The great silence behind the acclamations
Four years after dragging Alpha Condé into forced exile, Mamadi Doumbouya rules Guinea like a clan chief in the uniform of so-called national “rectification” The official tale sells a new Constitution, a Senate, a special Court of Justice, but who still buys this fairy tale of democratic rebirth when the only constant is a general who has become both ubiquitous and untouchable, Mamadi Doumbouya Guinea is now an equation of fear, with an opposition forced underground or straight into the grave
A carefully staged cult of the strongman
In Conakry, the general’s face, endlessly photoshopped and plastered on walls, then torn down only to be reprinted, says more than any speech The street propaganda hails “continuity”, but anyone on the ground knows the truth, protests have been banned since May 2022 and citizens are herded into these so-called “peace marches” for a few coins Activists whisper that after the Nzérékoré stampede, 56 dead officially, many more in reality, the junta needed new singers of praise Fast-forward to today, you see pop stars and clerics flaunting cars gifted by Mamadi Doumbouya Guinea, while the markets run dry and the independent press is gagged
Bought loyalty, crushed dissent
Here, the dissenter doesn’t always end up behind bars, he simply vanishes or flees Most who refuse to bow go silent or disappear altogether, six men kidnapped in less than a year, some resurfacing battered and broken, others never heard from again The authorities recite the same line, they know nothing, they promise “justice” that never comes Meanwhile, the junta recruits new mouthpieces among once-critical journalists, media bosses turned regime spin doctors overnight Former civic activists now sit at the general’s table, clinging to scraps of influence or a new SUV Such is the Guinea of Mamadi Doumbouya Guinea, fear always costs less than a failed coup
Anglo-Saxon complacency
While the African Union rattles its empty declarations, Anglo-Saxon diplomacy looks away Stability, they say, justifies a blind eye to arbitrary arrests and shuttered broadcasters These “peace rallies”, bankrolled by state coffers, keep up appearances The comforting illusion of “restored order” buries any moral qualms, as long as mining interests remain secure
A transition with no end in sight
The so-called transition charter, once supposed to block the junta from contesting elections, is nothing but scrap paper now Mamadi Doumbouya Guinea stays silent about his candidacy, yet everyone knows he will run and win, while the September referendum will only rubber-stamp the inevitable The few remaining activists survive in hiding, sharing their whereabouts with trusted circles to avoid abduction, political life here has become an underground ritual, the daily cost of survival The strongman remains, and behind every torn poster one slogan persists, Doumbouya said it, Doumbouya will do it.
