Guy Milex Mbondzi: He is a journalist and publisher of La Voix du
Peuple. And La Voix du Peuple, in my opinion
is perhaps along with other newspapers such as: Sel Piment, Nouvelle
Observateur and La Griffe, the last truly independent newspapers left in Congo.
But as at the time, that I was typing or writing this book, La Voix du Peuple
had also suffered the same fate of Talassa newspaper. That is, banned
indefinitely by the government of Denis Sassou Nguesso. However, he now runs or
publishes, La Trompet, a sister newspaper. Unfortunately for him and the Congolese
readers, La Trompet newspaper has also been banned by the government. Until the
indefinite ban of La Voix du Peuple, took place, it was perhaps the only
newspaper in Congo, which held the record in term of suspensions from the
government. It immediate competitor was Talassa. It was thanks to La Voix du
Peuple and also Talassa that, the scandal of the sale of Congolese diplomatic
passports to Lebanese, suspected of belonging to Hezbollah was exposed. La Voix
du Peuple was the first to reveal the secret love child of Jean Dominique
Okemba. The mismanagement at LCB Bank by its former manager, Younes El Masloumi
was exposed or revealed by La Voix du Peuple and when Jean-Jacques Bouya
appointed his younger brother, Serge Bouya as the deputy Director of the Pointe
Noire Autonomous Port, the paper that broke the news was La Voix du Peuple. The
head of the Congolese National Communications Commission, Mr Philippe Mvouo
calls Mbondzi a “terrorist journalist” while Clement Mierassa, chair of an
opposition party calls him a freedom fighter.
Mbonzi’s insatiable love for investigative
journalism has created him several enemies within the circles of power and also
within the journalism profession. Within the profession, some of his colleagues
are jealous of him because, he is young and also because of the notoriety that
he has created for himself and newspaper, within a very short time. Until I was expelled from Congo by General
Jean Francois Ndenguet, because I dare protest after he ordered thugs to attack
my home and also gang rape my younger sister, I have been observing Guy Milex
Mbonzi with admiration. I was impressed and I always said to myself that, if
Congo had five courageous and honest journalists such as Mbonzi, the days of
the dictatorship of Denis Sassou Nguesso would have been numbered. Sadly, most Congolese
journalists are professionally lazy, corrupt and dishonest. They are mostly animated
by foolish pride, sterile nationalism, jealousy and envy. Most often some observers
do accuse the opposition and civil society organisations in the country for not
only being weak, but corrupt. And they claim that, it is because of the weak,
corrupt and divided oppositions and civil society organisations, which have
made Denis Sassou Nguesso to stay longer than needed in power. It is partly
correct, but they also forget to mention the aspect of violence employed by the
government on the population, as being another factor in the long reign of
Denis Sassou Nguesso.
The other perhaps crucial aspect seldom mentioned in
to the reason why Denis Sassou Nguesso can extend his rule or misrule, without and
organized resistance or prolonged protest, is the dubious role played by most Congolese
journalists and their press. Most Congolese journalists are not only corrupt;
some even go the extra mile of betraying their colleagues and members of the opposition
to the Police, for a monthly stipend. Most Colleagues journalists work as spies for
the regime, especially for the Police. However, Guy Milex Mbonzi and some few others
are the exceptions to the rule in a country whose press is rotten. Throughout my
stay in Congo, I knew that, La Voix du Peuple has been published and is in circulation,
whenever I saw Guy Milex Mbonzi, dressed in a black Mao Zedong style coat and
holding his black briefcase and walking around the business and administrative district
of Brazzaville. Instead of him hiding in his BasCongo neighbourhood, whenever
he published La Voix du Peuple, he was in town. And more, he was aware that,
each edition of La Voix du Peuple on the newsstand was synonymous to a bomb
explosion of revelations on the lives of the rich and powerful. And in spite
the risk, he still had the effrontery to come and defy those on whom he had published
articles.
The content of La Voix du Peuple was so valued and
appreciated by the population to a point where, it survived economically without
adverts until it was banned. His secret was simple. He did investigative
journalism and focused not only on political subjects, but more on financial
subjects and also on the political, economical and salacious lives of those
governing the country. He is bold and enjoys risking taking. He is also a
militant in the defense and protection of free speech and democracy. Furthermore,
he is honest and knows how to keep secrets. Those are qualities, besides professionalism,
that most Congolese journalists do lack. Guy Milex Mbonzi has created a name
for himself because he doesn’t take bribe or is not at the mercy of any
political affiliation. He has refused to used be by the government, especially
by the Police of General Jean Francois Ndenguet to spy on opposition party
leaders and other prodemocracy activists, as most of his colleagues are doing. However,
he seems to have an idealistic view of the world and of Congo in particular.
Furthermore, he sometimes doesn’t make distinction
between his profession and his hatred of the misrule of the country by Denis
Sassou Nguesso and his cohort. He is a person who believes in Congolese and
African traditions. He says he is an African Christian and a nationalist; hence
he is a member or follower of Andre Grenard Matsoua. Followers of Andre Grenard
Matsoua, a Congolese nationalist and pan Africanist are called the Matsouanists.
Matsouanism is an indigenous Congolese Christian movement. He also leads a very
secretive live, for it is not known whether he is married or whether he has a
partner or children. To confront the current dictatorship in Congo, there is
need for such bold press men and women like Guy Milex Mbondzi, who are not
corruptible and who also believe in true multiparty democracy and freedom of
speech. He is the only Congolese journalist , during my close to four years
stay in that country, whom I have seen refuse money and also a proposition of
trip to France to stay and continue his education. Those offers were made to
him by Bienvenu Okiemi, former minister of Communications. The former minister
wanted him not only stop investigating how he ran the ministry of
Communications, but the minister also wanted him to give him his source of
information within the ministry or elsewhere. Guy Milex rejected all those
demands. All those transactions took place in my presence and the venue was the
restaurant of Mikhael Hotel in Brazzaville. He stands out as an honest diehard
advocate for press freedom and democracy, in a country where most journalists
because of limited or no resources, have become informants of the police.
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