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.
No comments:
Post a Comment