Bonaventure Mbaya: Profile a man without no character or personality

Bonaventure Mbaya:  he is a former minister, whose only feather on his political cap is the fact that, he is member of the international socialists. He enjoys talking about it or on how; he met so and so French minister or so and so, French-speaking African minister or president, during an international socialist gathering in Africa or in France.  Besides those, Bonaventure Mbaya has nothing to show. He is not a major political force in the forest of old and young individuals who have made politics their profession. Congo is also one of the rare countries in the region, besides Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, where, when you ask the profession of someone, he/she could easily, respond: politics. And to show that, politics is an important economic sector, besides alcoholic industries and leisure investments or businesses, many students in Congo are aspiring to become politicians. Bonaventure Mbaya is a prototype of a real Congolese politician. He is a realist or a survivalist, who is neither member of the two or three wings of the Congolese divided and weak opposition. The Republic of Congo has two brands of opposition political parties. The first are called the radicals, while the second are referred to, as the Republicans and sometimes they are called moderates.

The first is led by Mathias Dzon and assisted or seconded by Clement Mierassa, whereas the second doesn’t have a clear cut leadership. Sometimes, the leader is either Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes or Jean Michel Bokamba Yagouma, the former trade unionists. Mr Yagouma is the trade union leader from northern Congo, who brought down Denis Sassou Nguesso in 90s with his crippling strikes. Denis Sassou Nguesso not only hated him, he took him for a traitor because, Mr Yagouma is not only a native of the north, and more, they are from the same administrative region, the Cuvette. Furthermore, they speak the same language, the Mbouchi. Because of the trade union activities of Mr Yagouma, he earned an infamous character in Denis Sassou Nguesso’s June 1997 book called The Mango Tree, The River and the Mouse. The mouse character in question is Mr Bokamba Yagouma. Sadly or should I say, like a typical Congolese politician would behave, Bokamba Yagouma has today crossed the carpet and is firing full throttle for Denis Sassou Nguesso, his erstwhile enemy. Why?  It was simply because, Bokamba doesn’t want his daughter, to go to jail. The daughter of Bokamba is alleged to have embezzled a lump sum in a local bank called LCB. And President Denis Sassou Nguesso is reported to be the majority share, which stands at 64% and he is represented on the board of the bank by a certain Hubert Pandino.  Between the two leading opposition forces latter mentioned, there is a third force also, but that is allied to the ruling party. But Bonaventure Mbaya belongs strangely to none, but he is reported to have flirted with them all.

His only hope now is to become a government minister by all means. Hence, he doesn’t have a clear cut ideology or position on major national political or social issues, for fear of wrecking his promised and aspired ministerial post. I noticed that, when I had him as guest on the 11^th of July 2014 in my programme La Grande Interview. Before he could come, it was Mr. Sylvetre Ossiala MP, who first called to inform me that, Mbaya wanted to be invited in my programme. What stroke me was that, Mr Ossiala invited me first to his house and tried to condition me on what and how he wanted me to conduct the interview with Bonaventure Mbaya. I accepted but told him that, I will conduct my interview as I have always done and it will be left to Mr Mbaya to defend your project. From there on, I concluded that, Bonaventure Mbaya was not operating alone. He was a straw man of a presidential manipulative scheme. Since the ruling party was determined to change the constitution, they hand many pliers in the fire to use. And Mr Mbaya was one of them. On the constitution, Bonaventure Mbaya, wants it to be changed in order to create the posts of 1^st and 2^ndvice presidents and also a post of prime minister. Then, I asked him, this would be added to the already existing posts of speakers of the upper and lower chambers of parliaments?

He responded: Yes. But where will the state get money from to finance all these institutions? I asked back. He answered: this changes and propositions are needed and necessary, for it was made or designed  in a bid to satisfy all sections and regions of the country that are currently marginalized by the minority ethnic Mbouchis who are governing the country . And he added: Congo has a lot of money. I concluded inwardly that, since he was  a Socialist in his political orientation, he was inclined to the tax and spending syndrome of his western friends and in chief, the French socialists  who have no thoughts of saving for rainy days. Bonaventure Mbaya might be eloquent and intelligent, but he is like most politicians in Congo that I have come across: corrupt or corruptible. That is partly why Denis Sassou Nguesso has stayed longer in power, because he knows how to buy over politicians.  In my humble opinion, Mr Mbaya has no character or personality. He gyrates whenever he senses a ministerial post or money is dangled over to him and thus, he could be bought over anytime. One good thing with him, because no one man can be all round bad, he at least, has a political ideology: socialism. It is a luxury that most Congolese or African politicians that I have met, seldom have. Most don’t even know whether they are left or right, what they best know is how to plan corruption and corrupt practices.

Mathias Dzon: Congo is a republic and not a monarchy

When I discovered the sort of hatred that, Sassou Nguesso harbored against his former finance minister, I went back to Mathias Dzon’s home and asked him this simple question:  why, is it that, President Denis Sassou Nguesso can’t stand or hates you so much? Mathias Dzon replied my question with another one that went thus: you go and ask him the reason why he Denis Sassou Nguesso hates me. Mathias Dzon attempted some answers, but in reality he was evasive and at the end, he never told me anything serious. However, when Mathias Dzon explained to me the role that he played on the side of Denis Sassou Nguesso when they were in exile in France and also when they took power from Pascal Lissouba, after the civil war, I could only guess, the fear that inhabited President Denis Sassou Nguesso against Mathias Dzon was the only reason why Denis Sassou Nguesso hated his former minister of finance. Denis Sassou Nguesso was perhaps afraid that, Mathias Dzon could expose him or their secret dealings to the Congolese and the international community. Interestingly or not, Mathias Dzon was never ready or willing to spill the bin.  

President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Mathias Dzon certainly have their differences to a point that, the second did not attain the burial of the daughter (Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba) of the first in Edou. But the person who knows the real reason behind the hatred that Denis Sassou Nguesso has for Mathias Dzon is Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eude. He is very close to both President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Mathias Dzon. Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eude had even tried to mediate between both men, when they fell out openly in 2007. The official reason it is claimed to why Denis Sassou Nguesso fell out with his former finance minister, Mathias Dzon was because Matthias wanted to field in too many independent candidates in the 2007 legislative elections.  And the second reason, this time around floated by some members of the ruling family is that, Mathias Dzon was angry to have been removed from the ministry of finance as minister. Hence he is against the President. However, this second reason doesn’t say why Denis Sassou Nguesso hates Mathias Dzon. 

In my opinion, the problem between both men might be that, Mathias Dzon’s ambition was viewed by Denis Sassou Nguesso who loves power, as a threat to his domination of the Congolese political landscape. Furthermore and this, contrary to what Denis Sassou Nguesso likes to portray, he is in reality, a very regional and tribal oriented man. Denis Sassou Nguesso wants to be regarded in the north as their champion and protector from southern Congolese that he and other northern supremacists, think are a threat to their existence and current political, military and economic powers or privileges. 

And to see the rise of Mathias Dzon, means a direct challenge to Denis Sassou Nguesso’s role as northern guardian and also leader of the entire Congo. But Mr. Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes has another reason why Mathias Dzon fell out with Denis Sassou Nguesso. The culprit according to Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes is Alain Roux the owner of a mineral water bottling Company called Eaux Mayo. Alain Roux is the cause. He is the one who forced Mathias Dzon to become President Denis Sassou Nguesso’s greatest and most formidable rival. And still according to Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes, Alain Roux was the one who has made or pushed Mathias Dzon to become the opposition leader that, he is today.  Alain Roux is a French businessman living in Brazzaville and he is the friend of both President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Mathias Dzon. 

It is alleged that, Alain Roux was amongst the many French whites who not only supported Denis Sassou Nguesso’s violent power grab from democratically elected Pascal Lissouba, in 1997, they also supplied the then rebel militia of Denis Sassou Nguesso known as the Cobra with weapons that were bought from Eastern Europe, North Korea and that passed through Angola and Gabon. How did Alain Roux force Mathias Dzon to enter in the opposition? Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes told me that, Alain Roux once visited Mathias Dzon and Mathias told Alain Roux that, he wanted to field in independent candidates in the upcoming 2007 legislative elections.  Alain Roux smiled and then asked Mathias: knowing how Denis Sassou Nguesso loves power, are you not afraid that, the president will be angry?

Mathias replied: I don’t care and Mathias added: we are all human beings and we need to have ambitions and more, this is a republic and not a monarchy. According to Nicephore Fylla, Mathias Dzon never knew that, Alain Roux even though his friend was more loyal to the President. And Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes added: it true that, Mathias Dzon wanted to field in candidates of his party in the legislative elections of 2007, but Mathias Dzon was not doing so in an attempt to challenge the power of President Denis Sassou Nguesso. But when Alain Roux reported to the President, he made the President to think and believe that, Mathias Dzon had presidential ambitions. That was when President Denis Sassou Nguesso went mad and decided that, the candidacy of Mathias Dzon and all those he fielded for the 2007 legislative elections should be banned. Surprised at the turn of events, members of the decision making body of the ruling Congolese Workers party abbreviated PCT, decided to also invalidate the  candidacy of Maurice Nguesso, in order to calm down the growing tension that sparked from the disqualification of Mathias Dzon and all those his party fielded into the 2007 legislative elections.

While Mathias Dzon doesn’t want to speak on the real cause of their fallout ,only claiming that, it was because he opposed the way President Denis Sassou Nguesso began running the country, especially regarding economic matters. Mathias Dzon however told me that: President had informed him that, he was no longer going to retain him in his reshuffled cabinet because of his ambitions. Whatever the challenges that I went through in Congo from the hands of  certain members of the ruling family and also from the security forces that culminated in my expulsion, I am happy that MNTV /Radio was the most successful amongst the various arms of the media group called MNCOM. It is true it was a lost making venture financially. But it gradually started operating like a modern company. My plans to turn it around financially were set for the 4^th year and it would have been 2015. My first goal was that, I wanted to establish and give MNTV/MN Radio credibility and then, my second plan was to focus on generation of funds in order to make it truly autonomous. The challenge to make MNTV/Radio both subsidiaries of the media group MNCOM to become professional and also make it attractive was a success by September 2014.

It also proved all those who doubted Maurice Nguesso’s capacity to run a viable company wrong. MNTV/MN Radio won’t have been a success without the support of the entire staff and also the support of Maurice Nguesso, in spite pressure from his family. We had pitiable materials, lack of trained manpower, salaries were not paid regularly but with determination, we succeeded to make MNTV/ MN Radio to become a major media in Congo.  And in the 11^th August 2014 edition of the pan African French language magazine Jeune Afrique, a profile was written, though focusing on me, but it was thanks to the collective work of the MNTV/MN Radio that, I could be known. But it was not easy to work in Congo. Sometimes I had to cover-up some of my journalists who were on the verge of being arrested by the Police.  There are the cases of Guy Blaise Seydoux and Emery Patrice Orbargui.  I had pressure from the ruling Nguesso family and also from the government, especially the Police. Although I have written about the ruling Nguesso family, mostly in negative terms, it would be unfair to generalize or for me to claim that all members of the ruling family are bad. 

Nicephore Fylla de Saint Eudes: Alain Roux made Mathias Dzon to become an opposition leader

But when I interviewed and broadcast the interview that I had with Mathias Dzon, that was when I discovered that, President Denis Sassou Nguesso did not only hate free speech, he had a repugnance for Mathias Dzon. The interview of Mathias Dzon that was broadcast on MNTV was as though, I have committed a heresy in the eyes of President Denis Sassou Nguesso. He even threatened to expel me from the country, but it took the persuasions of his elder brother, Maurice Nguesso to convince him that, it was wrong and hash to expel me. However, Denis Sassou Nguesso never forgave me and now considered that, I was not a docile journalist and also that, I was dangerous to him and his regime. I was from that day onward in the wrong column of his book. And like a cobra snake, President Denis Sassou Nguesso recoiled and was waiting for the opportune time for me to commit another “mistake”, in order for him to bit. I also understood that, President Denis Sassou Nguesso seem to have  more than a personal hatred for Mathias Dzon, hence he can tolerate everyone in Congo to do whatever he or she likes against him, but not Mathias Dzon.  

When I discovered the sort of hatred that, Sassou Nguesso harbored against his former finance minister, I went back to Mathias Dzon’s home and asked him this simple question:  why, is it that, President Denis Sassou Nguesso can’t stand or hates you so much? Mathias Dzon replied to my question with another one that went thus: you go and ask him the reason why he Denis Sassou Nguesso hates me. Mathias Dzon attempted some answers, but in reality he was evasive and at the end, he never told me anything serious. However, when Mathias Dzon explained to me the role that he played on the side of Denis Sassou Nguesso when they were in exile  in France and also when they took power from Pascal Lissouba, after the 1997 civil war, I could only guess, the fear that inhabited President Denis Sassou Nguesso against Mathias Dzon, was the only reason why Denis Sassou Nguesso hated his former minister of finance. Denis Sassou Nguesso was perhaps afraid that, Mathias Dzon could expose him or their secret dealings to the Congolese and the international community. Interestingly or not, Mathias Dzon was never ready or willing to spill the bin. 

President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Mathias Dzon certainly have their differences to a point that, the second did not attain the burial of the daughter (Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba) of the first in Edou. But the person who knows the real reason behind the hatred that Denis Sassou Nguesso has for Mathias Dzon is Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eude. He is very close to both President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Mathias Dzon. Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eude had even tried to mediate between both men, when they fell out openly in 2007. The official reason it is claimed to why Denis Sassou Nguesso fell out with his former finance minister, Mathias Dzon was because Matthias wanted to field in too many independent candidates in the 2007 legislative elections.  And the second reason, this time around floated by some members of the ruling family is that, Mathias Dzon was angry to have been removed from the ministry of finance as minister. Hence he is against the President. However, this second reason doesn’t say why Denis Sassou Nguesso hates Mathias Dzon. 

In my opinion, the problem between both men might be that, Mathias Dzon’s ambition was viewed by Denis Sassou Nguesso who loves power, as a threat to his domination of the Congolese political landscape. Furthermore and contrary to what Denis Sassou Nguesso likes to portray, he is in reality, a very regional and tribal oriented man. Denis Sassou Nguesso wants to be regarded in the north as their champion and protector from southern Congolese that he and other northern supremacists, think are a threat to their existence and current privilege of political, military and economic power. And to see the rise of Mathias Dzon, means a direct challenge to his role as northern guardian and also leader of the entire Congo. But Mr. Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes has another reason why Mathias Dzon fell out with Denis Sassou Nguesso. 

The culprit according to Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes is Alain Roux, the owner of mineral water Company in Congo called Eaux Mayo is the cause. And still according to Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes, Alain Roux was the one who has made or pushed Mathias Dzon to become the opposition leader that, he is today. He went on: Alain Roux, a French businessman living in Brazzaville and the friend of both President Denis Sassou Nguesso and Mathias Dzon, is the cause of the problem or misunderstanding between both men today. How? He told me that, Alain Roux once visited Mathias Dzon and Mathias told Alain Roux that, he wanted to field in independent candidates in the upcoming 2007 legislative elections.  Alain asked Mathias: are you not afraid that, the president will be angry? Mathias replied: I don’t care and Mathias added: we all are human beings and we need to have ambitions and more, this is a republic and not a monarchy. According to Nicephore Fylla, it true that, Mathias Dzon wanted to field in candidates of his party in the legislative elections of 2007, but Mathias Dzon was not doing so in an attempt to challenge the power of the president Denis Sassou Nguesso. But when Alain Roux reported to the President, he told the President that, Mathias Dzon had presidential ambitions. That was when President Denis Sassou Nguesso went mad and decided that, the candidacy of Mathias Dzon and all those he fielded for the 2007 legislative elections should be banned. 

Mayoral mantle of the city of Brazzaville:The origin of the intra ruling Nguesso family feud

Eventually, I decided to suspend the programme after I sensed that, Ninelle Sassou Nguesso, one of the daughters of President Denis Sassou Nguesso and the wife of Hugues Ngouelondele, the Lord Mayor of Greater Brazzaville City Council, had made the phone- in- programme on MN Radio called: “Overture sûr l’info”, one of the main subject of their regular family meetings. Ninelle Sassou Nguesso claimed during their meetings that, it was Jean De Dieu KOURISSA, the husband of Mrs. KOURISSA, who has ordered me to start a smear campaign against her husband (Hugues Ngouelondele). The origin of the intra ruling Nguesso family feud, pitting on one side Lydie Hortense Kourissa, the eldest daughter of Maurice Nguesso and on the other side, Ninelle Sassou Nguesso, the daughter of Denis Sassou Nguesso began in 2007 legislative and Council elections. Why? To cut a long story short, The Kourissas were part of the returnee Nguessos from Libreville, where like the rest of the large contingent of the  ruling Nguessos, they flew in Libreville and stayed there when their sister and cousin, Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba was the wife of President Omar Bongo Ondimba.

However, when Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba fell sick and was flown to France for medical treatment, the Nguessos were no longer welcomed in Libreville at the presidential palace known in French as “Palais du bord de Mer.”  The one amongst the ruling Bongo family in Libreville who regarded the Nguessos as an invasion from Congo, was Ali Bongo Ondimba, the son of late Omar Bongo Ondimba and current president. He had a visceral hatred for Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba, the wife of his father. It partly explains the reason why President Denis Sassou Nguesso doesn’t want to see president Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon.  It is because the current Congolese ruling family was no longer welcomed in Gabon, at least within power circles that, they began planning for their home coming. President Denis Sassou Nguesso never wanted Jean De Dieu Kourissa, the husband of his niece (Lydie Hortense Kourissa) to return home and start idling around.  President Denis Sassou Nguesso can be accused of all things negative, but he is a family man. He has strong love for his family and it is also part of the reason why he has failed in the administration of the country. For he always wants to satisfy his family interest first.  

And since their best profession is politics, the uncle in-law of Jean de Dieu Kourissa decided that, Jean De Dieu Kourissa since he was born in Poto-poto, he must be made a member of parliament.  However what the president never knew or expected was the challenge that would be mounted by another native of Poto-poto by name Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes to the Candidacy of Jean De Dieu Kourissa. Between Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes and Jean de Dieu Kourissa both born and bred in Poto-poto, it is the first who is more popular than the second. Furthermore, the other disadvantaged that Jean De Dieu Kourissa has is that, he is married to the niece of President Denis Sassou Nguesso, who is not loved in Poto-poto because of two things: he is suspected to have assassinated Marien Ngouabi and also because he wanted to modernize the neighborhood. To the natives of Poto-poto, no matter the good intension of the president, modernization to them was a metaphor for expropriation.

And the man who fought against the expropriation of Poto-poto was Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes. But during the 2007 legislative elections that were fraught with monumental fraud in favour of Jean de Dieu Kourissa, the Nguessos were united to give their brother and son-in-law a job. However, what they, in particular did not know was that, the municipal councilors of Greater Brazzaville, even though belonging to the ruling PCT Party don’t like the Nguessos. Furthermore, Jean De Dieu Kourissa is partly ethnic Mbouchi from his mother and partly ethnic Lari from his father. Although he is more Mbouchi, than Lari, most PCT councilors and MPs from the Greater Brazzaville, being ethnic Laris and Kongos had preferred, that, the post of Lord Mayor of the Greater Brazzaville city council, should go to one of theirs.   It was Jean De Dieu KOURISSA, their choice.  The ruling PCT councilors in Brazzaville voted and wanted him (Jean De Dieu KOURISSA) to become Lord Mayor of the Greater Brazzaville city Council. But the wishes of the PCT councilors as well as those of PCT member of parliaments were not taken into consideration.

Regarding why the wishes of the PCT councilors of Brazzaville was not taken into consideration or ignored, Isidore MVOUBA, former Prime Minister, and currently Minister of Commerce, told me that, Ninelle Sassou Nguesso was the one who was vehemently opposed. In other words, if Jean De Dieu Kourissa is not Mayor of the Greater Brazzaville city council and could only console himself with his position of MP, it is because of one woman: Ninelle Sassou Nguesso. However, while not underestimating the influence of Ninelle Sassou Nguesso within the Sassou Nguesso power galaxy, the true game changer was Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba, the late beloved daughter of President Denis Sassou Nguesso.  According to Isidore MVOUBA,  it was  an alleged intervention from  Edith Lucie Bongo Ondimba, the late wife of late Omar Bongo Ondimba on her father (Denis Sassou Nguesso) that forced or tilted the table in the favour of the husband of Ninelle Sassou Nguesso. The President of the Republic convinced by her late elder daughter to appoint his son-in-law as Lord Mayor of the Greater Brazzaville City Council, instructed Isidore MVOUBA, to ask the ruling PCT councilors in the Greater Brazzaville City Council to drop Jean De Dieu KOURISSA for the proposed post of lord mayor in favour of for Hugues Ngouelondele.

Mr Ngouelondele is the son-in-law of the President Denis Sassou Nguesso while Jean de Dieu Kourissa is the son-in-law of Maurice Nguesso.  Jean De Dieu Kourissa could at least console himself that, he was elected in controversial manner as a ruling PCT MP for Poto-poto, a populous neighborhood of Brazzaville at the expense of Nicephore Antoine Fylla de Saint Eudes. The pressure of Ninelle Sassou Nguesso did not only succeed to maneuver and to put her husband as mayor of the Greater Brazzaville city council and  as you will read later on, she succeeded years later on, precisely in 2012, to make her husband to be elected  as member of parliament for the Gamboma 1 legislative constituency. This time around, the second victim of Ninelle Sassou Nguesso after Jean De Dieu Kourissa was Mathias Dzon.

The husband of Ninelle who was an MP for Brazzaville who was at the end of his mandate, but he succeeded an electoral feat some 300km away from his Brazzaville base, at the expense of the very popular and charismatic Mathias Dzon. Mr Dzon is the main rival of President Denis Sassou Nguesso and there was no way Hugues Ngouelondele could have defeated Mr Dzon in his fief of Gamboma. Hugues Ngouelondele was elected in Gamboma 1 not because he was popular but out of the military bullying the people and brutal electoral fraud.  Ninelle Sassou Nguesso is a very influential member of the ruling family. Although she is cantankerous and most often bullies her half brothers and sisters, especially those born out of wedlock and recently recognized, she doesn’t brag or she is not the show and tell kind of the newly minted Nguessos.  At MNCOM or to be précised MNTV/ MN Radio, she also succeeded to put off air another very popular Radio call-in- Programme called “Good Morning Congo”. It was presented by Willy MESAMOU aka Mr Jekyll. Within the ruling Nguesso family, the Ninelle Sassou Nguesso wing was the most hawkish.

They are also the ones who think that, their father, Denis Sassou Nguesso was born to rule Congo everlastingly. This wing doesn’t like freedom of speech nor democracy. They were the ones who considered that, I had a mission to destroy their divine rule with my independent reporting and management of MNTV/MN Radio. They were also the ones who not only began attacking me and MNTV/MN Radio, but were bent at destroy the media group of their uncle. Their attacks was not only directed on MN Radio, they also attacked the print media that was publishing the newspaper called Le Fanion. That was suspended for a long while just to satisfy the whims and caprices of Ninelle Sassou Nguesso, who was the wife of the Lord Mayor of the Brazzaville Greater City Council. But where they used all weapons available in their distructive armory was on Television. It is true that, most of what Maurice Nguesso does as investments don’t seem to succeed simply because his ambition is simply to create or offer jobs to Congolese. And as already mentioned, on several occasions, most coming to work for Maurice Nguesso or in any of his companies think, that, they don’t need to invest much time to work.