Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Alix-Ida Mussavu
Published on 2024-04-02 15:37:15
President of the Inclusive National Dialogue opened this Tuesday, April 2, Monseigneur Jean-Patrick Iba-Ba places the work under the sign of a new Gabon. The metropolitan archbishop of Libreville says he is convinced that the commissioners will draw a new Gabon to restore its nobility and pride. But above all, that God and the blissful ancestors govern this reconstruction enterprise.
After the 1990 National Conference chaired by Monseigneur Basile Mve Engone, Gabon once again entrusts the clergy by appointing Monseigneur Jean-Patrick Iba-Ba as the president of the Inclusive National Dialogue of 2024. In the 34 years that separate these two meetings, the country has organized four other similar meetings which, according to two observations of the metropolitan archbishop of Libreville, only gathered the political class as it was about solving political problems arising from various elections. And on the other hand, often left a taste of unfinished business: a feeling of dissatisfaction among the populations.
“May the work be guided by our sole desire to see this country regain its deserving praise and envy,” rightly said the president of the Dialogue during his opening speech at the ceremony. The role of his office during this meeting, he said, “is to lay the foundations for a new Gabon.” According to his explanation, a Gabon where it is good to live. A Gabon first for the Gabonese. “This Gabon so dreamt by our ancestors finally arrives among us,” he commented. “For this reason, I call on everyone to surpass themselves to participate in an inclusive logic so that this Dialogue serves as the foundation for a true reconciliation process,” wished the archbishop.
Legacy a fairer Gabon to posterity
“So much harm has been done to this people and this country. However, we must not yield to the temptation of blame or revenge,” declared Monseigneur Jean-Patrick Iba-Ba for whom this Dialogue cannot be used as a platform for settling scores. “It is rather a matter of laying the groundwork for tomorrow’s Gabon oriented towards promoting the values of respect for others, human dignity, and solidarity,” he commented, seeing it as a “historic opportunity to leave a fairer, more fraternal and prosperous Gabon to posterity.” This is all the more so since at the end of this dialogue, Gabon should equip itself with solid, impersonal, and lasting texts.
“Therefore, let us enter into this dialogue with serenity and determination without excessive passion or hate, but with a conscience of the common good,” said the president of the Dialogue. “Today, we are called to participate in writing our common history without any exclusion. At the end of this Dialogue, only the people will emerge victorious for a Gabon endowed with a new social contract imbued with justice, peace, and progress,” he commented. “Let us resolutely enter into the hope of a new Gabon, a better Gabon for all. May the spirit of God enlighten our minds. May He renew in us His gifts of knowledge and wisdom. May God bless the work, Gabon, and all its inhabitants,” he declared.
Read the original article(French) on Gabon Review
