The CIA killed Patrice Lumumba with the help of the Belgians, and they turned to Mobutu as their leading man. Mobutu spat in Lumuba’s face before he( Lumumba) was eventually assassinated.
Before his death, the Americans had declared him mentally ill, too erratic and irrational. They feared that the communists will take over Congo. They tortured him along with others before he was eventually shot by a firing squard under the command of a Belgian officer.
Lumumba had a lot of similarities with Milton Obote. He was charismatic, never had a degree, good oratory skills and from a small tribe in Kasai province. Lumumba was a P.4 guy with 1 year at a technical school as far as his education was concerned, but he was a highly intelligent man that deserves to be admired by everyone in Africa. Obote was also a very intelligent man despite being a school drop out.
Just like Hitler, while in prison, he wrote a book- setting out his views on colonial rule. He was inspired by Kwame Nkrumah to fight the colonialists to the bitter end. Hiltler also wrote a book while in prison: ‘Mein Kampf ‘. It was written in 1923 while he was in prison as a revolutionary agitator .The Jews were frequently referred to in “Mein Kampf” and Hitler had made plain his hated for them. In one section, Hitler wrote about how the Jews planned to “contaminate” the blood of pure Germans.
Again, like Obote did in 1966 to dismiss the then president, Kabaka of Buganda, Lumumba tried to do the same against Kasa-Vubu( then president of Congo), accusing him of treason, but the parliament voted to annul his decision.
But there are lessons to learn from Lumumba’s death:
1. when you have power, don’t misuse it. Mobutu treated Lumuba badly b4 his death thinking that he would die the president of Zaire, but his death was probably more painful than that of Lumumba, and people now remember Mobutu as an evil man compared to their hero, Lumumba.
2. We all need each other one way or the other. You shouldn’t kill a good innocent man just because you have been commanded to do so.
Abbey
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