The Democratic Republic Congo (DRC) is a paradox of modern times. The country was expected to develop at a rate closer to that of Asian tigers. Many countries in the East Asia visited the DRC in the 1960s to take examples of its burgeoning agricultural economy. Many Africans came to Congo either to work or to study. It was a Country of the future. The war of 1960-1965 seems not to destroy the tools of production in many of the provinces of the Congo. Congolese who pursued their studies abroad returned home and they were the first generation of the Congolese elite.
When Mandela was arrested in 1962, he had faith that the DRC will become sooner than later a nation Africans will be proud of. He was obviously disappointed after his release from prison to learn that the DRC has became much poorer than South Africa. He could see by his own eyes that Congolese were many living in South Africa. The richest among them traveled there to cure themselves. Back home hospitals existed, but without skilled medical doctors, drugs, and medical tools, it was not thinkable to visit these houses of desolation.
The university of Kinshasa took its own road. Books were stolen. Resources were transferred from the public institution to private institutions. Students were intellectually and physically abused. Students were arrested for voicing their opinion about the founding president. PhD holders became full professors without showing any publication in peer-reviewed international journals. Those in power hated those exceptional professors preaching ethics, moral, and sciences of thoughts. It was not acceptable to teach students to think critically, to reinvent the Congo. and to transform the present in something brighter. They decided to make prominent professors ministers of toys and pleasures. The house of knowledge became the house of intellectual and physical prostitution.
When you examine the data from the 60s, you reach one conclusion. It was more difficult to get poorer than richer, but we did it all. We became poorer than ever in our history. We already were far behind other advanced nations technologically, but it seems not to bother any one. Since rich we were it was said, we will acquire everything we wanted elsewhere. Obviously, the poverty of mind was eating our brain. Music became an expression of what we want to become. Young Congolese with questionable morality started imposing their view on a generation of Congolese. Singers of questionable quality insulted Congolese from the country side. They presented Kinshasa as the place to be. The message was clear. Let us enjoy life. Only pleasure matters here in Kinshasa.
The government on its side was composed, decomposed, mystified, and nullified. The country adopted a new name without changing the president. With hindsight, Mobutu must have lost his mind. He did not hesitate to invade people's privacy. He was the owner of every thing. He stole foreigners' assets. People working for him developed policies to steal, to take control, and to be exempted from any future accountability. Data were not produced. State documents were intentionally destroyed. Statistics were the enemy to keep afar. Mobutu and his friends were fighting the state. Not longer enough, they decide to be the state themselves. Mobutu became godfather. Mobutu was not a mathematician, but he did invent one equality: "One Farther = One Chief = One Country".
When Mandela was arrested in 1962, he had faith that the DRC will become sooner than later a nation Africans will be proud of. He was obviously disappointed after his release from prison to learn that the DRC has became much poorer than South Africa. He could see by his own eyes that Congolese were many living in South Africa. The richest among them traveled there to cure themselves. Back home hospitals existed, but without skilled medical doctors, drugs, and medical tools, it was not thinkable to visit these houses of desolation.
The university of Kinshasa took its own road. Books were stolen. Resources were transferred from the public institution to private institutions. Students were intellectually and physically abused. Students were arrested for voicing their opinion about the founding president. PhD holders became full professors without showing any publication in peer-reviewed international journals. Those in power hated those exceptional professors preaching ethics, moral, and sciences of thoughts. It was not acceptable to teach students to think critically, to reinvent the Congo. and to transform the present in something brighter. They decided to make prominent professors ministers of toys and pleasures. The house of knowledge became the house of intellectual and physical prostitution.
When you examine the data from the 60s, you reach one conclusion. It was more difficult to get poorer than richer, but we did it all. We became poorer than ever in our history. We already were far behind other advanced nations technologically, but it seems not to bother any one. Since rich we were it was said, we will acquire everything we wanted elsewhere. Obviously, the poverty of mind was eating our brain. Music became an expression of what we want to become. Young Congolese with questionable morality started imposing their view on a generation of Congolese. Singers of questionable quality insulted Congolese from the country side. They presented Kinshasa as the place to be. The message was clear. Let us enjoy life. Only pleasure matters here in Kinshasa.
The government on its side was composed, decomposed, mystified, and nullified. The country adopted a new name without changing the president. With hindsight, Mobutu must have lost his mind. He did not hesitate to invade people's privacy. He was the owner of every thing. He stole foreigners' assets. People working for him developed policies to steal, to take control, and to be exempted from any future accountability. Data were not produced. State documents were intentionally destroyed. Statistics were the enemy to keep afar. Mobutu and his friends were fighting the state. Not longer enough, they decide to be the state themselves. Mobutu became godfather. Mobutu was not a mathematician, but he did invent one equality: "One Farther = One Chief = One Country".
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