As Africans, we have been told
times and again that our problems stem from without, not within. While it is
difficult to disagree within this thesis, our lived realities also seem to
indicate that the bulk of our problems come from those to whom we have
entrusted the leadership of our countries. Caught up by the resource curse,
Chad Republic is an illustration of this situation.
It was a big celebration when,
In June 2000, the World Bank and the oil consortium compose of ExxonMobil,
Chevron and Petronas announced they would finance the exploration and
production of the oil in Chad. The announcement of the project was welcomed as
a beacon of hope for the landlocked North Central African country that needed it badly to charter a new course for its development.
This hope has been dashed as the revenues generated by the
oil so far, a whooping more than USD $13 billion has been mismanaged, diverted
and looted by the president’s siblings and family members with little and or no
accountability.
Today, despite the narrative of that country’s military
exploits in many Sahelian countries, its populations are worse off than they
ever were at any point in time (exception made for hardships endured in periods
of active wars).
A detailed investigative report recently published by Swissaid
excellently captures how President Idriss Deby Itno of Chad and his family
members have been looting the country. A total state capture made possible by
an unscrupulous corrupt and greedy President and his family. Excerpt of the report reads (translation fro French):
“ Over the period of 26 years, Idriss Deby
Itno, Chad’s president has transformed his country into a private, corrupt
family business. His regime acts in the most repressive way possible. The
president’s siblings and family members as well as his wife control big
portions of the oil sector. ”
