Le devoir et la gouvernance en Afrique subsaharienne : prolégomène au progres et à la lumière des fondements de métaphysique des moeurs d' Emmanuel kante

Abstract

It was awaited from the access of African states to independence that it would efficiently contribute to their political and economic development, by the autonomy it was consequently giving to African peoples to take their own destiny in their own hands. This is because no one can really work for his own fulfilment as long as he is at the service of the other self, at the service of another destiny, just fulfilling “the duty” assigned to him by the other self. More than sixty years after, what is observed in the continent raises desolation and resentment: Africa, a continent full of natural and human resources, still finds it very cumbersome to find its way through in the road leading to development. From this observation, our works seeks to understand the principal cause of the present situation of our continent and it identifies ways and means that would enable it to get out of this situation. After reflexion, we believe that poor governance in Africa is the most formidable obstacle that stands in the way of development of this continent. It appears that most people in charge of the management of the resources of African peoples at whatever level it may be, as well as many political leaders in this continent, have lost the sense of “duty” and have chosen the path of the search, the defence and the preservation of their personal interest on the detriment of the general interest of common good, what is referred to as the “Republic”, in the management of the affairs of the city in all the spheres of the political community. Our opinion is that poor governance would be one of the causes of such a disaster whose manifestations are: the lack of political alternation, the poor repartition of wealth (gold, diamond, cobalt, petroleum, gas, etc.) All these mal practices are full of long term consequences such as wars, insurrections, revolutions and secessions. That being the case, instead of choosing the path of peace, unity, harmony and national reconciliation, African leaders have chosen to engage in arms traffic in view of hindering opposition contestations through the help of western powers which whip up conflicts in subSaharan Africa and at the same time come therein to play the role of fire- fighters. Faced with such an alarming situation that Africa experiences, should one close up his mouth without proposing solutions to get rid of this socio-cultural and political crisis? Our philosophical sensitivity then has urged us to reflect on the impact of poor governance on the battle for development in Africa. We use the kantian notion of “duty (consciousness)”to show the dangers of communitarianism, identity-related problems, tribalism and basic solidarity in the management of state affairs in sub-Saharan states in view of fostering good governance in these states. Yet, the kantian notion of “duty consciousness” will have to face some African realities that can neither be avoided nor disregarded when one really wants to govern people well.