Post by hi224 on Aug 20, 2020 23:06:50 GMT
Here is a summary of what is known from Africacenter.org:
An unexplained death within the inner circle of Togo’s military is posing a challenge to the authorities in a tightly-ruled country where for nearly 60 years the army has been the cornerstone of power. Lieutenant Colonel Bitala Madjoulba, commander of the elite 1st Rapid Intervention Battalion, was found dead in his office in a military base on May 4, the day after President Faure Gnassingbe was sworn in for his fourth term. An autopsy found that the 51-year-old, a fervent Gnassingbe supporter whose unit helped to crush mass protests in 2017 and 2018, died of a bullet wound. But the investigators, who are being overseen by Security Minister General Damehame Yark, have been tightlipped, breaking their silence on July 13 to say Togo had asked France to provide “technical help.” AFP
They link to Yahoo news
My immediate suspicion based on the winning coalition model of authoritarian survival is that President Gnassingbe had Madjoulba killed to consolidate his winning coalition. It became too politically expensive to fulfill the promises made to Madjoulba so he attempted to eliminate him. The problem with this theory is this: 'why didn't they make it look he was killed by an enemy of the regime?' Perhaps the murder's ambiguity was intended to send a message to other military members of the winning coalition?
If Madjoulba were not killed by an ally of the president, why would it occur the day after his inauguration? Why wouldn't the murderers claim the assassination and the power that comes with it?
I will post evidence here as I find it. My partner is bilingual and will be able to give nuanced translations from French if needed.
An unexplained death within the inner circle of Togo’s military is posing a challenge to the authorities in a tightly-ruled country where for nearly 60 years the army has been the cornerstone of power. Lieutenant Colonel Bitala Madjoulba, commander of the elite 1st Rapid Intervention Battalion, was found dead in his office in a military base on May 4, the day after President Faure Gnassingbe was sworn in for his fourth term. An autopsy found that the 51-year-old, a fervent Gnassingbe supporter whose unit helped to crush mass protests in 2017 and 2018, died of a bullet wound. But the investigators, who are being overseen by Security Minister General Damehame Yark, have been tightlipped, breaking their silence on July 13 to say Togo had asked France to provide “technical help.” AFP
They link to Yahoo news
My immediate suspicion based on the winning coalition model of authoritarian survival is that President Gnassingbe had Madjoulba killed to consolidate his winning coalition. It became too politically expensive to fulfill the promises made to Madjoulba so he attempted to eliminate him. The problem with this theory is this: 'why didn't they make it look he was killed by an enemy of the regime?' Perhaps the murder's ambiguity was intended to send a message to other military members of the winning coalition?
If Madjoulba were not killed by an ally of the president, why would it occur the day after his inauguration? Why wouldn't the murderers claim the assassination and the power that comes with it?
I will post evidence here as I find it. My partner is bilingual and will be able to give nuanced translations from French if needed.