“The situation in Chad could not be worse”

2023-11-11 16:37:00

The opponent Succès Masra, leader of the Transformers party, has just returned to Chad after an agreement with the transitional authorities in which he first undertakes to “favor actions facilitating the return to constitutional order in the deadline”, to “respect the laws” and to “work for a peaceful political climate […] avoiding any form of violent action.” What will remain of this in some time when certain political realities on the ground take over? The question deserves to be asked because, before him, another Chadian, Abakar Manany, formerly close to Idriss Déby, after an exile of almost two decades, had to return to the country to contribute. Based in Dubai, this pilot is also the owner of an airline. This interview is his testimony on the realities that led him to leave the country once again.

Africa Point: Your wish‘a peaceful political transition led you to return to Chad in 2021 after several years of‘exile and to work with Mahamat Idriss Déby, president of the transition, for a year and a half. What do you remember from this experience and what lessons do you learn from it?

Abakar Manany : The lessons, in broad strokes, can be summed up in one word: disappointment. A disappointment that lived up to the expectations that I had placed in the transition in view of the pledges of goodwill that the new regime had brought. I told myself that the situation in Chad could not be worse than the one it had been in for decades. Determined to contribute to its renewal in the interest of the Chadian people, in January 2022, I joined the transition, on a voluntary basis.

Differences quickly emerged. They focused on political initiatives such as the holding of a so-called “inclusive national dialogue”, a cornerstone of the transition timetable for which I had been advocating for a long time, but which, after having been knowingly postponed on numerous occasions and despite my warnings , turned out to be inclusive in name only and was a bitter charade. It is also not insignificant that a certain number of major players in the national community, making no mistake, have suspended their participation in this “dialogue”, such as the Catholic Church.

More broadly, these differences have also crystallized on a daily basis around the management of the transition itself. I can say this with full knowledge of the facts: this so-called transition towards democracy is only being carried out through practices that have nothing democratic about them. Brutal retirements, intimidation, nepotism, corruption, cronyism and so on: it is an understatement to say that old habits have not been uprooted.

I opposed them just as quickly as they appeared, by trying at my level to initiate a regeneration of the exercise of power and to change these practices a little, for example by bringing in Starlink to fight against censorship and offer a window of freedom to Chadians. Nothing helped: I was confronted with a series of concrete block walls. On Starlink, for example, the regime prohibits Chadians from having access to it, because it would then no longer be able to cut off the Internet, particularly during protest movements or periods of conflagration; but he benefits from his services via terminals, some of which are installed in remote villages. I certainly did not succeed in everything, but I did everything and put all my strength into making this transition a success, but I found a regime just as authoritarian and corrupt as the previous one.

In these conditions, why did you stay for a year and a half? Your collaboration also came to an abrupt end…

Brutal, to say the least, with the climax being my assassination attempt on the night of July 24 to 25. But before coming back to it, a few elements of context: for a year and a half, I wanted to give the benefit of the doubt to the management of the transition. From the summer of 2022, I seriously considered resigning. Six months in charge seemed insufficient to me to act and so I waited. I quickly understood that the regime was getting tougher and was only driven by the frantic search for enrichment for the benefit of the ruling clan, which appropriates strategic sectors of the economy.

This led me to distance myself and choose media silence for which I may have been criticized. I ended up only coming to Chad for short stays during which, moreover, I presented my resignation each time; resignation systematically rejected. Slanderous campaigns, defamation and threats against me have multiplied. When the cup was full and I wanted to put a definitive end to my functions, this famous July 24, the authorities, knowing my intention, staged my dismissal by publishing the presidential decree on social networks, where I discovered like everyone else, then a few hours later seeking to make an attempt on my life in my residence in N’Djamena.

I reserve the right to refer the matter to the competent courts. But the most urgent thing for me is to prevent millions of Chadians from paying with their freedom, and sometimes with their lives, the bloody price of this daily brutality that the regime inflicts on them.

So your view of the current trajectory of the transition could not be more pessimistic?

Indeed, it is in no way reassuring and should not deceive anyone, neither in Chad nor abroad. The dice are loaded. There is neither governance nor State. Neither dialogue nor openness. Insecurity is rampant, intercommunity conflicts are fueled by the very people who manage the transition, without vision or project for the country, without interest in the people and, of course, without any concern to prepare for a democratic future. The transition initiated two and a half years ago is a lost opportunity for Chad.

Many communication gadgets are in the regime’s cupboards. Thus the new “Independent Anti-Corruption Authority”, the constitutional referendum set for December 17 by the National Commission responsible for its organization, Conorec. As for Chad’s diplomatic relations, they turned into a disaster with the episode of the dismissal in April of the German ambassador as well as that of the general director of Satom in September, the standoff with the British company Savannah Energy and more recently the falling out with the United States around the events of October 20 when many young Chadians died.

We must mourn all hope regarding the current transition and prepare for the next chapter.

Chad is one of the last bastions of presence of the French army. What do you think ?

I think it is inappropriate for Chad’s destiny to be in the hands of another country. This does not exclude dialogue or cooperation as long as the partnership is win-win. Today, the french bashing is a reality that must be taken into account. In Chad, it is totally exploited by the regime which is in a form of duplicity by welcoming French troops sent back from Niger. This allows him to fuel popular hostility towards France and at the same time to implicitly secure in the long term the support and silent complicity of France when he makes official his desire to remain in power forever. after the presidential election scheduled for the end of 2024, which is supposed to be democratic.

How do you see the future for Chad?

Each country has its history, its realities, its destiny. We can possibly compare the case of Chad to that of Sudan, more than that of Niger, but there is a fundamental difference: if the situation were to explode in Chad, it would be an explosion to the power of 10 due to tribal reflexes strongly anchored in the subconscious Chadian, for lack of strong institutions or a republican army. It would not be the clash of two camps, of two clans, but a constellation of conflicts which would degenerate in a chaotic manner. Without mentioning the expansion of the Wagner group in Chad which is potentially an additional destabilizing factor.

What measures would you recommend to give a new perspective to the country?

We must listen to Montesquieu: “It is an eternal experience that every man who has power is inclined to abuse it: he goes until he finds the limits. » It seems essential to me to set these limits for the current leaders of Chad, hungry for power and unwilling to let go. We have to reshuffle the cards. To do this, two provisions are priorities: reorienting the transition and preparing for democratic change. The starting point for this new momentum must be the organization of a truly inclusive National Reconciliation Conference. It will have three merits: to restart the transition on a healthy and peaceful basis; force current leaders to formally honor their commitments not to run in the next elections; ensure that at the end of these, power is returned to civilians.

What conclusion can we draw from all this?

More than ever, Chad needs to bring together all its skills, all its talents, all the vital forces of the nation. There is an urgent need to unite and act. We must continue to fight until free and transparent elections are held. Continue to fight to win peace and democracy on our dear land, in a spirit of dialogue, tolerance and national reconciliation. For my part, I intend to take all my responsibilities in the service of Chad and Chadians who are now my priority.