Plagued by serious power outages, the city of Kankan has been the subject of nocturnal demonstrations for almost two weeks. The populo demands an end to untimely power cuts, the authorities respond with the arrest of the main leaders of the movement.
The Citizen Movement for the Electrification of Upper Guinea had warned him, if Kankan did not have power again in households between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m., he was going to call on the populo to pound the pavement. Over the past two weeks, “spontaneous” and nocturnal demonstrations have broken out in several districts of the obscure city: Bordeaux, Missira, Mobile, Banankoroda, Kabada, Salamani, excuse me. The inhabitants of Kankan demonstrated to show the CNRD that they were fed up with brooding. Barricades, burnt tires on the road, slogans hostile to the President of the transition, the nights were very agitated. The demonstrators, unleashed, burned the effigy of Colonel Doumbouya perched at the Komarala-loisir roundabout. It was this act that broke the camel’s back. The administrative authorities of Kankan have set in motion cops and pandores to track down the presumed instigators of these movements. Ousmane N’bia Kaba, president of the Citizen Movement for the Electrification of Upper Guinea is already under arrest. He was arrested in the premises of Espace Kankan radio, after a broadcast. It is still in the hands of security pranksters. The pro-crier of the wheel-public near the TPI of Kankan confirms that N’bia Kaba was arrested at the request of his prosecution. Other opinion leaders are on the run, for fear of incurring the wrath of the Kankan authorities: “There are some who are hiding in the bush,” says a Kankan youth leader.
Within the citizens’ movement for the electrification of Upper Guinea, we swear that we have never called for demonstrations against load shedding: “In Kankan, everyone is demonstrating in the name of ‘Not running, not sleeping’ (the other name of the movement, editor’s note). As soon as someone manifests, we are accused. Ousmane N’bia was at Espace simply to explain that we never called for demonstrations. We are not behind these movements. We only organized demonstrations during the reign of Alpha Condé, ”explains Amara Diakité, vice-president of the movement.
It is rumored that the former ruling party, the rainbow RPG would hide behind the movement to rot life at the CNRD. False, according to Amara Diakité: “We never agreed with the RPG in Kankan. We opposed their demonstrations, everyone is aware of that”. He says he is disappointed with the lack of support from the citizens of Kankan since the arrest of his colleague: “We are leading this fight for Kankan, our colleague is arrested today, no one raises a finger. It’s disappointing, I wonder why I fought for them.
Yet in Kankan, it is said that the Citizen Movement for the Electrification of Upper Guinea is well behind the riots. Its leaders would not only have coordinated the actions, but they would also have been seen on the ground during these demonstrations.
Yacine Diallo