Congo Brazzaville: La Republique du MABOBA or Eat, Drink and Sex

DRC & Cameroon

Whereas in the DRC, youths have famous musical stars such as Koffi Olumide, Faly Ipupa or a businessman such as Moise Katumbi to copy from or take as role models and in Cameroon, youths also have a football star such as Samuel Eto’o or businessman such as Baba Danpulou to look after or consider as role models, but in Congo it is different.

Congo Brazzaville: a unique place

However, as earlier mentioned, it will be unfair for me to claim that, Congolese youths are disproportionately lazy or that, the country doesn’t have endogenous businessmen or cultural stars for youths to look up to as role models. Congo being a unique place, its famous musician currently, Rogatien Ibambi aka Roga-Roga is famous according to Congo Brazzaville standard, but supported or promoted by Jean Dominique Okemba. Its known businessmen: Paul Obambi (see profile) and Vincent Gomez (see profile), are front men for politically connected leaders, even though they are in denial. Even the youthful, Veron Mankou, who claimed to have created the first African smart-phone and who now promotes of Vox TV and Vox magazine, is supported by Denis Christel Sassou Nguesso. This simply means that, most of those who could have provided an alternative are not really inspirations out of the political box. Instead their success help perpetuate  the generally held notions that, politics, especially supporting the ruling Nguesso family, holds the key to success for men and  for Congolese women and girls, getting married to an old baron of the ruling party or prostitution are the only paths to success.

General overview: La Republique du MABOBA

My perception of Congo is that, it has become like Cuba during the reign of Fulgencio Batista. It is the paradise of leisure and pleasure with it unique trademark: La Republique du MABOBA: Manger, Boire et Baiser or in English: Eat, Drink and Sex.  It is a trademark that most political and economic leaders connected to the ruling PCT party are proud sell to their guests. This is also the only country in the world where government ministers are proud to claim that, all their country can offer are: Eat, Drink and Sex. This will be developed at the conclusion of this book. Besides the above, the country has also become the land of hypocrisy and a strange kind of flattery, which are mixtures between French good manners and strange Congolese traditions. It is also the land whose current leadership has made a travesty of all Congolese and African cultural values. In Congo, as you will read later on, adults seldom grow old, hence matured men refused to be referred to as “fathers.” They prefer to be called “Grand frère” or elder brother.