France is best known in Africa for its colonial greed and misdemeanous. Its first colonial ventures occurred in the 19th century after its failure to conquer the Caribbean and India which the British dominated. France was most probably attracted to the immense wealth in terms of natural resources that was buried in the soils of African countries. Pregnant with a mission to exploit and bleed these “savage and uncivilized” men white, France like every other colonial power framed and presented the perfect excuse to the rulers of Africa and the international community in general. Code named “civilization mission”, they flooded the continent with specialists in burglary and experts in psychology to arrest and deform the minds of the rulers; knowing that when you trap the head the rest of the body will dance the fool’s music. Haven conquered the heads, all they had to do was to sit back relax and see them swing to the rhythm of their ill-minded melody. Then began the exploitation of Africa from the West, Center and the North. Africans never folded their arms when the strangers came to take over the land which was handed over to them by their ancestors. Although the French faced bitter resistances from the noble men and women of Africa, their superior weaponry salvaged their cause. The French set up a form of government which can best be described as despotic, savage and undemocratic. When they wanted the job done, they set up cruel schemes such as the “corvee” which was a form of forced and harsh labour, regardless of the number of people who died along the line and in very inhumane health conditions. After all, Africans were simple money making tools in the eyes of the French. Although they massively exploited the natural resources and transferred to France, they never took their eyes off every penny the people made. They put in placed several unfair tax systems and forced the people to pay. The main and well constructed road lines where those that went from the farms where the raw materials were grown to the ports for direct shipping. In return, they built schools for the “negroes” to learn to read and write. Although they educated the masses, their education was not without an evil intention. This can be justified by the fact that they gave special preferences to the sons of chiefs whom they brainwashed, and prepared for the takeover in a bit to guarantee loyalty and long-term servitude. This shows that the French came to stay. No doubt, they were the fathers of dictators. It is this very “come-no-go DNA” that they transmitted to their stooges who finally took over.
Unfortunately for the French, the First and Second World Wars came in to usher a new dawn. The Africans soldiers finally broke the secret myth of the “whiteman”; as they saw their vulnerabilities and fears which were similar to theirs. Simultaneously, the international community stepped up its anti-colonisation drive and the United Nations was put in place to oversee the decolonization and final independence of African countries. From Algeria in North Africa to Cameroon in Central/West Africa, the wind of change had started blowing, punctuated by bitter wars for self determination. By the 1960s, a cross-section of the French-speaking African countries had gotten what has been generally called “Political Independence”.
Independent or Extended Territories of France?
As much as Africa’s independence has been hailed and celebrated both on the continent and at the United Nations; recognized in the concert of nations as equals with the great powers; it is pathetic to even call what most French-speaking African countries have as a “political independence”. As a matter of fact, what they call political independence is nothing but “paper independence” with a high degree of foreign influence and management. The situation can be likened to a Television (TV) and a watcher versus a remote control and a guide; where independence is the TV, and the African leaders are the watchers, the real power (the remote control ) is in the hands of the guide (France). The African leaders are allowed to switch on less important channels but when it comes to the real economic deal, the guide operates it from a distance and the watcher is compelled to watch what is on the screen willy-nilly.
This uncomfortable and restless situation has been sustained by a complex concept called Françafrique .This concept was put in place since the early years of the paper independence of French-speaking African countries. The continental centerpiece behind the machinery was former Ivorian President Felix Houphouet-Boigny. According to President Houphouet who conceived the concept, Françafrique was (is) the maintenance of close relationships between French-speaking African countries and France after independence. At the metropolis (France) the concept was received, copied and well developed by one of France’s most powerful brains Jacques Foccart; the former Chief Adviser for African Policy of de Gaulle and Georges Pompidou. The concept was a confirmation of the idea that France (and its stooges like Houphouet) intended to maintain the master-servant relationship. At an official level, this concept was later transformed into flesh and blood through a regular cynical encounter known as the Franco-African summits or “Sommets France-Afrique”. This time around, France decided to include/invite other non-French speaking countries just to veil their intentions, but we know who their principal targets are. The question one should ask is: what is the tenacity of these summits? Why should there be in this era of emancipation, globalization and equity, a summit of African countries and one country which is supposed to be nothing more than an equal state in the concert of nations? There is no doubt that France has been using the Franco-African Summits not only to remind African leaders on their need to respect and protect French economic interests in their respective countries but also to rally them to toe the line in support of France’s position on some key global issues on the international platform. France and America have often been at loggerheads on international decisions such as the question of farm subsidized or subsidized First World imports and the War in Iraq. In February 2003, President Jacques Chirac of France organized a summit with African leaders in Paris, to buy their support; meanwhile Paul Kagame of Rwanda backed the United States. The conference was particularly important since two French-speaking countries: Cameroon and Guinea were non permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and were expected to vote in the UN resolution on the Iraq war. In return for the support, France pledged to stand as the mother hen, “protecting” African agricultural exports in the World market. Of all former colonial countries in Africa, why is France almost the only foreign force still maintaining permanent and high presence on the continent when the rest have packed their bags and left? France has a high military presence in most French-speaking African countries; has been involved in the fomenting of several coups d’états in these countries; killing several patriots like Felix-Roland Moumie in Cameroon; creates and/or supports instabilities in most countries where the leadership opposes its policies like in Burkina Faso (Thomas Sankara) and Ivory Coast (Laurent Gbagbo), Rwanda (Paul Kagame); and many more. The truth remains that all these will never end as long as the leaders of French-speaking African countries continue to kiss France’s behind and act like lesser states in an era of equality and equity. When Nicholas Sarkozy came to power in 2007, he promised to put an end to the Françafrique. Yet, the entire continent and the world saw how France supported the election of Ali Ben Bongo (son of Omar BONGO) on 3 September 2009
to continue the legacy of the defunct dictator. Let’s hope that France would not do the same in Cameroon after the demise of Paul Biya, the dictator; since there are already rumours that Frank Biya is about to be made minister. During the 25th session of the Franco-African summit that took place from May-June 2010 in Nice, France, President Sarkozy re-iterated the need to put an end to 50 years of Françafrique. Doesn’t this sound familiar? Amongst the main issues from the recent summit, Sarkozy promised to freeze diplomatic relations with regimes that did not respect human rights and democratic elections as well as the closure of French military bases in Africa. Who will trust the tenacity of such declarations if not a fool? France’s business or interest in Africa is not over yet, especially at a time when European nations are hard-stricken by the economic crunch; it is just getting warmed up. It is such a disgrace to see our African leaders mobilize with the speed of light to attend a meeting with an equal-status state like France. It ought to be a European Union-African Summit, not a Franco-African summit. Africa is a continent like Europe and France is just a component. How will it sound to have a South Africa – European Union meeting? Of course it sounds like madness, but it is normal to have a Franco-African summit. It is high time that African leaders became more assertive and say “NO” to this nonsense. It is an entire nation that is put to shame, seeing its leader lining up in a queue of servitude and religiously listening to France, the master. The way forward for Africa in general is to unite and seek African solutions to Africa’s problem. No European country, talk less of France will ever have a completely genuine economic intention or agenda for the continent’s development. France cannot guarantee our economic survival in the world market more than Africans. If they fight for Africa to gain one thing, they gain two at the background. The Unity of Africa is the sole solution. Africa needs to unite as one and seek a common economic agenda for its natural resources; determine its prices in the world market and dictate its terms to the rest of the world. The effects of the climate change and the economic crisis are compelling Western countries to rely on Africa more than ever. Are the leaders seizing this turning point opportunity to regain their rightful position or will they continue to act like educated fools and cuddle with mediocrity? One leader cannot stand up and survive alone. It has to be a united effort. African leaders, Obama has broken the myth of racial discrimination in the United States, you too can break the myth of neocolonialism. STAND UP TOGETHER and be the change that the continent expects to see. Let me end with this saying that: "When the government fears the People there is freedom. When the people fear the government there is tyranny” and unending slavery.
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