Category: Great People

A Heritage of Great African leaders and visionaries

Senegal Presidential Elections: Bassirou Diomaye Faye is set to be the next president

On By Dr. Y.In Great Moments, Great PeopleLeave a comment
Bassirou Diomaye Faye (Source: Seneweb.net)

Senegal opposition presidential candidate Bassirou Diomaye Faye, a political newcomer popular among the masses, came out of Sunday’s elections in Senegal with a strong lead. On Monday morning, his main rival, Amadou Ba conceded defeat. Faye who has been brought to the front of the Senegalese politics just over a week after he was released from prison, has been mentored by the true candidate of the masses Ousmane Sonko who everybody loved, but who the government had managed to disqualify from standing for election because of a bogus conviction. Faye contested the elections as an independent given that his party Patriots of Senegal (PASTEF), founded by Ousmane Sonko, had been dissolved. He ran under the slogan of “Diomaye mooy Ousmane” (meaning, Diomaye is Ousmane in Wolof) given that most Senegalese who voted for him, were in reality voting for his beloved mentor Sonko. At 44 years-old, he will be the youngest African president, and fifth president of Senegal.

Ousmane Sonko (Source: Leral.net)

We applaud the victory of the people of Senegal who stood strong in the face of Macky Sall, the incumbent’s holdup tactics on the constitution and the power. We applaud the victory of the Senegalese masses who have shown that they would not stand still while their democracy is torn into pieces. We hope that Bassirou Diomaye Faye will keep his promises of including Sonko whom the people voted; Sonko campaigned by telling all that voting for Faye was like voting for him. We hope that Faye will keep the promises made of weeding out corruption, getting out of the CFA Franc zone, renegotiating mining and hydrocarbon contracts. The country is expected to start hydrocarbon production this year. He has his work cut out for him, with the high unemployment rate. Senegal is a young nation, and Senegalese dream of finally helping their country launch into the 21st century with pride; they are ready, and hopefully Faye will offer new opportunities to the disillusioned youth.

Below are excerpts from the BBC.

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Diomaye mooy Ousmane (Source: Kalenews.net)

Few had heard of him a year ago, and now he is set to become president.

Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s extraordinary rise caps a rollercoaster period in Senegalese politics that caught many off-guard. Months in jail alongside ally and kingmaker Ousmane Sonko ended suddenly, with the pair released the week before the presidential election.

Now Mr Clean, as he’s nicknamed, must get to work on the sweeping reforms he has promised.

“Methodical” and “modest” are words often used to describe the tax collector, who celebrates his 44th birthday on Monday.

… Fighting poverty, injustice and corruption are top of Mr Faye’s agenda. While working at the Treasury, he and Mr Sonko created a union taskforce to tackle graft.

Gas, oil, fishing and defence deals must all be negotiated to better serve the Senegalese people, says Mr Faye. He is ushering in an era of “sovereignty” and “rupture” as opposed to more of the same, he told voters, and that is especially true of ties to France. Senegal’s president-elect says he will drop the much-criticised CFA franc currency, which is pegged to the euro and backed by former colonial power France. Mr Faye wants to replace it with a new Senegalese, or regional West African, currency, although this will not be easy… Strengthening judicial independence and creating jobs for Senegal’s large young population are also key priorities for Mr Faye …

Bassirou Diomaye Faye was announced in February as the so-called “Plan B” candidate, replacing the charismatic opposition firebrand Ousmane Sonko.

Both men founded the now-disbanded Pastef party, both men are tax collectors, and both men found themselves jailed last year on charges they said were politically motivated.

Mr Sonko ended up being convicted of two offences, which meant he was barred from the election, so Mr Faye stepped in.

Flag of Senegal
Flag of Senegal

“Bassirou is me,” Mr Sonko told supporters recently. “They are two sides of the same coin,” Pastef colleague Moustapha Sarré agrees.

… the pair’s relationship could usher in a new style of leadership.

“Maybe they will establish a tandem and break away from the hyper-presidential model of having an all-powerful head of state.

“Sonko is of course the uncontested leader of Pastef – an icon, even… [But] the two have had a [dynamic of] complicity and collusion.”

Despite the shortened campaign period, Senegal’s citizens were adamant they would turn out and use their vote, Christopher Fomunyoh – of the National Democratic Institute for international affairs – told BBC Newsday.

“Senegal is in the process of confirming that democracies can self-correct and come out stronger and more resilient.”

‘Ma vie est une chanson / My Life is a Song’ by Francis Bebey

On By Dr. Y.In Great Literature, Great PeopleLeave a comment

music_1Below is ‘Ma vie est une chanson‘ or ‘My Life is a Song‘, a love poem by Cameroonian author Francis Bebey, a poem celebrating his love for the African woman, in this case for his lover. As we remember that Francis Bebey was multi-talented as a journalist, writer, sculptor and musician, it is no surprise that the title of his poem is “My Life is a Song”. He even headed the UNESCO music department researching and documenting traditional African music. In the poem, he highlights that he was born from the love of the earth with the sun, thus a birth that was very celebrated and a life full of love. As we read the poem, Bebey’s love for his country is abundantly clear as he dreams of taking his lover there, and not only that, but lets her know that his country is where to find the love between the earth and the sun; it is almost as if he was telling all that he was born on the equator. Moreover, let’s face it, the link between the earth and the sun is undeniable, unbreakable, unavoidable, constant, and forever omnipresent. He is so taken by the love so much so that his life is a song that he will sing everyday to his precious one. Wouldn’t you all like to be loved like that? Enjoy!

The poem ‘Ma vie est une chanson‘ by Francis Bebey, was published in Anthologie africaine: poésie, Jacques Chevrier, Collection Monde Noir Poche, Hatier 1988. Translated to English by Dr. Y. Afrolegends.com.

Ma vie est une chansonOn me demande parfois d’où je viens

Et je reponds “je n’en sais rien

Depuis longtemps je suis sur le chemin

Qui me conduit jusqu’ici

Mais je sais que je suis né de l’amour

De la terre avec le soleil”

Toute ma vie est une chanson

Que je chante pour dire combien je t’aime

Toute ma vie est une chanson

Que je fredonne auprès de toi

Ce soir il a plu, la route est mouillée

Mais je veux rester près de toi

Et t’emmener au pays d’où je viens

Ou j’ai caché mon secret

Et toi aussi tu naîtras de l’amour de la terre avec le soleil

Toute ma vie est une chanson

Que je chante pour dire combien je t’aime

Toute ma vie est une chanson

Que je fredonne auprès de toi.

 My Life is a SongI am sometimes asked where I come from

And I answer “I don’t know

For a long time I have been on the way

That leads me here

But I know that I was born from the love

between the land and the sun”

My whole life is a song

That I sing to tell you how much I love you

My whole life is a song

That I hum next to you

Tonight it has rained, the road is wet

But I want to stay close to you

And take you to the land where I come from

Where I hid my secret

And you too will be born from the love of the earth with the sun

My whole life is a song

That I sing to tell you how much I love you

My whole life is a song

That I hum next to you.

So Long Hage Geingob, Third President of Namibia

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President Hage Geingob (Source: TheHealthSite)

The third president of Namibia, Hage Geingob, passed away this past Sunday in Windhoek, Namibia, from cancer. As a strong freedom and anti-apartheid activist, in his early years, he fought to set the international stage for the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) and the Namibian fight for independence from South Africa. After exile in Botswana, and the United States where he studied, he advocated for the acceptance of SWAPO which was ultimately recognized by the United Nations General Assembly as the sole and authentic representative of the people of Namibia. Namibians’ struggle at the international fora, and their armed struggle launched in 1966, eventually led to the independence of Namibia in 1990 from South Africa. Like Cameroon, Togo, or Tanzania, Namibia had been a German colony known as German South West Africa established in 1884, until Germany lost world War I, after which the League of Nations gave the country to the United Kingdom as a mandate under the administration of South Africa; it was simply like a de facto fifth province of South Africa.

Flag of Namibia

Geingob had served the country as its first prime minister from 1990 to 2002, and then later from 2012 to 2015. Between 2008 and 2012, Geingob served as Minister of Trade and Industry. In 2015, after elections, he became president of the nation, and was set to finish his second and final term this year. Upon his passing on February 4, his deputy, Vice President Nangolo Mbumba, was sworn in as acting president in the capital, Windhoek, to complete the term as allowed by the constitution. Mbumba will be in office until next year, when the winner of this year’s November election will take office.

“The Namibian nation has lost a distinguished servant of the people, a liberation struggle icon, the chief architect of our constitution and the pillar of the Namibian house,” the office of the presidency said.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa described Geingob as “a towering veteran of Namibia’s liberation from colonialism and apartheid.”

Kenyan President William Ruto said Geingob “strongly promoted the continent’s voice and visibility at the global arena.”

Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa posted on X that Geingob’s “leadership and resilience will be remembered.”

Freedom rather than Slavery by Sekou Touré

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Sekou Toure, Cover Time Magazine, Feb. 16, 1959

President Sekou Touré of Guinea was the first president of a country in what was then colonial French Africa to say ‘NO’ to France by asking for its independence []. 66 years later, his words still ring true, especially as we watch the struggle for freedom of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger [Mali – Burkina Faso – Guinea Agree to form a Tri-Country Axis, Mali and Niger end Long-Standing Tax Treaties with France, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger Sign a Mutual Defence Pact]. Africans are still not free of their own destinies [The 11 Components of the French Colonial Tax in Africa, Africa is funding Europe!], and it is only normal to fight for it.

On 25 August 1958, Sekou Touré said: “Il n’ya pas de dignité sans liberté. Nous préférons la liberté dans la pauvreté à la richesse dans l’esclavage.”

[There is no dignity without freedom. We prefer freedom in poverty to wealth in slavery].

Mangi Meli’s Grandchildren Continue the Search for His Skull

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Mangi Meli of the Chagga of Moshi, ca 1890s (Source: Deutsche Fotothek)

Last week, the German President apologized for colonial past in Tanzania just a few days after the grandson of Mangi Meli reiterated his demand for the return of his grandfather’s skull. The story was published in the BBC. To us, Africans, it is a painful read: how can someone decapitate your father, and then take away his skull is inconceivable. It has been over 120 years; and some ask us to forgive, forgive when words are not followed by actions?

Excerpts below are from the BBC.

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Isaria Anael Meli has been looking for his grandfather’s remains for more than six decades.

He believes the skull ended up in a Berlin museum after his grandfather, Mangi Meli, along with 18 other chiefs and advisers, was hanged by a German colonial force 123 years ago.

Map of Tanzania

After all this time, a German minister has told the BBC the country is prepared to apologise for the executions in what is now northern Tanzania.

Other descendants have also been searching for the remains and recently, in an unprecedented use of DNA research, two of the skulls of those killed have been identified among a museum collection of thousands [Germany Matches DNA from African Skulls looted during Colonial Era].

Mt Kilimanjaro in 1911

It is rare to find an acacia tree on the lower slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro. Its twisting branches reach above the steep road and stand out among the denser lush vegetation.

At one time, it shaded a market for the villagers of Tsudunyi, a part of what is now called Old Moshi, who lived off the fertile land and enjoyed the cooler temperatures that the higher altitude brought.

But this focal point for the community became the scene of a great tragedy. Despite the peace of the natural surroundings today, its impact has reverberated down the decades.

It was here on 2 March 1900 that, as the descendants tell it, one-by-one the 19 men were hanged. They had been hastily tried the day before, accused of plotting to attack the German colonial forces.

…

Mangi Meli and his Njama 1890s at the German Moshi Boma (Source: Deutsche Fotothek)

 Mangi Meli, the most prominent mangi, or chief, among those who were killed, had in 1892 successfully defeated the German forces. That success was later reversed and by the end of the 19th Century, the Europeans were keen to stamp their authority on this part of what was known as German East Africa.

They wanted to make an example of Mangi Meli and other local leaders who may have been planning an uprising.

The humiliation did not end there. While most of the torsos are believed to be buried in a mass grave somewhere near the tree, their heads were at some point removed, packed up and sent 6,600km (4,100 miles) to the German capital. In some cases the complete skeletons were shipped.

When speaking about what happened to his grandfather, Mr Meli does not sound angry, but there is a sadness in his voice and a sense of bewilderment that this was allowed to happen.

The lively 92-year-old was told about the killing of Mangi Meli by his grandmother, who he says was forced to watch the execution, and explains that the chief came to him at night telling him that he would return one day.

“Always, always, always he was coming to me in my dreams,” he says.

His floppy sun hat and twinkling eyes when he smiles disguise his tenacious personality.

Since at least the 1960s, Mr Meli had been writing to the German and Tanzanian authorities urging them to look for the remains of his grandfather.

Flag of Tanzania

He says officials tried to put him off by telling him that relevant records had been destroyed during World War Two. But Mr Meli was not deterred.

“Visitors are always crying: ‘Tell all the people of Germany to return the skull.’

“They kept it somewhere just because they thought the Mangi Meli family were small people – believing that they could do what they wanted. But remember that this skull is needed by the whole country – not me, myself, only.”

There is a sense of profound loss that goes beyond the idea that this was a historical injustice.

…

Mangi Meli, the Chagga Leader Who Resisted the Germans in 1890s

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Mangi Meli of the Chagga of Moshi, ca 1890s (Source: Deutsche Fotothek)

Last September, we talked about a German museum which was able to match the DNA from looted African skulls to their descendants today. One of the skulls had a single word inscribed “Akida” who was believed to be a high-ranking advisor to Mangi Meli, a ruler of the Chagga people. It is no secret the fate that this advisor must have found, given that Mangi Meli had been hanged and decapitated by the Germans for leading an uprising against German invaders in 1900, along with 18 other Chagga, Meru, and Arusha leaders; it is not a far guess that Akida must have been hanged with King Meli.

Who was Mangi Meli?

Sultan Mandara of the Moshi in 1888

Mangi (King) Meli was a ruler of the Chagga people of Moshi, one of the sovereign Chagga states, in the 1890s. He was the first son of Mangi Rindi Mandara from his second wife Sesembu. Born in 1866, he ascended his father’s throne in 1891. It is said that he was smart, exuberant, and extremely valiant.

Meli is hailed as one of the heroes of the former Tanganyika colony which was part of German East Africa which encompassed Rwanda, Burundi (Ruanda-Urundi), modern-day Tanzania (except Zanzibar), and part of the Kionga triangle in Mozambique. Meli has been prominent in the fight against colonial encroachment on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Mangi Meli and his Njama 1890s at the German Moshi Boma (Source: Deutsche Fotothek)

At the time when he became Mangi, the Germans were trying to lay hold on African territories, and every means were used. In 1892, there was an incident involving a young girl who the German forces wanted to capture, and when the Mangi of Moshi refused, the German troops fired, and the Moshi retaliated, killing one Askari (African serving in the German colonial forces). The German troops, led by Lt von Bulow, attacked, but were successfully defeated by Mangi Meli. This victory of the Meli made the Germans back down for 51 days.

Friedrich von Schele

Based on the lie of a “Chagga revolt” orchestrated by a neighboring king, Mangi Marealle of Marangu who had made pacts with the Germans including the notorious murderer explorer Carl Peters, Col. Friedrich von Schele, the deputy governor, led the Germans as they moved back to Kilimanjaro on July 31, 1892, launching an effort to seize Meli of Moshi, destroying and plundering Meli’s lands. Yet they could not capture Mangi Meli. They occupied his lands and started enslaving his people. However, bidding his time to strike back, Mangi Meli united over following years with other Mangis of neighboring Chagga states, forming alliances with other Meru and Arusha kings as well. However, his plan was betrayed by an informant from Mangi Marealle. This plan culminated on 02 March 1900, when the Germans called the Chagga kings whom they accused of fomenting rebellion.

Hanging of Chagga men by the German Colonial Government ca 1890s – 1900

After his capture, Meli was convicted of rebellion and was hanged alongside 18 other kings and noblemen of Chagga, Meru, and Arusha; one of these kings was Mangi Ngalami of the Siha Kingdom, one of the numerous Chagga states. Their execution was public. However, when Meli was hanged, he did not die immediately; it is said that he hung on the tree for 7 hours alive until he was shot by a soldier. Following his death, the German colonial administration ordered his head be severed from the body; this was the fate for many executed on that day. The skulls are believed to have been sent to Berlin to Felix von Luschan, an anthropologist and curator at the Royal museum of Ethnology of Berlin, who requested them to Lt. Col. Moritz Merker who was second in command at the German military outpost of Moshi.

Mangi Ngalami, King of Shira, with another chief and their entourage. Reproduction from Johannes Schanz/ H. Adolphi, Am Fuße der Bergriesen-Ostafrikas, and published with the permission of the Evangelisch-Lutherisches Missionswerk Leipzig (Source: The Dial)

Today, descendants of both Mangi Meli and Mangi Ngalami and others are searching for the skulls of their ancestors. The grandson of Mangi Meli, Isaria Meli, has founded a foundation to search for the skull of Mangi Meli and turned to Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (SPK, Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation) in 2016 to identify the remains of his grandfather, to no avail. Efforts are being made to recover his remains (and those of the other kings) and return them for proper burial in Tanzania. In Chagga culture, and many African cultures, the burial of a body after death is an essential ritual; without a proper funeral and resting place, the soul cannot find peace. Many of the skulls and remains ended up in different museums of Berlin, or in private collections (I cannot fathom why someone would want someone’s skull in their private collection ???). There are cases where entire skeletons were shipped to Germany. This was the case when in 1902, the whole skeleton of Mangi Lobulu of the Meru, another leader executed at the same time as Mangi Meli and Mangi Ngalami, was sent to Germany by Merker; over the decades, it eventually made its way to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City where it was located by German researcher Konradin Kunze 100 years later. 

Please check out Flinn Works production “Mangi Meli Remains,” and read the article in the Dial. 

As you think of Mangi Meli, remember his bravery, and celebrate his spirit for the freedom of the Chagga people, and others, on the slope of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Will the King grant the Return of the Skull of Kenyan Resistance Leader Koitalel Arap Samoei?

On By Dr. Y.In Great People3 Comments
Flag of Kenya

King Charles III is visiting Kenya on October 31. The leaders of the Nandi community in Western Kenya are requesting the returns of the skull of Koitalel arap Samoei, their chief, spiritual, and military leader killed by the British in 1905. Samoei waged a fierce resistance against the colonialists, and was killed by British soldier Richard Meinertzehagen, who had tricked him (the usual European colonial trick) into attending a truce meeting. A few months ago, we discussed the refusal of King Charles III to return the remains of Prince Alemayehu, son of Emperor Tewodros II, to Ethiopia; Ethiopians were told that returning his remains will not be possible, as it will disturb the resting place of several others in the vicinity (UK rejects Calls to Return Ethiopian Prince’s Remains). NONSENSE! Will the king agree to the return of the skull of Koitalel arap Samoei? Or will this be like the skull of King Mkwawa?

Koitalel arap Samoei, Supreme leader of the Nandi people of Kenya

Who was Koitalel arap Samoei?

Koitalel arap Samoei was the fourth of five sons of Kimnyole arap Turukat, Orkoiyot (king / Supreme leader) of the Nandi people of Kenya. His brothers were Kipchomber arap Koilege, Kipeles arap Kimnyole, Chebochok Kiptonui arap Boisyo, and Siratei arap Simbolei. His father, Kimnyole arap Turukat, was a strong leader with outstanding prophetic talents who predicted the arrival of Europeans on his soil. It is said that he also predicted his son Koitalel’s murder. Concerned by his son’s bravery, and to protect them all, Kimnyole sent 3 brothers to live among the Kipsigis people, while Koitalel was sent to live with the Tugen people.

Nandi warriors, ca 1905-1923

At Kimnyole’s passing, 25 years-old Koitalel succeeded to his father after a succession dispute with his brother Kipchomber arap Koilege. In the end, Koitalel was crowned Orkoiyot of the Nandi people, while his brother became the first Orkoiyot of the Kipsigis . He was a strong and fierce warrior. When the British started building the Uganda Railway going from Mombasa in Kenya to Kampala in  Uganda passing through the Nandi territory, Koitalel led an eleven-year resistance movement against the railway. He understood that this marked the doom for his people, and most likely dispossession of their ancestral lands. The Nandi people were fierce warriors and never gave up, even when faced with British artillery. Samoei was a strategic military leader, planning surprise attacks on the railroad workers, and the British when they least expected. He resisted fearlessly.

Richard Meinertzhagen ca 1922

For almost 12 years, the British could not capture him. On October 19, 1905, to end the resistance, British officer Richard Meinertzhagen lured Koitalel to a peace truce meeting after leading a rebellion against the colonial invasion of the Nandi. Both parties agreed to come with five companions each. While Samoei brought five companions, Meinertzhagen brought an entire battalion of 80 people, 75 of which hid in the bushes surrounding the area. When Koitalel extended his hand to greet Meinertzhagen, he killed Koitalel with a shot at point-blank range. Then the British man decapitated Koitalel’s body and took his head to London as proof of his death as well as a macabre trophy of colonialism. This was such a traumatic event to the Nandi people that it ended the Nandi resistance. This is a people who had time-outs to allow all parties to take care of wounded warriors.

Kipsigis warriors ca 1954

The colonial administration subsequently set about banishing, detaining or killing his brothers and sons. In 1909, his brother Kipeles arap Kimnyole was installed by the colonial government as Orkoiyot; Kipeles died in 1912. In 1919 Koitalel’s second son, Barsirian Arap Manyei took over the leadership. However, his reign only lasted until 1922, at which point the British colonial government incarcerated him. He stayed in jail until 1964, making him the longest-serving political prisoner in the history of Kenya; after his release, he died in abject poverty.

Today, there is a museum built in the Nandi Hills to commemorate Koitalel Arap Samoei and his effort. He has also been celebrated by the Google Arts and Culture. Koitalel Arap Samoei is seen as Kenya’s first freedom fighter.

As King Charles III visits Kenya, the Nandi elders are calling for the repatriation of the skull of their great leader, Koitalel Arap Samoei, and their cultural artifacts and compensation for the grievous atrocities suffered during the colonial era.  Do you think King Charles III would return Koitalel arap Samoei’s skull?

On the 65th Commemoration of Ruben Um Nyobe’s Murder, His Widow Passes Away

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Ruben Um Nyobé
Ruben Um Nyobé

Marie Um Nyobe (born Marie Ngo Ndjock Yebga), the widow of one of Cameroon’s greatest opposition fighters and freedom fighters, the real Father of Cameroonian independence, Ruben Um Nyobé, has passed away on the exact same day that her husband was murdered 65 years ago, on 13 September 1958. This comes just as Cameroon and the Union des Populations du Cameroon (UPC) is commemorating the 65th year of his murder by the French forces in Cameroon.

Her son, Daniel Ruben Um Nyobe, communicated in a press release (Journal Du Cameroun) « the family of Mpodol Ruben Um Nyobe, the greater family Nlog Ngond, the greater family Ndog Soul have the grief to announce the passing of Widow Marie Um Nyobe born Ngo Ndjock Yebga on 13 September 2023 in … Yaoundé. »

UPC Leaders (L. to R.) front row: Castor Osende Afana, Abel Kingué, Ruben Um Nyobé, Felix Moumié, and Ernest Ouandié
UPC Leaders (L. to R.) front row: Castor Osende Afana, Abel Kingué, Ruben Um Nyobé, Felix Moumié, and Ernest Ouandié

Marie Um Nyobe is the spouse from a second union with the leader, Ruben Um Nyobé: Fighting for the independence of Cameroon. Um Nyobe had a first union in 1944 with Marthe Ngo Mayack which produced 3 daughters, and when the union fell apart, married Marie Ngo Ndjock Yebga with whom he had the son, Daniel, who was born a year before his death. We hope that Cameroonian historians had had a chance to talk to Mpodol’s wife to learn more about the man himself and Cameroon during the days of the fight for independence.

Flag of the UPC
Flag of the UPC

Mpodol, the one who carries the demands or who defends the cause, was a Cameroonian freedom fighter, and an anti-imperialist leader. During his fight, he wrote, “la colonisation, c’est l’esclavage ; c’est l’asservissement des peuples par un groupe d’individus dont le rôle consiste à exploiter les richesses et les hommes des peuples asservis“( “Colonization is slavery; it is an enslavement of the populations by a group of individuals whose role is to exploit the riches and the men of the enslaved populations.”). He further wrote, Political Constant of Unity Practiced by Ruben Um Nyobe – 1959, and Ruben Um Nyobe and Liberation.

For this commemoration, as Cameroonians and Africans, celebrate the lives of Ruben and Marie Um Nyobe, they should also, above all, stand on the message of Mpodol and fight for the total independence of Africa [Remember Ruben: A Rare Video Biography of Ruben Um Nyobé].

“Le Bucheron”/”The Woodcutter” by Franklin Boukaka

On By Dr. Y.In Great Music, Great PeopleLeave a comment
Franklin Boukaka
Franklin Boukaka

As stated earlier in the week, Franklin Boukaka was a visionary ahead of his time, and his songs are very politically engaged. His most acclaimed song is “Le Bûcheron” / “The Woodcutter” which has been timeless and covered by many singers over the years. Most know the song as “Aye Africa”.  “Le Bûcheron” (the woodcutter; the Kenyan version of the single was titled “Le Bûcheron (Africa)”), is a complaint about the state of Africa and its poor, the refrain lamenting “Oh, Africa, where is your independence? … where is your liberty?” Boukaka even goes further, showing that the politicians of today who have replaced yesterday’s colonizers cannot really be differentiated from them. He laments the fact that some he believed in, have turned their back on the people and instead developed greed for power, only showing good sides during election times (isn’t this true of politicians around the globe, who only remember the people come election time with empty promises?), ” Some to whom I gave my voice, have developed the greed of power and cars; When the elections come I become important then in front of them.” Lastly, it is impossible to hear the saxophone notes coming from Manu Dibango.

As you read the lyrics and listen to the song, why do you think Franklin Boukaka titled his song The Woodcutter?

Ayé Africa eh                                      … Ayé Africa eh
Eh Africa oh Lipanda                          … Eh Africa oh where is your independence?
Ayé Africa eh                                      … Ayé Africa eh
Eh Africa oh liberté                             … Ayé Africa eh where is your freedom? 

Ko kata koni pasi                                … Cutting firewood is hard work
Soki na kati, ko teka pasi                    … To sell this wood is another
Na pasi oyo ya boye                           … With this lot of misfortunes and children
Ngaï na bana mawa na koka te          … I’m far from getting out

Basusu oyo na ponaka                       … Some to whom I gave my voice
Bawela bonkonzi mpe na ba voitures … Have developed the greed of power and cars
Ba voti tango e komaka                      … When the elections come
Ngaï na komi moto mpo na bango      … I become important then in front of them

Na ko mituna mondele a kende          … I wonder: has the colonizer gone,
Lipanda to zuaka, oh ya nani eh?       … For whom did we obtain independence?
Africa eh                                              … Oh Africa

Ayé Africa eh                                       … Ayé Africa eh
Oh Africa oh Lipanda                          … Eh Africa oh where is your independence?
Ayé Africa eh                                      … Ayé Africa eh      
Oh Africa oh liberté                             … Ayé Africa eh where is your freedom?

“The Immortals” by Franklin Boukaka

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Franklin Boukaka
Franklin Boukaka

Let’s do a trip down memory lane. Several years ago we published a post on the song “Les Immortels” / “The Immortals“ written and composed by the late Congolese singer Franklin Boukaka. The song honored the great Moroccan leader Mehdi Ben Barka, African resistants, and world revolutionaries. For those who do not know or remember Franklin Boukaka, you have probably heard his song “Aye Africa” which has been repeated by so many singers on the continent (one of my favorite renditions is the one by the group Bisso na Bisso). Franklin Boukaka was a freedom fighter, a poet, composer, activist, and fought for the independence of Africa both politically and in all his songs. He was ahead of his time, and a new patriot. So sad that he was murdered during the coup that deposed Ange Diawara during the night of 23-24 February 1972. He was clearly a threat to many.

Mehdi Ben Barka
Mehdi Ben Barka

As the title says it all, The Immortals honors our great leaders of the past, those who fought for our liberties, and who have become martyrs. They are now immortal. The song was so popular in those days that it was sung in schools. No wonder Boukaka was murdered for this. Please find below, the English version. Enjoy!

« The Immortals » by Franklin Boukaka

Africa mobimba e ……… The whole of Africa
Tokangi maboko e …….. crossed her arms
Tozali kotala e …….. We observed powerless
Bana basili na kokende … The loss of her children
Bana basili na kotekama e … The traffic of her children
Na banguna a ……………… near ennemies
Tolati mokuya ata maloba te … Silent, we have carried the black veil of mourning
Congo na bana Africa baleli … Congo and Africa burst into tears
(2X)
Oh O Mehdi Ben Barka … Oh ! Mehdi Ben Barka
Mehdi nzela na yo ya bato nyonso … Mehdi, your way is that of all humanity
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Lumumba … Mehdi, your way is that of Lumumba
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Che Guevara … Mehdi, your way is that of Che Guevara
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Malcolm X … Mehdi, your way is that of Malcolm X
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Um Nyobé … Mehdi, your way is that of Um Nyobé
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Felix Moumié … Mehdi, your way is that of Felix Moumié
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Nguyen Van Choi … Mehdi, your way is that of Nguyen Van Choi
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Tsoroki … Mehdi, your way is that of Tsoroki
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Camilo CienFuegos … Mehdi, your way is that of Camilo CienFuegos
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Hoji Ya Henda … Mehdi, your way is that of Hoji Ya Henda
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Camilo Torres … Mehdi, your way is that of Camilo Torres
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Abdel Kader … Mehdi, your way is that of Abdel Kader
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Coulibaly … Mehdi, your way is that of Coulibaly
Mehdi nzela na yo ya André Matsoua … Mehdi, your way is that of André Matsoua
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Simon Kibangu… Mehdi, your way is that of Simon Kibangu
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Albert Luthuli… Mehdi, your way is that of Albert Luthuli
Mehdi nzela na yo ya Boganda … Mehdi, your way is that of Boganda
Oh ya Tiers-monde … Oh ! Third world
Oh ya libération ya ba peuple … Oh ! that of the liberation of the people

Words: An old man, whom I consider always young, said to me one day : « My son, all men
should die one day ; but not all deaths have the same meaning »

Mehdi Ben Barka (XXX)
Mehdi Ben Barka (XXX)