Bienvenu Okiemy: the mechanical former defender of an evil system(profile)

Bienvenu Okiemy: he is the youngest member in Denis Sassou Nguesso’s government. Until his recent appointment at the ministry of culture and arts, he was Congo’s minister of Communications and minister in charge of relations with the national assembly and government spokesman. He was born on the 14^th of July 1972 in Brazzaville. Before his entry into the government, he was vice dean at the faculty of law of the Reims University, France. And he is a Barrister at the Paris bar council. He is an intelligent man and an intellectual who has authored two books and written several articles related to law, published in several journals. But he is also an opportunist to many. To his enemies and detractors, he is an opportunist who cherry picks his fights. His detractors also claim that, since he joined the government as minister of Communications, he has reneged on all what he formerly stood, for while he was in France. Bienvenu was for honesty and the rule of law, but now he has joined the camp of the dishonest and lawless, crows some of his detractors. One of such is Patrick Eric Mampouya, who is one of Congo’s famous blogger. He says that, Bienvenu Okiemy was smooth until he decided to join the Sassou Nguessos in the pillage of the country’s wealth and resources. As for Maurice Nguesso, he is of the opinion that, young people such as Bienvenu Okiemy are the only hope for his younger brother.  Bienvenu is a member of government, but he does not fanatically defend a system that has little or nothing worth defending.  He has his style which adapts to the current dispensation. He is very different from his predecessor Alain Akouala, in that, he is reactive and not proactive in the defense of the family and regime.

Perhaps he doesn’t want to suffer the same fate as his predecessor who put his life and reputation on the line to defend Denis Sassou Nguesso and his family, just to be thrown out of the government in the most ridiculous way. Alain Akouala, when he was unceremoniously dropped out of government, it was claimed that, he would go to Paris to become Congo’s ambassador, replacing longing standing Henry Lopez. In was a monumental shameful lie fabricated by people who think that, they are the demi-gods of Congo. In fact, it was just a ruse hatched out by the children of the President to show Alain Akouala the door in a subtle manner, simply because he (Alain Akouala) is bold and independent minded to their taste. And more, he is not subservient to their (children and family of the President) whims and caprices.  Bienvenu Okiemy by contrast, is doing just his job. But it has been interpreted by some members of the ruling Nguesso family and also by some zealous ministers who owe their positions to one of the children of the president that, he is not convincing enough Or doesn’t want or not fit. Bienvenu Okiemy is mechanical when it comes to defending the regime on subjects that he knows the regime and the family are legally wrong.

And it can be discerned, when he is responding to questions of Journalists on Radio France International or Africa 24, that, he is simply forcing things out, because he has to. He is a good man who has decided to join an evil course or system. And it seems to me that, all that he is interested in is to make his fortune and also help his family and friends.  Bienvenu Okiemy is a very generous man with his friends and also loves his family.  Having lived in France for a very long time, he acts and behaves like most French people, who see Africans and African countries as a milking cow that needs to be milked dry. On the subject of constitutional change in Congo, which is a very hot and controversial topic, he says privately that, the government has no legal logic to back up their claims or plans to change the constitution. In clear terms, the government is wrong. That is the intellectual spirit in him which speaks privately and it is honest. But the evil virus of politics and quest for wealth makes him to sing a different song in public. In short, he doesn’t have the courage to express his real thoughts openly, for fear not only to be shown the door out of government, but with the added risk of sudden death. Therefore, I am of the opinion that, his current change of ministerial post is for him, a welcomed relief.  He would be free from the verbal abuses and excesses of Claudia Sassou Nguesso, who really a pain on his back.

He will also no longer have to be spending sleepless nights in search for the appropriate words and terms to defend a system that perpetually shots itself on its legs. And on the controversial “Bien Mal Acqui” judicial saga and the case of the beach massacres code named “les Disparus du Beach,” he doesn’t want to get involved   as his predecessor Alain Akouala was. He once told me that, power in Congo will leave the north for the south, if honest and transparent elections were held and he also told me that, southern Congolese are better and highly educated than northern Congolese. And he concluded that, the real battle between the north and the south regions of Congo was that of intelligence and he was of the opinion that, the south was way ahead of the north. Politically, Bienvenu Okiemy is not a heavy weight. He relies on the supports that he gets from Denis Christel Sassou Nguesso and Aime Emmanuel Yoka, respectively son and uncle of the President of the Republic. In other words, he is a featherweight and not a broad day street political fighter like Alain Akouala. However, he is not one to be neglected, for he has a formidable survivalist instinct. Hence, his real ambition is to become minister of justice, a post currently held by Aime Emmanuel Yoka, one of his two God fathers.

This means also that, behind the smiles and manifestation of naivety, he is not just a political survivalist, he is an ambitious person who might contrary to my claims and observations, outlive Denis Sassou Nguesso period. It might explain the reason why, he did everything in 2012 to be vetted by the ruling PCT party as an MP for Bondji. Had he succeeded, it would have been at the detriment of one of the two local barons. Namely: Denis Ngokana and Rudolph Adada.  It also explains the reason why both local barons of the ruling party look at him with suspicions. His detractors accuses him of being a tribal oriented person and also that, he has mismanaged or used the funds of the ministry of Communications to enrich himself. It is an accusation that he rejects, although it comes from his elder sister, who was once his principal accountant and assistant at the ministry of Communications. I do hope that, the mistakes that, he committed while at the ministry of Communications, won’t be repeated at the ministry of Culture and Arts.  Bienvenu Okiemy’s administration of the national television and Radio stations, it is claimed by most staff of the state owned media was also a disaster and this if proven, is a disappointment for a man of his intellectual height. 

His frequent misunderstandings or dog fights with Jean Obambi, a senior journalist and Director of the state owned Television paralyzed the smooth functioning of a media that would normally be at the disposal of the people and serving the interest of the people. To his discharge, without that fight, state owned media in Congo has never served the people but working for the propaganda and self aggrandizements of President Denis Sassou Nguesso, his government and his family.  Under him, it is reported by workers that, Congolese national television and radio also promoted and favored incompetence at the expense of competence. Furthermore, he did not allow contradictory views on state media. All what were accepted were the ideologies and supporters of the ruling party. To his discharge he was simply respecting the instructions from the Presidency of the Republic. But for all his intelligence and other qualities that he has, I don’t think he has any future in the politics of Congo in a situation, where by Denis Sassou Nguesso and his family are no longer in power.  Bienvenu Okiemy is a brilliant man who is currently an intellectual waste, from the time when he opted to join a system that doesn’t give value to intellectuals but celebrates brutes and incompetence. His real future is the academia and not in the murky crocodile infested political river of Congo Brazzaville.

Aime Emmanuel Yoka, MP:Congo’s minister of justice and keeper of the seals (profile)

Aime Emmanuel Yoka, MP.  He is Congo’s minister of justice and keeper of the seals and also an uncle to President Denis Sassou Nguesso. Prior to his current post, he was the Director of Cabinet or chief of staff to President Denis Sassou Nguesso. It is reported that, he was dismissed from the post because he had transformed it into a reception office for all traditional heads of their region, who wanted to meet the president, but that, the president never wanted to meet at regular intervals.  Aime Emmanuel Yoka is a very proud man, who tells everyone who cares to listen that, he is the most educated and most civilized within the ruling Nguesso family. And it is not exactly wrong, for if the academic success of your children were a benchmark to measure personal success, then Aime Emmanuel Yoka can boast that, he is the most educated and the most civilized and also, the most successful man within the ruling family. For all his children studied abroad and mostly in English-speaking private Universities and more, they are almost all working for multinationals and also for international organizations. One of his sons is the Congo country manager of the Australian mining giant Sundance, while another one works in Ethiopia with the French Agency for International Development abbreviated in French as AFD. And there is another one, this time around, a female, who is a successful promoter of Congolese culture and in particular, Congolese movies.  She is a Harvard graduate and also the first in the family to attain the prestigious Ivy League institution in the USA.   

The African movie industry is currently dominated by the Nigerian movie industry, generally known as Nollywood. While other children with influential parents within the galaxy of power in Brazzaville, especially   members of the ruling Nguesso family would study or claim to have studied abroad and come back with doubtful academic and professional profiles only   to work in the civil service and this, at top functions, it is not the case with children of Aime Emmanuel Yoka.  The children of Aime Emmanuel Yoka are hard working and above all else, they are independent minded. They are mostly humble and not the show and tell types of their ruling cousins. According to the rumor mills in Brazzaville, Aime Emmanuel Yoka is not only too proud. He is also reported to be a maniac. There is an anecdote that claims that, Aime Emmanuel Yoka is so clean to the point of paranoia and  to a point where, when he was appointed as minister of justice, he  did refuse to use his office because, he claimed that, it was not only too small, but very dirty.  And he worked from home and only accepted to start going to his ministry, when an imposing modern ministry of justice building constructed by the Chinese was built. The new imposing building located along the Denis Sassou Nguesso Motorway and adjacent to the Brazzaville central Police station, some say, was specially built for him. Legend I gathered in Brazzaville has it that, there are three capricious men in Congo who are so closed to the president and will have whatever they want.

Kouyous massacre

They are: Aime Emmanuel Yoka, Oba Aponou and General Benoit Mondele Ngollo. I must point out that, it has never been proven. It is once again, the Brazzaville or Congolese reality and legends. In spite having strictly raised up his children and also having an idealistic view of the world, Aime Emmanuel Yoka remains a controversial figure in the eyes of ordinary Congolese, for he is considered a central piece of the regime.  And as such, he has no future or he will play no role in Congolese politics after Denis Sassou Nguesso is gone from power.  He is accused by some people albeit without proves again, that, he was the one that, President Denis Sassou Nguesso mandated to treat secretly with Jacques Chirac a deal to hunt and kill Captain Anga. At that time, Jacques Rene Chirac was French prime minister. The secret deal negotiated on behalf of Congo by Aime Emmanuel Yoka, it is claimed, was for France to send French forces in Owando to search and arrest Captain Anga. Captain Anga was a friend in arm to President Denis Sassou Nguesso, who had entered into an open rebellion against the state. In the presumed secret French military operation, it is reported that, thousands of innocent ethnic Kouyous were massacred.

Bond of contention

The said massacre it is claimed did continue long after captain Anga was arrested and killed. The massacre of the Kouyous is another genocide that took place this time, in the north of Congo and which has been silenced or never reported. It is also claimed to be another bond of contention between the ethnic Kouyous of Owando and the minority but ruling Mbouchi ethnic group of Oyo on the background of the unsolved assassination of Marien Ngouabi. Marien Ngouabi was the leader of the 1968 coup d’état that brought the northerners, in particular those of the Cuvette region in power. He was an ethnic Kouyou from Ombelle, located some 17km from Owando, the regional capital. He is suspected to have been assassinated by Mbouchi officers. The bad feelings of the Kouyous against the Mbouchis were revived again, after another massacre that took place in Owando in 1997.

Another accusation

Although a loyal supporter of President Denis Sassou Nguesso, Aime Emmanuel Yoka has another accusation leveled against him. He is being accused by some of his foes within and without the ruling family that, he was the one who oversaw the writing of the January 20th 2002 constitution. A constitution that instituted presidential term limits, which has become a torn in the flesh of the regime that wants to elongate the presidential mandate of President Denis Sassou Nguesso.  His principal accuser, it is reported, to be Jean Dominique Okemba. Mr Okemba is the nephew of the President. It is reported that, Jean Dominique Okemba claims that, Aime Emmanuel Yoka has misled Denis Sassou Nguesso to accept term limitations. What Jean Dominique Okemba fails to mentioned to people that he confides to is that, he himself wants to succeed President Denis Sassou either in 2016 or by 2023. Toward his presidential ambition, he has created an association headed by a Journalist called Asie Dominique de Marseille. He is sponsoring by proxy, the Troubadour newspaper headed by a brilliant journalist by name Francois Bikindou. He controls the state security services and intelligent services. 

Boastful Okemba

It is also reported that, in one traditional meeting held in Edou, he boasted that, he is not General Pierre Oba and other close aides to the President, whom in his words; he accused to have betrayed the president in 1992, by to allowing Pascal Lissouba to come to power.  

During that same meeting, he is also claimed to have vowed that, under him, President Denis Sassou Nguesso won’t leave power. He speaks as though he was the only real protector or bulwark of the President. But beneath the public display of loyalty toward the President, hides a desperate power hungry man, who is ready to be given the head of his uncle on Plata of gold, like the head of John in the bible. He wants power and he is ready to take it whenever he wants. His only fear is the reaction of a section of the top commanders of the Congolese army that he doesn’t control.  He is also reported to have verbally attacked Mr Laurent Tengo, who is a researcher and law lecturer at the Marien Ngouabi University in Brazzaville. Mr Tengo, mindful of the negative reputation that Jean Dominique Okemba has, he (Laurent Tengo) was too terrified and did not only beef up his personal security, he decided to confide to a trusted friend. The reason being simple, that, in case he dies or is attacked, they should know the source and cause of his attack. Why? It was reported to me by a person whose name I can’t expose here on because his security is not assured in Brazzaville that, Laurent Tengo, being amongst those who drafted the new Congolese Constitution, which has abrogated that of January 20^th 2002, was attacked by Okemba for taking part in the drafting committee.

 Ambitious

Jean Dominique Okemba and his group had already told the president that, the people won’t appreciate constitutional change. He therefore wanted people such as Laurent Tengo not to help his uncle in his plans. The truth is that, Jean Dominique Okemba was correct, for the people never wanted the constitution to be changed. The people are tired of Denis Sassou Nguesso. The only problem with Jean Dominique Okemba’s plans is that, it was not for the people or for the respect of state institutions. For Okemba was crossed when he learnt that, his uncle won’t respect the constitution and felt that people such as Laurent Tengo were the ones who wanted his uncle to elongate his stay in power and in doing so, reduce his chances of  ever governing Congo.  It is not surprising, Jean Dominique Okemba is very influential and it is normal that he aspires to succeed his uncle.

Absolves completely or partially

But Professor Charles Zacherie Bowao has another look at the accusations against Aime Emmanuel Yoka.  Professor Charles Zacherie Bowao, who was former minister delegate at the Presidency of the Republic, in charge of defense and who was also a member of the 2002 constitutional drafting committee, said that, when him and others protested against the introduction of presidential terms limits, it was not Aime Emmanuel Yoka who introduced it, but it was President Denis Sassou Nguesso himself   who insisted that, the 2002 constitution must have presidential term limits in it. This statement from Professor Charles Zacherie Bowao absolves completely or partially, Aime Emmanuel Yoka from the insinuations of Jean Dominique Okemba.

Why did the president want to have term limitations in the constitution just to change it 13 years after,  according to Charles Zacharie Bowao, the President at that time, said ,Congo must have a contemporary modern constitution.  While Charles Zacherie Bowao partially absolves Aime Emmanuel Yoka and heaps all the current difficulties encountered by the regime in their desire to change the constitution squarely on President Denis Sassou Nguesso, it is not, the same position shared by Jean Martin Bemba, former minister of Justice and also member of the constitutional drafting committee. Notwithstanding some slide variations, the former minister of justice claims that, it was the president who wanted to have term limits in the 2002 constitution. This corroborates the statements of Charles Zacherie Bowao. Jean Martin Bemba goes further: it might explain the reason, why he (president) decided at some point, to put all the responsibility of the drafting committee in the hands of his uncle, Aime Emmanuel Yoka.  Jean Martin Bemba went on: Perhaps it is because Aime Emmanuel Yoka was part of the inner core, who wanted presidential term limits. Hence he seldom speaks on the necessity of changing the constitution as championed by the likes of Thierry Moungalla and Pierre Mabiala.  

An idealist

Then he concludes:  Aime Emmanuel Yoka might be modern, honest, well educated, but he loves power, which may have meant that, he may or may not have wanted term limits but was too afraid to say or express any point of view. He likes standing or sitting on the fence. Emmanuel Yoka is an idealist, hence he decided in 2012 to run as Member of Parliament for Vindza. It is an electoral constituency and region located in the south of the country and reputed for being hostile to the ruling family and their tribe. The paradox is that, he won, even if there were suspicions of vote rigging. But what gave legitimacy to his controversial victory was that, he had the support of a former warlord by name Pastor Ntumi. Asked why he went down south to stand or run for a post of MP? He responded: to fight against tribalism, bigotry and above all, build a real nation that doesn’t currently exist. Aime Emmanuel Yoka says he doesn’t read local newspapers, because the content is not only poor but also badly written. He also adds that, Congo lacks professional journalists and that is also why, he doesn’t watch Congo’s national television station: Tele Congo. He is also reported to  have once told Maria Maylin, who is his friend and also a close friend to President Denis Sassou Nguesso that, his only regret is that, as brilliant as he is and also being the most educated person in the ruling Nguesso family , he is a black man.  He would have wanted to be a French White.  Whether this is correct or not, it is left for Mrs. Maria Maylin to justify it. But if it is true, it won’t be a surprise, because even the patriarch of their clan, Maurice Nguesso and also the President of the Republic Denis Sassou Nguesso, are people who still have inferiority complex, when they are in contact with white people , especially  French whites.

Andre Okombi Salissa:Profile of a war lord turned Presidential candidate

Andre Okombi Salissa: aka “tout bouge”, is a pure creation of President Denis Sassou Nguesso.  He is a former war lord who headed the dreaded Front 400 militia. The Front 400 was   an autonomous militia group, created by Andre Okombi Salissa, but allegedly financed by Denis Sassou Nguesso, during the 1997, short but brutal civil war. It was in spite all the paintings or claims floated around it, a pure pro- Denis Sassou Nguesso back up militia, for his greater militia group, called the Cobra. In other words, the Cobra was the mother shock terror ship of current President Denis Sassou Nguesso, while the Front 400 was feeder militia boat, captained by Andre Okombi Salissa in the turbulent seas of Congo. But they were well-known to be vicious and specialized in surgical precision attacks on civilians and western diplomatic interest. They are reported to have planned and headed the operation to attack the US embassy in Brazzaville and looted the compound.  It was worth reminding readers that, this was during the 1997 short but violently brutal civil war, that some say was sparked by Denis Sassou Nguesso with the support of Jacques Rene Chirac, former French president. While the accused (Denis Sassou Nguesso) and his supporters claimed that, the civil war was caused by the inability of the only post independent democratically elected president of Congo, Professor Pascal Lissouba, to respect the spirit of the 1992 constitution. The said 1992 constitution is believed to have produced the only electoral democracy and change at the helms of the country.   

Greatest deception

However, the great paradox is that, the current president, Denis Sassou Nguesso, who even wrote an epic book in titled : Le Manguier, le Fleuve et la Souris or in English: The Mango Tress, the River and The Mouse, which had two purposes. The first being to denounce the excesses and abuses of Pascal Lissouba in 1997 and second, presents in a subtle manner to the public, his book/campaign manifesto. Denis Sassou Nguesso is at present, doing the same things that he had deprecated in his book/manifesto.  Some people think that, his book was the greatest deception in Congolese political writings, while others are putting in doubt whether he was the author of the book. However those who are putting in doubt Denis Sassou Nguesso’s authorship of Le Manguier, le Fleuve et la Souris, it may be simply that, they may have not read the book.  For to those doubting, it is beyond comprehension, how a respectable man of the caliber of Denis Sassou Nguesso, could trample over his own writing. But according to Anani Bindji Rabier, a journalist: that book is real Denis Sassou Nguesso. All what he said and wrote was simply because, he wanted power and the French were ready to back him on the condition that, he makes the promise to return to liberal democracy. He concludes: Denis Sassou Nguesso is a typical prototype of what an African chief should be. And he is a man with an extraordinary capacity to dissimulate his true character or feeling and that is a common traits found in most reptiles, in particular the Cobra snake or in some felines, especially the panther.

A political creation of Denis Sassou

It was as though; in 1997, Denis Sassou Nguesso was writing what he will do when he assumes power. And this very troublesome question or observation which often comes up, Andre Okombi Salissa, being a political creation of Denis Sassou and whom by chance has now become an adversary of his mentor.Won’t he do or act in the same manner as Denis Sassou Nguesso?  That is, pretend as though he is for the people and when he gets what he wants and which is power, won’t he return to his true self?  If Denis Sassou Nguesso had the effrontery to write a book full of best intensions, and then trample upon it, what assures the public that, his political son won’t behave like his mentor? To the defense and discharge of Andre Okombi Salissa, Everybody has the right for a second chance and he has even confessed of his sins, albeit in general terms. But other questions that beg to be asked are these: were he not shown the door out of the government, would he have ever joined the opposition? Is he sincere?  Why did he wait too long to apologize? Will his victims accept his apologies? To his discharge, too many crimes have been committed in Congo and those accused have they been prosecuted because there is justice in Congo.  The areas of predilections of Andre Okombi Salissa during the civil war and which also became his fief  in peace time, were the cosmopolitan neighborhoods of Poto-poto and Ouenze. He was assisted in his macabre operations during the civil war by Faustin Elenga. And Mr Elenga is today Member of Parliament for Talangai electoral constituency. This constituency is located in the north of Brazzaville and he is representing the ruling Congolese Workers Party abbreviated in French as PCT.  

Well connected

One thing is true though, in the weak and disorganized Congolese opposition, Andre Okombi Salissa and Mathias Dzon are the only two people with the potentials and capacities to succeed or challenge President Denis Sassou Nguesso, for they are fully well prepared with sound established network of supports in the country and abroad. Therefore, Okombi Salissa is a force to be counted upon in the march toward the respect of the constitution in Congo. As already mentioned, he might become the president of the Republic. What is not known about him is where he stands ideologically. He is currently at the head of a powerful well established political movement that was once aligned to the youth wing of the ruling Congolese Workers Party or the PCT. He is also one of the rare former allies of President Denis Sassou Nguesso who has support all over the country. His secret is simple. When he was government minister from 1997 to 2012, he used his ministerial post to create a network of formidable loyal supporters who got jobs or were integrated into the civil service because of his influence.  Furthermore, he has placed his men and women, all over and in strategic places. The only other member of the Denis Sassou Nguesso galaxy who has used his influence to spread his tentacles all over the government is Jean Dominique Okemba and it also explains the reason why, Andre Okombi Salissa is and was the only One, who could confront without fear the dreaded Jean Dominique Okemba. Mr Okemba is arguably the most influential member of Denis Sassou Nguesso’s innermost circle. He is variously referred to as: Satan the Devil, “very special one” or “vice president” of the Republic.

Formidable capacity of mobilization

In a country where there are little or no jobs outside the civil service, because the private sector is feeble or inexistent, Andre Okombi Salissa has succeeded in building a large pool of fanatical supporters who are a kind of reserved fighting force for him, whenever the need may arise. It also explains the reason why his close aides are presently subject to police harassments. As a pure creation of Denis Sassou Nguesso, he is capable of reenacting identically, what his mentor did to Pascal Lissouba in 1997.His only handicap is that, a section of opposition and people of the Pool region who were victims of the exactions of his militia during the civil war still looks at him with some tinge of suspicions. This is so because, he has not yet openly expressed his opposition to the ruling party and he is still an MP for the Lekana electoral district in the Plateau region under the banner of the ruling PCT party. Nevertheless, he has a formidable capacity of mobilization and therefore, he is a nuisance to the ruling party and the President and his ambition to change the constitution and also get re-elected. He is an asset to the opposition and not a liability at the present dispensation. However, all the suspicions on him seems to have been dropped, since he has now openly decided to stand against the change of the constitution, that will enable President Denis Sassou Nguesso to stand for another third presidential mandate. He has recently shown his determination or opposition credentials by joining hands with established opposition party leaders such as Clement Mierassa, Pascal Tsaty Mabiala, Mathias Dzon, Claudine Munari, Paul-Marie Mpouele and new comer Blanchard Oba.  Andre Okombi Salissa, who studied and unspecified course in the former Soviet Union, is claimed by his detractors, to have studied propaganda and mobilization and upon return, he got plunged into the Congolese civil war and was rewarded with a ministerial post immediately after. He held ministerial appointments for 12 years.  Unlike other Congolese of his age group, he has never known unemployment upon graduation.

Coward or opportunist

The same detractors also claim that, he rebelled against his former friends only after his friend and supporter Isidore Mvouba MP, was not given the post of secretary general of the Congolese Workers Party at the 2011 extraordinary congress, that saw the appointment of Pierre Ngolo MP as secretary general.  And according  to Arlette Soudan Nonault, former special adviser to Pierre Ngolo, Andre Okombi Salissa is not only a political coward, he is not logical. If he were bold and logical, he would have quit his post as MP for Lekana and also resigned from the ruling party. However, Okombi Salissa who is taciturn and speaks most often via his communications adviser, Augustine Kallakalla, replies that: there is time for everything. He adds that: he has nothing against President Denis Sassou Nguesso but against his misrule and the tribalism that he has established in the country. As already mentioned above, Okombi is the only person who can stand and challenge Jean Dominique Okemba, the dreaded and most influential man in Denis Sassou Nguesso’s government. And the fact that, he has now taken a bold stand against the change of the constitution, it is certain that, Congo might plunge into another civil war, should Denis Sassou Nguesso maintains his controversial plans to change the constitution and also if General Jean Francois Ndenguet, who acts now more as the head of a militia than the head of a republican Police, tries to forcefully arrest him.

Another Colonel Marcel Nstourou

For  it is reported by well informed sources who do not want to be named that, Andre Okombi Salissa, still has his  armed militia. They are not only based in Brazzaville, but are spread around the country and they will be ready to confront the Congolese Police, which has been transformed into the Pierre Nkurunziza style Police: tribal and violent. Furthermore, since André Okombi  is an ethnic Bateke, a tribe that  seems to have now been ostracized by the current predominantly ethnic Mbouchi  regime,  his(Andre Okombi Salissa) tribal kith and kin who are present  in 8 of Congo’s 12 administrative  divisions or departments, won’t allow one of theirs to become another or second Colonel Marcel Nstourou. Therefore, in the current presidential contest, the most dreaded challenger to the current regime is not the new kid on the block, General Jean Marie Michel Mokoko, but Andre Okombi Salissa. The man to watch in this presidential election of March 20^th 2016 and after, is Andre Okombi Salissa, for he has the money, the capacity to wedge civil and armed warfare and he has the network around the country that, the ragtag regroupings of Mokoko doesn’t have in spite all the euphoria being made around him. 

Alain Akouala Atipault aka “the manager”: Reporting for another duty for Denis Sassou Nguesso

Alain Akouala Atipault: until his recent appointed as Congo’s ambassador designate to France, a post that, he never assumed, because of reasons not worth explaining hereon, he was minister delegate at the Presidency of the Republic, in charge of Special Economic Zones. He is one of the rare government minister of President Denis Sassou Nguesso who can walk anywhere in the country without a body guard. He is a man of the people and indeed a very simple free minded man. While he is fluent in both English and French, he prefers to speak only the Lingala language. Lingala is one of the two widely spoken national languages in Congo and western DRC. He is also one of the ministers of Denis Sassou Nguesso’s government that, I have spoken with who has a clear cut ideological orientation. He is a Communist pan Africanist. His main national political idol or role model is: Marien Ngouabi, on whom, he can spend an entire year speaking with passion about and also in excessive praise. To Alain Akouala, Marien Ngouabi is the all time best President of Congo. On Marien Ngouabi, Alain Akouala is not the only Congolese who is full of praise of a leader who died in controversial circumstances in 1977. Marien Ngouabi is held in a kind mythology in Congo and he was also a pan Africanist whose actions are not known because those he brought to power in 1968, did not only help to kill him but they have done everything to destroy or undermine his legacy.  

Marien Ngouabi was amongst those Thomas Isidore Sankara considered as heroes and role models in his own actions and policies in Burkina Faso. Like Marien Ngouabi, Thomas Sankara was killed by his brothers in arms. Commandant Marien Ngouabi is to Congolese what John Fritz Kennedy is to the Americans, an idol that can still win elections, even in his grave against any presidential candidate in Congo. Marien Ngouabi was an example of probity absent today in Congo’s political elite.  The other idols of Alain Akouala are: Ahmed Sekou Toure of Guinea, Patrice Emery Lumumba of the DRC, Antonio Agostinho Neto of Angola, Amílcar Lopes da Costa Cabral of Guinea Bissau and Cape Verde, Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein of Egypt and Samora Moisés Machel of Mozambique. He also loves Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz of Cuba and Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela of South Africa. But he thinks that, the South African and global icon is a sellout, for having in his expression, conceded too much to the white minorities. Another thing he spends time speaking in glorious terms about is the battle of Cuito Cuannavale in Angola. A battle fought between 1987 and 1988 and it was the most important battle and turning point in the liberation combed ideological proxy war pitting the imperial powers of the United States against the USA on African soil. On one hand were the South African Defense Force supported by UNITA of Dr Jonas Savimbi while on the other hand were the Cuban forces supported by the MPLA, Soviet Union, ANC and SWAPO.

The commander of the first was Colonel Deon Ferreira, while the commander of the second was General Leopoldo Cintras Frias aka Polo. In the mind of Alain Akouala, the Berlin wall has not fallen and he also thinks that Africa, especially French-speaking Africa is in a second a ferocious decolonization process against the imperialists.The fact that he is still a minister in Denis Sassou Nguesso’s government to point of being given the strategic post of ambassador of Congo to France is a unique testimony of his resilience and independent fighting spirit, for he doesn’t have the support of the children of the President as it is the case with most government ministers in Congo. Alain Akouala is an independent minded person who believes in the values of true democracy, the respect of free speech and protection and defense of human rights. He also respects the rights of all minorities’ even homosexuals, something most of his colleagues can’t stand. He also doesn’t belong to any of the orders or cult groups that most influential men and women Congo and Africa likes to be attached to or be members of. Therefore, he is not a member of any fraternities such as Bilderberg, Freemason, Armoc or any tribal orders or fraternity. 

Even though born in a Christian Roman catholic family, he seldom goes to church. Most often than not, combated by some members of the ruling family who have influence on some government ministers as already mentioned, he has survived because he is a fighter  who has rendered himself indispensable in the defense of the regime and in particular, President Denis Sassou Nguesso. He is exceptionally proactive in the defense of President Denis Sassou Nguesso than most government ministers, to a point that, he has been nicknamed: “the cobra of Denis Sassou Nguesso”. Edgard Nguesso, the nephew of President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Director of Presidential Domains calls him “the manager”, whatever that means is left to the author to explain, while Issidore Mvouba, MP and minister in Denis Sassou Nguesso’s government calls him the cobra of Denis Sassou Nguesso.

Mr. Mvouba, MP is even the author of the phrase: Cobra of Denis Sassou Nguesso. This because he was impressive in the way Alain Akouala defended the president and his family at the height of accusations in France by NGOs who were accusation the President and his family of having amassed illicit wealth.. While Mvouba,MP might be happy and supports Alain Akouala in his defense of President Denis Sassou Nguesso, not everyone seems to be impressed with the militant defense of the president carried out by Alain Akouala. One of such is Bruno Jean Richard Itoa, MP and current minister of Scientific Research of Congo. He thinks that Alain Akouala is too zealous in defense of the President and doing very little in the function to which he has been appointed. As for Mathias Dzon, former finance minister of Denis Sassou Nguesso and currently his main rival in the opposition, he says: “Alain Akouala will use and dumped very soon by Denis Sassou Nguesso”. 

He also says: “he doesn’t understand the reason why such as brilliant and hard working person such Alain Akouala is investing too much energy in a system and a man of the past in the caliber of Denis Sassou”. But Alain Akouala, who is in his mid 50s and married, doesn’t care. He is a loyal servant of President Denis Sassou Nguesso, because he is the successor of his idol, Marien Ngouabi. He also adds that: “people must learn in Congo and Africa to be loyal and assume the consequences and not be unnecessarily opportunistic”. He is a force to be counter upon within the current system and even if, the system changes and the new  one has the spirit of inclusion and stability, Alain Akouala will still have a greater responsibility and role to play in Congo and in the next two or three decades ahead. Alain Akouala likes African political history, Congolese Rumba music and Biking with his children during the weekends without guards. He is really a man of the people from Gamboma, the most populated city in the north of Congo.

Mrs. Adelaide Yvonne Moungani MP:minister of Small, Medium Size Companies and Artisans

Mrs. Adelaide Yvonne Moungani MP: Mrs. Adelaide Yvonne Mouagny is an MP and minister of Small, Medium Size Companies and Artisans. She was formerly known as Adelaide Mondele Ngollo, the ex- wife of General Benoit Mondele Ngollo, who until recently, he was the prefect of the Brazzaville prefecture. General Benoit Mondele Ngollo is an accomplished author, who is also known for his blunt way of speaking. He was also the former minister of public works and childhood friend of President Denis Sassou Nguesso. General Benoit Mondele Ngollo has been dismissed from the post of the prefect of Brazzaville, allegedly because he wrote a letter to President Denis Sassou Nguesso asking him to respect the constitution of the country and leave power when his mandate ends in August 2016. That is the real Benoit, blunt and straightforward.

As for Mrs. Adelaide Moungani, she is said or believed to be a neck deep communist, who was once a member of the youth wing the Red party known in Congo as “the Pioneers.”   Mrs. Adelaide Moungani was also member of the Communist party militia under President Alphonse Massamba-Debat known as “popular militia”. She remained a member of the popular militia even under Commandant Marien Ngouabi, the successor of Massamba-Debat. President Massamba-Debat, the man who made Congo to become a Communist country, was overthrown on the 5th of August 1968 in a popular uprising. That coup d’état was not only correcting the communist orientation of the country, it also changed the balance of power between southern and northern Congolese.  The 1968 coup d’état also brought the northerners and the Mbouchi tribe in power, a position they have held since then, only losing power in 1992, following the holding of multiparty democratic presidential elections, that saw the victory of Professor Pascal Lissouba, a southern communist, turn liberal democrat. Mrs. Mouagny is believed to have been the girl friend or “wife” of Ange Diawara, a comrade in arms of Marien Ngouabi, but who decided on the 22nd of February 1972 to overthrow the first, because the second and his leftist oriented group of soldiers accused Marien Ngouabi of diverting from pure Communist ideology.  

Ange Diawara was a real revolutionary who wanted to rectify the errors of Marien Ngouabi, hence he staged the coup d’état of 1972, that General Benoit Mondele Ngolo was also took part. The coup d’état of Ange Diawara failed and was transformed into a rebellion, which ended a year later, after Ange Diawara and his men, were overwhelmed militarily and he was killed. After the death of Ange Diawara, Mrs. Adelaide Moungani was “recuperated” or taken by General Benoit Mondele Ngolo, who was the comrade in arms and in the rebellion with her “husband’” Ange Diawara. Today, the soft spoken Mrs. Adelaide Moungani, who is an MP and minister in Sassou Nguesso’s government since 2009, is equally ambitious. But hers is a local ambition, for she only wants to become the leader of the Pool region, arguably the most educated, most politically aware and also the most restive in the country.  She is one of the rare women of influence of the country who have risen from the rank and file of the ruling Congolese Workers Party to be respected. Her political rival in the region is Isidore Mvouba MP, former prime minister and current coordinating minister of the pool of Industry and Commerce. Politically, she is too attached to President Denis Sassou Nguesso and despite her determination and militancy; she has very little credibility within her native region and around the country. Her past role within the party has been forgotten. People think that, she is where she is because, she has betrayed the cause defended by Ange Diawara.

Her age, is another handicap and I doubt whether she can play any major role within the region and the country beyond the tenure of President Denis Sassou Nguesso. Her only ambition currently is to remain minister, hence she is fighting for President Denis Sassou Nguesso to change the constitution and remain in power. Unlike other ministers or to be precise, Mrs. Claudine Munari, she seldom expresses her opinion on national or regional issues. It is perhaps the memory or heritage of repression under communism that makes her to speak very little. She only speaks when ordered by the President to, hence the rumors around Brazzaville, that, she is one of the mistresses of the President and also the raison why she divorced her former husband.   General Benoit Mondele Ngollo used a court order banning her from using his name. Hence she is called Mrs. Moungani. The other person and member of the political elite that I have met and even befriended is Alain Akouala Atipault also known affectionately as 3 A o and also by some as “Cerveau Bleu” or in English: Bleu Brain, whatever that means is left to authors to explain and I have never cared to find out.

I think it was a mistake. However, I suspect it has something to do with the Gamboma royalty that I suspect he has a distant connection.

Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah: The Wallis Simpson of the Nguessos(profile)

Stella Sassou Nguesso: Congo’s president has several children. To be precise, he has 29 children and perhaps still fathering.  Anyway, about the above figure, he was the one who told me in 2012.  One thing amongst some of the Nguessos, like most children from rich and politically well connected homes or families in Africa and in some third world countries, is that, sometimes, some of them want to use or shield themselves behind the prestigious name of their father, family or political formations. But it is not the case with Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah. She is different from the newly minted or newly recognized Nguessos. This is so, because, she seems hardworking and humble. At least, when I met her in her home located at the Plateau des 15 an, north of Brazzaville.  Unlike most of her sisters and half sisters, who are married, but don’t like to be identified by the names of their husbands, Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah likes to be known by the name of her Togolese husband. The only two known girls of the Nguesso galaxy, who are proud to be identified by the names of their husbands, are Julienne Johnson and Lydie H. Kourissa. In Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah’s case, it is not as though she is not proud of her father or her family’s name or heritage; hence she wants to be known only as Mrs. Mensah.  

La discrete

She just wants to do what is the tradition in Congo, Africa and most of the world. She says.  And according to Mrs. Mensah, she wants to be judged not in connection or in relation to her father who is president of the Republic, but she must be judged based more on her own acquired merit.   Also all those who know her or are also close to Mrs. Mensah, refers to her as the “discreet one” or in French: “la discrete.”  But how come that, a discreet Congolese girl or woman could have as a role model, Wallis Simpson? I asked her. Her response was evasive. Personally I felt that, it is either her family never wanted her to get married to her Togolese husband or it was the family of the Togolese man or husband who never wanted him to get married to her. Or perhaps Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah is too independent minded and free as in her head and spirit as Wallis Simpson was, hence the affection or the appreciation for the late American. And according to Colonel Ignace Ngakala, the former Director of the Brazzaville University Teaching Hospital or CHU, Mrs. Mensah is unique in the way she behaves, given her background. He adds that, she does not brag and she is not tempestuous. Colonel Ngakala concludes that, Mrs. Mensah is very humane and humble.

Humble & Generous

Colonel Ngakala is not the only person who is close to Mrs. Mensah and who is also full of praise of the French trained interior designer. Mr Oriac Tchimbabelela, a close aide, describes Mrs. Mensah as a person who is patient and does not take decisions under pressure or influenced by her surroundings. He also adds that, Mrs. Mensah is very generous and she is also a person of strong will. He concludes that, it is the humane side of Mrs. Mensah that has forced her to sponsor annually, a number of socially disadvantaged youths throughout the country by buying them text books and also pays for their schools fees. Besides being humane, Mrs. Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah is also patriotic. She is leading a campaign to encourage Congolese intellectuals who are abroad to come back home and share their knowhow with their country of origin.

Ambitious

Like most people, Mrs. Mensah and as already mentioned, has a role model. And hers is Wallis Simpson, who was married to Prince Edward. Asked again why she has chosen Wallis Simpson as role model, she replies this time around, albeit hesitantly that, she admires Mrs. Simpson because of her character. According to Mrs. Mensah, Wallis Simpson was very independent minded. The “discreet Nguesso lady” will soon become visible, for she is not only a card holding member of the ruling Congolese Workers Party or PCT; she plans to take an active role in local politics. In the upcoming local council elections, she plans to become a councilor for the Mbamou Island, a municipality attached to the Brazzaville 7^th district. But her ultimate goal is to become the first female lord Mayor of the Greater Brazzaville City council. On why she wants to go into politics and why she has chosen Mbamou Island as her launching pad for the control of the capital city in the future, she says, it was her decision and she was also supported and encouraged by her father.  She adds that, her father loves Mbamou Island and has bought lands there for future development.  But I am going into Mbamou Island politics not just because of my father, but more because I love the place and its people. And on whether she has the support of the ruling party, in her ambition, her response is affirmative.  I also asked her: you want to become the first female Lord Mayor of Brazzaville.

Determined

But won’t that create problems between you and your half elder sister whose husband is the current Lord Mayor of the Greater Brazzaville city Council? She starred at me and was speechless as if she seems to have committed a mistake. And then, said: I don’t care. It is my ambition. Then, she quickly adds that, there will always be people who will challenge or contest what you are, who you are or what you want to do. She also adds that, there is an advantage as well as disadvantages of being the progeny of the president of the Republic. Concerning the advantage, I think people do give an ear or pay attention to all what (you) I say. What I don’t know is whether they do respect or act as I do recommend, simply because I am the daughter of the president or for some other rationale reasons. On the disadvantage part, she says that, being a Sassou Nguesso, people think all their problems and difficulties can be solved by me with a magic wand. Mrs. Stella Sassou Nguesso Mensah, who was born on the 19^th of November 1974 and married to a Togolese national by name Emmanuel Edoe Mensah, has three children and chairs a humanitarian NGO called Roca-Diale. This NGO which has partnership with the FAO and UNDP focuses on humanitarian and development oriented projects around the country. Her NGO has constructed schools and provided pipe born water in remote localities throughout the country. 

Mrs Claudine Munari Mabondzou: Profile of a Presidential candidate

Until her recent dismissal from the government, she was minister of Commerce.  Mrs Claudine Munari Mabondzou, who is Member of Parliament, is also the leader of a political party called Movement pour L’Unite, la Solidarite et le Travail abbreviated in French as MUST or in English: Movement for Unity, Solidarity and Labour. Mrs Munari who was formerly married to a Cameroonian lawyer by name Emmanuel Pensy is a subject of all kinds of fantasies and suspicions, especially from her women folk. She is sometimes referred to as a spy or a professional political whore or both. Hence the nickname Mata Hari and Mrs Genevieve Ngouassi, a journalist and former Directress General of the state owned Tele Congo, calls: her a “genocidaire”, because of her close link with former President Pascal Lissouba. Logically, it was normal for her to be close to the former president because, she was her Directress of Cabinet or chief of staff. But according to some people close to the only post independent democratically elected president of Congo, Claudine Munari was brought closer to the President by Martin Mberi, Christophe Moukoueke and Tamba- Tamba, all ethnic Bembes, who wanted to control Pascal Lissouba, who was also from the south but from a minority tribe known as the nzembis. While most political elite in Congo are of the opinion that, Claudine Munari was not only the mistress of president Pascal Lissouba, they also claim, she was the architect of his political fall. This, it must be said  are normal Congolese rumours that have never been substantiated, at least at my level by people that, I have met. Lambert Ngalibali, former minister of public works under President Pascal Lissouba and former Lord Mayor of the Brazzaville city council, who knows Mrs Munari very well, told me in 2008, when he was the guest of  my programme called La Grande Interview in Paris, France that, Claudine Munari was indeed very close to former President Pascal Lissouba. But he never told me nor confirmed to me whether she was the girl friend or mistress of the only democratically elected President of post independent Congo. But the rumour mill in Brazzaville has another salacious story about her.  

It is claimed that, she owns her current or former post of minister of Commerce because she had affairs with both President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Jean Dominique Okemba. Mr Okemba is the nephew of the President and also holds the dual functions of special adviser to his uncle and secretary general of the National Security Council. The Brazzaville rumour mill also has it that, it is because she betrayed former president Pascal Lissouba and the UPADS, the former ruling party, that she was rewarded with a ministerial post by current president Denis Sassou Nguesso. In Congo, the land of professional liars, it is almost impossible to distinguish truths from lies or outright manipulations or even blackmail. However, none of those rumours have been proven, for  as already mentioned, the Republic of Congo is a republic of professional liars, blackmail, character assassinations and defamation. The attitudes of dragging down people’s image in the mud or being smeared by opponents or detractors have been given or elevated into an art in the former Marxist country. Furthermore, politics in Congo and power struggle are always very salacious. It is also a country where most women believe that, she must exchange sex for favour or position. Hence there are wild stories around Mrs Munari, because many can’t come to term that, she is where she is today because of hard work and not via any tribal connections or sexual favours.

Claudine Munari is really very beautiful and intelligent, that is also perhaps the other reason why most wives of influential members of the government are jealous of her and may also be amongst those spreading false rumours about her. The truth is that, she got her position within the government because of the influence that she commands within her region and also because of the desire of President Denis Sassou Nguesso for national reconciliation after the 1997 brief but brutal civil war that ended the reign of Pascal Lissouba. I have met her a number of times, but the only time that we spoke at length was on the 6^th of August 2014 in the Hallway of Four Season Hotel in Washington DC. I noticed on that day, that, while she was minister working in the government of President Denis Sassou Nguesso; she never supported how the country was being governed. She asked me this question: “where do you gather the courage to work independently, the way you are working?” And she added: “I hope that, they will allow you to continue with the way that you are doing your job. She concluded: But know that, there are many Congolese supporting what you are doing professionally”. On that, day, I was in the Hallway of the Washington DC Hotel with Mampassi Ngoma Rech Chadon aka Ted Koppel and Olga Tchitembo. Both journalists working for the privately owned Congolese Television called MNTV. Claudine Munari is a woman to be counted upon in Congolese politics and her political capital can live beyond the current regime. While Claudine Munari is courageous, intelligent and independent minded and has created a reputation for herself, it is not the case with Mrs Adelaide Mouagny, another woman in government.

Gilda Rosemonde Ngambo:Shrewd and unpredictable (Profile)

She is the spokeswoman of an association known in French as Movement Citoyen pour le Respect de l’ordre Constitutionelle or in English, Citizen Movement for the Respect of Constitutional Order.  It is a popular youth movement created by the opposition to mobilize Congolese against plans by the government to change the constitution of 20^th January 2002, which installed two terms presidential limits. Before receiving her as guest in my live Television programme called: La Grande Interview on Friday May 30^th 2014 at 8h30 pm, on MNTV, I first met her at Hotel Saphire, where she was working. On that day, she was in the company of another member of their movement by name Wifried Kivouvou. I was struck by her simplicity and her intelligence. And within me, I was saying that, she won’t stay long with the Congolese opposition. I was impressed by her, because, in a country, where rich men in high places, almost all, belonging to the ruling PCT Party, have destroyed young women. It was therefore hard to see a young intelligent lady such as Rosemonde, who accepted to suffer in the opposition and also to be married to a man who was not wealthy.

In short, Rosemonde is different from most Congolese girls, who are mostly crass and mostly animated by materialism.  Some or a majority of Congolese young girls are equal to their male peers in one area: corruption. They almost all have one rallying cry or slogan in French, that goes thus: “Vie ton moment” or in English: “live you’re your moment”. These kind of young girls want to have a Toyota RAV 4 car, a dream trip to Paris or Dubai, as it is currently the trend and also upon return, they are expected to open a boutique at the Marche Moungali. All these expected largesse, is from the deep pocket of an old married and corrupt politician belonging to the ruling PCT party.  30 or more years of PCT rule in Congo, has destroyed the foundation of Congo. Immorality and the culture of immediacy are what reigns in Congo under Denis Sassou Nguesso. Gilda Rosemode Montsara Ngambo, who is a writer, is different and immune to the attractions of cheap shinning, but ephemeral lifestyle that most young women of her generation have chosen. And more, when she decided to enter into politics, she opted for the difficult track, that of the opposition. She is intelligent and bold, with a strong mastery of Congolese politics and also with an extraordinary debating capacity that frightens opponents in the opposition as well as in the majority.  

Thierry Moungalla, Minister of Communications of Congo says that, she is shrewd and unpredictable. While Alain Akouala describes her as the best in her generation with an Olympian calm that is incapacitating.  As for Clement Mierassa, he says: Rosemonde is the example that, there are competent young Congolese in the country.  She is perhaps the best choice that the opposition has ever made in contemporary times. That of selecting a lady not because she is connected to anyone within the hierarchy of the opposition, but she was selected based only on her merit. She is one of the people to be counted on, especially if the opposition comes to power or if, there is any kind of coalition government and if she is given a post of responsibility, she would serve as a role model to many Congolese girls, who only think that, success depends on material possession or getting married to a wealthy old corrupt politician, who is member of the ruling party. Rosemonde is not only a symbol of hope that, there are youthful potentials in the young generation of those who have chosen the opposition, but she is also a symbol of hope to people who think that, the current generation of young men and women in Congo, is one that is lost in the corruption and cheap lifestyle shown to them as examples by those currently ruling the country.  The other lady that I have met is Mrs. Claudine Munari Mabondzou MP. 

Mrs. Arlette Soudan-Nonault: Sassou Nguesso's weapon of mass destabilisation (Profile)

She is a former journalist and former special adviser to Pierre Ngolo MP, secretary general of the ruling Congolese Workers Party abbreviated in French as PCT. In her early 50s and married to a French journalist by name Francois Soudan, Arlette Soudan-Nonault, is one of the rare women and member of the ruling party who is capable to express herself intelligently, honestly and this, without fear. She is not a hypocrite. She is real. But too modern for a party and system that has medieval tribal practices. She is also technologically savvy within a movement that doesn’t know where they (PCT) stand for, ideologically. The ruling PCT, that, she is a member, is a political movement that, is more pruned to corruption than working for the common man. Hence, it has a problem not only of image, but also of credibility amongst the population. This is so because, most members of the ruling party are worn-out and corrupt old men, who do not want to create chance for internal renewal. The PCT of Mrs. Soudan-Nonault is out of touch with reality.

It is a political party, for old men, who have taken their old chairman (Denis Sassou Nguesso) hostage. It is also a party that, detest the presence of independent women: young or old within their rank. Arlette Soudan-Nonault seems to be an exception to the rule within the ruling party, even though there are some women like her within the ruling party. She is an exception in that, she is bold and ready to take out her sword from its quiver to challenge the established order.  She is honest to a point that, within the ruling party and within the ruling Nguesso family that she is part of, she is not appreciated by some members, because of her outspokenness. Mindful that, her outspokenness has marginalized her within the hierarchy of the PCT, she has distant herself from the ruling party and has created a think tank called Athena. The think tank, she says, has been created to make independent and objective contributions directly to the President of the Republic, for she is of the opinion that, the president of the Republic (Denis Sassou Nguesso) is poorly advised by his official advisers within the government and also within the ruling PCT party.  

Asked why such a brilliant young woman and a former journalist with western education would support such nepotism inclined, violent and corrupt regime?  Her answer is metaphorical and euphemistic. I am for evolution and not revolution.  She replies. And she adds: I will rather prefer to stand by Ali, than support the 40 thieves, who have been enriched by Ali and will throw the country into chaos, if given the opportunity prematurely. She concludes her metaphoric and euphemistic response justifying her fanatical support of President Denis Sassou Nguesso by saying this: the President is laying the foundation of democratic appeasement in the country and will leave power by 2021, a time when, the country is expected to have been exorcized of its demons of divisions and rancor. Arlette Soudan-Nonault, believes that, her contributions to the President, if taken into consideration, could help improved the  battered image of the president and also make him attractive in view of his plans to change the constitution and his re-elections.

She has little or no respect for most members of the opposition. The only member of the opposition that she respects is Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes, affectionately known as Nick. She claims that, Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes is different from the rest because he is not only respectful, but he has an excellent appraisal of the political reality of the country currently. As for the rest of the opposition, she refers to them as a band of rogues whose only ambitions are to throw the country into chaos. For she also thinks that, they have no other programme or agenda other than, hatred for the President. She also thinks that, most people around the president are in league with the opposition, thus fanning the embers to destabilize the President. In other words, President Denis Sassou Nguesso seems to be alone and is not sure or certain of his fate should he relinquishes power. Hence he wants to hang on until death takes him away. Her posture has made her not to have friends within the party and also within a section of the ruling family. Her only reliable friends are the President of the Republic and her husband.

Mrs. Soudan-Nonault, who owns one of the best private schools in Congo, called: institute Saint Francois D’Assise de Makabandilou, located in the north of Brazzaville, is in spite everything, a force to be counted on within the ruling PCT party, presently and also in the future. That is if, President Denis Sassou Nguesso stays onto power, as she firmly believes, he will and he decides to reward her for her zealotry. But the cruel Congolese political reality that seems to elude Mrs Arlette Soudan-Nonault is that, a bright and brilliant woman such as her, cannot blossom politically in a party like the PCT and in a system such as the one instituted in Congo and within the ruling party by Denis Sassou Nguesso a system that is characterized by mutual mistrust, cynicism, disloyalty, greed and treachery. Whether she likes it or not, she is a disposal material that would be used by her uncle of a President and dispensed off, whenever, the apparatchik of the ruling party decides to ignite, the ignition of their destructive steamroller against her. But she seems not to care and she is ready because of her principles, which is not known whether it is idealism or realism or both, to be the sacrificial lamb of her uncle.

The ruling Congolese Workers Party is a cynical  party populated by  macho old men who are not only corrupt but, who are more busy fighting for themselves and their family and do not even care about the improvement the lot of the country or even improve the image of the President who made them to become what they are today. The ruling party in Congo is a party of ingrates and that is where Mrs. Soudan-Nonault, thinks she can she change or improve things. Nonetheless, Mrs. Soudan-Nonault has the merit and the courage to fight and also defend and also attempt to sell a president who is synonymous to an expired product. This alone speaks volumes not only of her character, but also of her determination. Mrs. Soudan-Nonault is a fighter and a positive one, but she is in a wrong camp or wrong side of history. Some would conclude. But time they say, is the best and honest judge. The other woman that I have met and interviewed like Arlette Soudan-Nonault is Gilda Rosemonde Ngambo.