. Some like Robert Guei of Ivory Coast and Didier Ratsiraka of Madagascar were literally chased out of power by an angry populace when they attempted to rig elections.
 The African Union bars leaders who come to power through unconstitutional means from attending its sessions .The definition of unconstitutional however gives the impression that far from using it as a tool to promote democracy; this serves more as a tool to protect comrades in dire situations. A few leaders who use military coups to accede to power have had the doors of the African Union summits shut in their faces but the same has not been the case with leaders who excel in the art of flawed elections else how will one explain the presence of a leader like Mwai Kibaki at a Summit in the heat of controversy generated by elections he clearly did not win? How else does one explain the complacency of the African Union when leaders use unorthodox means to remain in power or tinker with constitutions so as to eternalize themselves in power?
Thabo Mbeki like every other leader had his flaws but his role in pushing for a more vibrant African Union and conflict resolution initiatives in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, and in Zimbabwe at the moment have proved useful. He was one of the main architects of the New Partnership of African Development-NEPAD and alongside Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu provided a strong moral voice for the successive bid of South Africa to host the 2010 soccer world cup, the first on African soil. Many are those who would not have thought the kind of political maturity possible in Africa but far from been an isolated case, Mbeki's bold decision is a sign of changing times. The people are getting more politically conscious, democracy is on the march, and it will eventually get the force of a tsunami that no one can stop.
by fidelisa | 691 Views | Rating: (0 rates)
"The Democratic Republic of Congo has suffered from chronic lack of Leadership"- Oscar T. Manata former Ambassador to the USA
By Ajong Mbapndah L
 The Democratic Republic of Congo known as Zaire until 1997 is the third largest country by area in Africa but is arguably one of the richest in terms of resources. In terms of development the story is different as the country has been embroiled in conflicts considered among the deadliest in the world since world war two. Its vast resources have served more as a source of conflict than development. Ambassador Oscar T. Manata was the last Ambassador of the DRC to the United States prior to the collapse of the long rule of President Mobutu. He now serves as President of the Congolese Reform Movement and Chair of the African Affairs Committee of the African Leadership Empowerment Council. A lot was heard and said about the enigmatic late President Mobutu. In an interview with Ajong Mbapndah L for Pan African Visions, Ambassador Manata gives greater insight into the working of the Mobutu political machine. Lashing out at successive leaderships for betraying the Congolese people, Ambassador says the leaderships of both Kabillas that succeeded Mobutu have not fared any better. Sharing his frustration at the way the vast wealth of the DRC has been plundered for decades; Ambassador Manata urges Africa and the world to help put the country back on the rails. Interesting to learn from Ambassador Manata too that for almost a century of colonial rule, Belgium achieved the feat of leaving behind nine university educated Congolese at independence!
PAV: For long, you served as Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to the United States under President Mobutu. What is your relationship with the present government of the DRC?
 Ambassador Manata. Sorry to let you know that there is no "government" in Kinshasa as we speak today. Mr. Antoine Gizenga resigned few days ago and there is an intense fight and struggle to replace him. To answer your question, let me simply add the following: Yes. I served my country as its Ambassador during the whole period of transition, one of the most difficult period in our history. I was appointed by President Mobutu. However, I'm a native of Kenge (75 km from Kinshasa, in the Bandundu province, while Mobutu was from the North Ubandi, Equatorial province. I'm proud of my achievements since I predicted that there will be some kind of chaos after the military incursion and invasion funded by some Western countries to get rid of Mobutu. To get rid of Mobutu alone, there are almost some 5 millions deaths in the DRC with an ongoing blood war that was not needed. As we all know, Mobutu was already dying of prostate cancer when the Congo was invaded in order to replace him. I'm not surprised by the current catastrophic situation since it was predictable and well planned in order to destabilize and weaken the DRC.
My relationships with the current regime in Kinshasa are no different from its relations with my colleagues ambassadors and diplomats abandoned all over the world by the DRC. Sad to say: since 1997 to the present, most ambassadors and diplomats, their wives and children, have been abandoned without salaries, travel tickets back to Congo, under the pretext that they are Mobutu's ambassadors or diplomats. In fact, there has been no working government or responsible leadership to solve our problems. We have no choice but to adjust our status and take care of our families wherever we are. In my case, I'm an international lawyer educated in Louvain (Belgium) and here at the Washington College of Law, at the American University. I'm able to compete on the international job market. I have the skills and experience to do so, I am doing fine personally but I feel the pain for the Congolese People and my personal relatives and friends in this messy Congo today.
PAV: A lot was said about Mobutu. What kind of leader was he and how was like to work for him?
AMB Manata; I am not an expert of "mobutism." I became involved in Mobutu's politics and familiar to his entourage through my outstanding performance as Chair of the Political, Administrative, Judicial Committees and the Foreign Affairs Committee in the National Parliament during eight years (1982-1990). As Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, I traveled a lot with President Mobutu. In 1989, for example, I was part of the Mobutu's Delegation in an official Visit to President Bush in the White House. I accompanied Mobutu in his official visits to Paris, Brussels, to Morocco where I was co-signer of the Rabat Accord ending the Belgo-Congolais conflict and economic contentious dispute. As a result of my performance and negotiation skills, President Mobutu appointed me to serve as Ambassador of our the country here in Washington. It was a terrible experience working for Mobutu. I am proud of my accomplishment in serving so many years under Mobutu. As you may
know, Mobutu inspired fear and terror even to his entourage because his decisions were unpredictable, unreasonable and without appeal. His strategy was to move his ministers, ambassadors, officers from one place to another, from the top to the bottom to create some kind of fear, uncertainty and therefore dependency to him in order to survive. Otherwise, Mobutu was a leader who constantly wanted things to be done as expected especially with regard to his political survival and longevity. I believe that it was more important to work for Mobutu than for the country in order to survive during his entire regime. As a former journalist, Mobutu was well informed. As Ambassador, it was a 24/7 position with all sort of request for information. However, I learned a lot from him and his deep understanding of the country, its tribes, its regional and international alliances.
Unfortunately, Mobutu's leadership and experience did not serve the DRC and its People. Mobutu's great sin remains his well-documented "kleptocracy" and mismanagement of the financial resources of his country. was present when in response to an interview question, Mobutu acknowledged that "Frankly, I would be lying if I said I do not have a bank account in Europe, I do. I would be lying if I said I do not have a fair amount of money. However, I would estimate it to total less than $50 millions. What is that for a head of state?" Meanwhile, as his Ambassador here in Washington, I had no money to pay the electricity, the gas bills, the local employees, including my own salaries for years. Mobutu spent more money in lobbying efforts than in caring for his own people in the country and his diplomats abroad. I believe that some Senegalese Marabous got richer with Mobutu's money than competent professionals like me who spent years working under his regime. To be fair, Mobutu was a generous man who shared his wealth with others but he was so egocentric that he could not allow people along him to get rich for fear of making them financially independent from him. You must feel the need of depending on Him. He was a pleasant boss who would spend the whole day telling jokes to make you laugh; however, don't commit the mistake of believing that Mobutu is your friend! You may be gone professionally and physically. Mobutu's reactions and decisions were simply not predictable.
The pre-Mobutu political regimes and the post-Mobutu regimes were exactly the same. The same causes produce the same effects. From 1885 to 2008, the entire political spectrum of the Congo history gives the same picture characterized by three important factors: personal power, personal wealth, and military force. Mobutu learned the looting and predatory practices in the Congo from King Leopold and the Colonial regimes of Belgium. Evidence shows that Mobutu was deeply inspired by the excessive accumulation of personal wealth by King Leopold (1885-1908) when the entire Congo, then Congo Free State, was his personal " private property." King Leopold's predation resulted in numerous atrocities and human rights violations forcing him to give this vast country to the Belgian People in 1908 under the international pressure. The following colonial regime was exactly the continuation of this same looting and predatory practices with forced labor and lack of education to the point of leaving the Congo with only 9 college graduate on June 30, 1960, the date of its independence. Mobutu took over this predation from 1960 to his overthrow in 1997. The Kabila regimes are not acting for the well-being of the people. They don't care about raising everyone up. Since 1997, the Kabilas emphasized also themselves and their trapping of power and money. There is a personality cult, the father as well as the son. They banned all political parties when they came to power by military invasion to overthrow one single individual Mobutu. When Mobutu overthrew Kasavubu in 1965, he did not invade the country and he did not start a bloody civil war with the involvement of over nine (9) neighboring countries. In short, power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and it did in the RDC.
PAV: Did Mobutu ever claim while in power that after him there will be no Zaire as it was claimed in his days?
AMB Manata: Yes. Mobutu was sure to stay in power for life. Unfortunately for him, he did not anticipate dying of prostate cancer. He did not prepare anybody, even from his family, to succeed him. As I said above, he was playing, appointing and removing from offices a large number of qualified professionals, lawyers, economists, engineers, and others just to use them to consolidate his regime and get rid of them whenever he wanted. However, Mobutu was surrounded by very competent and skilled congolese intellectuals who had no choice but to carry out Mobutu's wrong policies.ome who challenged Mobutu were arrested, jailed or even killed.
Again, Mobutu's failure to prepare his succession is also a legacy of a colonial wrong strategy of preventing Congolese people from getting educated and prepared to take their country over one day. Remember that during almost one century of colonial period, the Belgians educated only nine (9) college graduates in the Congo and on the day of independence,30 June 1960, the Belgians were still planning for more thirty (30) years of colonial domination. They also were surprised by the independence movement and left the country massively without preparing any credible leadership for the Congo.
PAV:Is there any comparison that you can make between the years of President Mobutu i power and the government of Kabila, father and son that succeeded him?
AMB Manata. I was in Washington when Kabila father took over the country in 1997. I went on FOX NEWS Television to congratulate the new leadership and to request the end of economic and financial sanctions against the DRC now that Mobutu has become a thing of the past. I was disappointed by the subsequent events when it became more and more clear that the Kabilas did not really know why they have taken this country over? Their decisions and behavior were exactly like the Mobutu's dictatorship: arbitrary arrests, killings, suppression of constitutional rights, mismanagement of the country's financial and natural resources, cult of war and widespread violence... in one word, they acted like warlords." The implementation of the Sun City Agreement and the Global Inclusive Accord through the installation of Transitional Institutions was an organized looting of financial resources by the three or four warlords who were fighting each against another for years and therefore incapable to carry out a credible agenda in favor of the Congolese People.
The Transition was a messy transition that failed to carry out several tasks, including the national reconciliation, the re-establishment of the State authority, and the formation of a restructured and integrated national Army. The most important failure of the Kabilas is the introduction into the DRC of the culture and weapons with the assistance of some neighbouring countries known for their own culture of genocide and mass killing. The Congolese are a peace-loving people enjoying music, hard work, sharing, and being proud of their rich and large country. The Kabilas introduced the fragmentation of the Army that resulted in fragmented militia groups with widespread terror and large scale violations of basic human rights in the Eastern Congo by bandits like this crazy Nkundabatware supported by Rwanda and some international predators.
As I said earlier, Mobutu was not perfect but at least the country was at peace and governed. Congolese were happy traveling peacefully through their vast country. This is not possible under the Kabilas. While Mobutu was surrounded by competent professionals, the Kabilas are fearful of competent intellectuals who are their easy target. The country is under the reign of institutionalized mediocrity . Selected and pre-selected groups of puppets are elected as planned even if it means creating special mode of power-sharing to accommodate them in accordance with arrangements between influential members of some political parties and the international community, especially some Belgians involved in the looting of mineral and natural resources. So, the 2006 electoral process in the DRC was a fraud. It has been a process of political laundering of the post-Mobutu Warlords. The DRC has no credible leaders as we speak. The 600 or more elected members of Parliament are incapable of helping implement a single reconstruction project among the so-called "Five Chantiers" from their official agenda. Instead, they are enjoying to share the national financial resources with high salaries and other privileges at the expense of the Congolese people who have elected them some times under the pressure of military tanks in the streets of Kinshasa.
PAV: You are head of Congolese Reform Movement (MRC) when your party was created, why and what contribution had it to make to the political development of the DRC?
AMB Manata: This is the best question of this entire interview. I thank you for it. First, let me remind you that I'm a lawyer by professional, an international lawyer to be exact. Since 1997, when my diplomatic duties ended, I have stayed in the United States, working hard to raise my children who all graduated from the best universities and college of this great country, including the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, and Temple university to name a few. I am able to make my living without any involvement and outside the congolese messy politics. However, I decided to create the "Mouvement Reformateur Congolese," a year ago, in response to the need for substantial institutional change in the DRC.
I am very proud to continue an exciting mission initiated a century ago by some good people from England, the United States and elsewhere, who challenged in very courageous terms, all forms of abuses and atrocities that were then taking place in the Congo under the regimes of King Leopold. The Congo Reform Movement was created here in the United States, not in Congo, to fight against the widespread violation of human rights and the protection of Congolese People against terrorist and dictatorial regimes. An American journalist such as Mark Twain along with people like George Washington Williams devoted their entire lives to defend the Congolese people against tyranny and terror. They wrote books, held conference, met with Western leaders to help end these atrocities in the Congo. They had an intense interest in the Congo without being of Congolese origin.
I believe that now is the time for Congolese people to continue that noble mission of speaking out against tyranny and terror from their own local and internal leaders. The MRC's mission is to conceive and implement substantial institutional and legal reform in the DRC. As clearly indicated above, all successive regimes in the Congo have managed to loot, mismanage, and abuse power under diverse pretext and covers. They are, all, motivated by power, money and force. Therefore, changing the individuals at the top of this country's management is not the desirable solution to protect the Congolese People's rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. What is needed is strong legal and institutional framework, checks and balance, good governance, rule of law, accountability and performance evaluation and skilled manpower at local, provincial and national levels.
The MRC will also end the militarization of politics in the DRC giving voice to the People through their legitimate political bases and communities in villages, counties, zones, districts and provinces. The DRC does not need 600 members of Parliament voting laws that are never implemented or understood by the ordinary people. As a result of my presence and experience here, I am fully informed of the predatocratic leaders' strategy of developing regional and international alliances in order to facilitate their looting of national and/or regional resource -material, financial, and natural with the clear purpose of obtaining and maintaining power as well as scandalous personal wealth at the expense of the Congolese People.
In conclusion, it is time to end some 122 years of shameful tyranny, looting, exploitation of the Congolese People, by all its leaders of all color and creed, generation and race. It is time for Africa and Africans to speak out in favor of the Congolese People as Africa did to end the shameful apartheid regime in South Africa.
Shifting Conflict in Europe in the Wake of Immigration: An Introduction
By Primus M.Tazanu
 Further right wing gains in the Austrian elections last month sparked worries as to what could be the fate of immigrants especially asylum seekers in Austria and Europe in general. Freedom Party and the Alliance for the Future of Austria have both advocated for an end to immigration and the expulsion of foreigners who commit crimes. Earlier expression of anti-Semitic sentiments by the Freedom Party in 1999 was regarded as outrageous and attracted some European Union (EU) sanctions. Austrian right wing moves however inspired and gave impetus for many other anti-immigrant political parties to either crop up or reinforce their hatred for immigrants. In no other country was this well-received than in Denmark where 13 per cent or so of the population supports a single right wing party.
After attacks on America on September 11th 2001, right wing political ideologists started presenting themselves as saviours and defenders of national culture. Migrants were seen as threat and quick legislation was passed, mostly geared towards the rejection of what is believed to be un-national or un-European. Immigrants, who are presented as dangerous and social misfits become a target of suspicion and mischief. Attention on immigrants as the problem has perfected the shift from class based conflict to ethnic/racial oriented strife. Disenchanted and impoverished indigenes having been used to partial truths and dispossessed by capitalistic practices of their leadership have taken upon themselves to seek what they believe to be justice denied them through the influx of immigrants. This justice, often sought through violence, is based on the assumption that immigrants queue on the welfare recipient list, invade indigenous jobs markets and worst of all, immerse themselves (through hard work, of course) into luxurious lifestyles usually believed to be the privilege of indigenes. Though they often express worries on attacks on foreigners, the political elite of right wing orientation appear either nonchalant or are inwardly quite satisfied that disenchanted indigenes heap their misery on the immigrants, the scapegoats.
Amidst this trend of the shifting conflict from class to ethnic/racial based, both indigenous and immigrant groups undertake resistance that are at loggerhead with each other. A majority of immigrants widely believe and know they are not accepted and this consciousness leads many to retract to themselves, fearing interaction with indigenes and continue to have the quest to uphold their cultures. On the other hand many indigenes either appear to be helpless or display their grudge and scorn at immigrants in ballot boxes, street protests, graffiti, fleeing of neighbourhoods believed to be infested by immigrants, etc. The extreme of this has been the formation of indigenous criminal gangs, which sort of function like the militant branches of right wing political movements. These gangs either believe they are fulfilling the prophecy and wishes of their political elites or they merely want to express personal disillusionment at people thought to be a threat to a romanticised ‘national culture’.
 Drawing the discussion to the Danish experience one can conjecture hard times to come as local administrators and the police bureaucracy brace up to counter gang related violence. In September this year, the police force and politicians expressed worries on prospects of bloody confrontation between indigenous and immigrants gangs. It is hard to tell, but there is observation that political pronouncements have empowered the development of both indigenous and immigrant gangs. Indigenous gangs may have the feeling that they are defending their countries and immigrant gangs on the other hand may feel anti-immigrant political declarations leave them vulnerable and they have to get ready for attacks at any moment. This situation has switched the direction of violence that was supposed to be geared towards the upper class to underclass confrontations that increasingly spread below. The Danish situation is that which indigenous and immigrant gangs, all of which are homegrown are taking imminent actions, reactions and revenges wherever they identify the ‘enemy’. Waves of attacks are popping up, with different cities taking turns. As of now, the Danish town of Odense is hosting violent actions involving indigenous and immigrant gangs.
At the wake of such violence, hospitals, insurance companies, the police and local administrators at all levels have to worry because much destruction, be it of buses, trains, bus stops, street lights and other basic infrastructure would be torched and decimated. This would further exacerbate the violence and give backlash to unwanted political pronouncement. By and large, the cycle would continue until right wing movements in Denmark and Europe admit the presence of immigrants who need to be accommodated in one way or the other.
Under discussion here are not criminal gangs involved in drugs and other illicit activities. Worth of note is the fact that most of these money-minded gangs such as the Hell’s Engels and Bandidos, are indigenous rival gangs that have expressed strong anti-immigrant sentiments. However, the reality of immigrant gangs’ intrusion into their niches of criminal activities have pushed these indigenous gangs and even make some of them to capitulate their positions in some Danish towns such as Aalborg, Kolding, Esbjerg and Copenhagen inner city. A recent development has seen the Bandidos band (indigenous) ally itself with blossoming immigrant gangs (Black Cobra) in order to regain grounds and fight its traditional enemy, the Hell’s Engels. This band has thus come to the reality that immigrants need to be accommodated in one form or another. This admission of the presence and power of immigrants may perhaps offer lessons to allergic right wing political movements in Europe who still have the illusion of an immigrant-free Europe.
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