The government spokesperson was in front of the media on Friday, July 5, to react to socio-political news: death of Sadiba Koulibaly, human rights and freedom of expression, electricity, evaluation of political parties, next UFDG congress…A varied small fry.
Having become aphonic since Bah Oury’s arrival at the Prime Minister’s office, the government spokesperson finally broke his silence on July 5. While the holidays are approaching and he himself will fly to “applaud” the Syli national at the Paris Olympic Games, Ousmane Gaoual Diallo insisted on organizing a press conference beforehand. An opportunity for him to react to the socio-political news, which has been eventful lately, and to answer journalists’ questions. In a nine-minute intro, he expressed his indignation at those who paint Guinea in black, before answering journalists’ questions. “Some NGOs are developing a narrative that tends to make people believe that Guinea is the worst country on the planet, in terms of human rights violations. This is a reading that affects every Guinean. You are in Guinea, you live there. This should concern everyone, including you journalists. We believe that this is a game between human rights organizations and us, the authorities. “You have the latitude to either deny or confirm,” he asserts.
Compliance with texts
There are political figures in prison, but that does not make them political prisoners, because they are being prosecuted for common law offences, argues Ousmane Gaoual. Similarly, those like Cellou Dalein Diallo or Sidya Touré who extend their stay outside the national borders are not, in his eyes, political exiles. One is on a mission from his party, the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea, he recalled, taking the UFDG president’s departure statements literally. While the president of the Union of Republican Forces is in what appears to be his second country (Côte d’Ivoire). A way for Ousmane Gaoual Diallo to advise the press not to appear more royalist than the king.
“The Ministry of Territorial Administration is the guardianship of political parties,” added the speaker. “Our country is experiencing a proliferation of political formations, which number 184. It is important that the State tries to understand how these structures evolve, their difficulties and to be a vector for strengthening our nascent democracy. It is in this context that the evaluation was launched. It is a question of seeing the coherence between the actions they take on the ground, the texts and the commitments made to the State and their activists.”
Electricity, the ever-dark horizon
The Guinean capital has been in a dark place since the beginning of the year, as power cuts were becoming a distant memory. But for Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, it is more of a sea serpent that has haunted Guineans since forever. “It is unfair to demand in two or three years what we have not done in 63 years of independence,” he said, offended.
Considered costly for the public treasury, the energy production contract signed between the former Condé regime and the floating thermal power plant of the Turkish Karpowership has been terminated. The current authorities had announced an energy interconnection with Senegal for 100 megawatts, at a more affordable but unspeakable cost. Except that Guinean households have not seen any improvement in the service, on the contrary, the crisis has worsened. The speaker admits that Senegal itself has not completely resolved its energy deficit. And that the collaboration concerns an electricity supply of 4 hours per day and only during a certain period of the year during which the neighbor has a surplus garnered by the weakness of demand (consumption). A supply therefore by default which must not prevent Guinea from exploring other avenues of solution. With limited financial means, the authorities are banking on mining revenues, specifically the entry into production of Simandou. As if to say that it is not going to happen tomorrow.
Saturday’s death
The death of the former Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Sadiba Koulibaly, also came up in the debates. A colleague questioned the Minister of Transport and government spokesperson on the lack of reaction from the authorities on this intriguing disappearance of a CNRD heavyweight. “There has been no official statement from the government, but to say that no one has done so is not at all the reality. The responsibility of the media is also to avoid overbidding. Generally speaking, when a soldier dies, it is the army that takes care of everything up to the burial. But he had already been discharged from the army. If there are doubts, the family has every right to take legal action to remove them. Until proven otherwise, they have not done so.”
As for the timetable for the transition and the return to constitutional order, the speaker believes that holding elections “is not an end in itself” and that Guinea should not let itself be dictated to. The deadline agreed with the Economic Community of West African States having proven untenable, the transition needs additional time and Ousmane Gaoual Diallo finds its content more important than its duration.
“Not without me”
The former coordinator of the UFDG Communication Unit continues to contest his exclusion from the party led by Cellou Dalein Diallo. While the latter announces his return, without setting a date, to organize a congress for which he says he is a candidate, Ousmane Gaoual Diallo warns that he will not stay away from the competition either. “We are working and are convinced that the congress will rule in our favor. And there will be no congress without us. If they organize a congress, we will do it too. From this point of view, we have no problem. The CERAG (Circle of Friends of Gaoual, editor’s note) is working calmly. They have their campaign club, we have ours. We hope that there will be a transparent vote. There are only 1000 voters, and we will do it at the People’s Palace.”
Ousmane Gaoual Diallo believes that his rival is no more legitimate than he is, recalling that the mandate of the leader of the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea expired in December 2020. Since that date, “all the actions taken by Cellou Dalein are null and void. Today, we should be in transition at the UFDG,” he notes. Will the main Guinean political party also experience its putsch?
The Labboyah Devil
2024-07-05 18:12:39