Mobutu Sese Seko (1930 – 1997)
President of Zaire from 1965 to 1997.
We are seeking our own authenticity, and we will find it because we wish, in the innermost fibers of our being to discover it.
The strong ties of friendship between Zaire and the United States endure and prosper. And we are proud and very, very pleased to have you with us today.
I have come to appreciate the dynamism that is so characteristic of Zaire and Zairians and to respect your dedication to fairness and reason. I have come to admire, Mr. President, your personal courage and leadership in Africa.
As regards George Bush, I've met him thirteen times. We know each other from way back. He was in charge of the CIA and knew Zaire's problems backwards. He received me at his home in Maine with his mother, wife and children and grandchildren. I met him again recently at the funeral of Emperor Hirohito. He is an intelligent, open and sensitive man, with strong convictions.
I cannot sleep at all on a plane and I am terribly scared of sleeping pills. To accuse me of wasting money - no, I am sorry. Just think of the time I save.
If I could do it all again, I'd be a farmer.
I know my people. They like grandeur. They want us to have respect abroad in the eyes of other countries.
When you are a soldier, either you surrender or you are killed. But you don't flee.
The chief is the chief. He is the eagle who flies high and cannot be touched by the spit of the toad.
General, if it hadn't been for you, the whole thing would have collapsed and the Communists would have taken over.
In a word, everything is for sale, anything can be bought in our country. And in this flow, he who holds the slightest cover of public authority uses it illegally to acquire money, goods, prestige or to avoid obligations. The right to be recognized by a public servant, to have one's children enrolled in school, to obtain medical care, etc. ...are all subject to this tax which, though invisible, is known and expected by all.
Zaire is among America's oldest friends, and its president - President Mobutu - one of our most valued friends...And so I was honored to invite President Mobutu to be the first African head of state to come to the United States for an official visit during my presidency.
Clearly, I would be lying if I said I do not have a bank account in Europe; I do. I would be lying if I said I do not have considerable money in my account; I do. Yes, I do have a fair amount of money. However, I would estimate it to total less than 50 million dollars. What is that for twenty-two years as head of state in such a big country?
Zaire's one-party system is the most elaborate form of democracy.
In our African tradition, there are never two chiefs; there is sometimes a natural heir to the chief, but can anyone tell me that he has ever known a village that has two chiefs? That is why we Congolese, in the desire to conform to the traditions of our continent, have resolved to group all the energies of the citizens of our country under the banner of a single national party.
Mobutu truly has a malady. He is a kleptomaniac. Zaire is ruled by an uncontrolled thief. It is a kleptocracy.
Between a brother and a friend, the choice is clear.
We are resorting to this authenticity in order to rediscover our soul, which colonization had almost erased from our memories and which we are seeking in the tradition of our ancestors.
This man has spoken; he has written, set forth orientation and decrees. The sum total of his actions constitutes Mobutism, just as the sum total of Mao's teachings constitutes Maoism...The President and Founder of the MPR repeats incessantly that a people aiming for greatness should neither repudiate other nations nor copy them.