Every day on RFI and in French, thousands of listeners follow the stories of the Very, Very Democratic Republic of Gondwana and its President. Every day, comedian Mamane aspires to make us laugh and reflect on the turn of events with his satirical commentary on current affairs in Africa . When not in an RFI studio, Mamane performs as a standup in France and Africa.
“It’s an accident,” says Mamane when asked how he became a comedian. He was destined to be a scientist; plant physiology was what he studied. In fact, he came to the southern French city of Montpellier in 1991 to complete a PhD in plant physiology.
“I spent a year in a lab and I hated it. So, I said, let’s change," recalls Mamane, who is originally from Niger. Change meant that he put a stop to his studies but that also meant that he lost his scholarship, his room on the campus and his visa. And he found himself homeless and without the necessary papers to stay in France.
This period inspired much of what he talks about in his show on stage: the life of an illegal migrant who moves to Paris and works hard doing all sorts of odd jobs to survive while dodging the police. The show is also about the life of Africans in France, about how the authorities demand all manner of things to ensure that Africans and people from developing countries have digested the French culture and mastered the complicated grammar of the French language.
“Immigration is one thing that will never end. That’s what [contributes to] mix people, language, culture… Why are they trying to say migrants are criminals? They don’t rape, they don’t steal, they just work hard!” says an indignant Mamane about the strict migration policies imposed by the West.
He adds that just like the Europeans migrated to the United States in the 19th century and before to escape wars and famine, Africans are searching for a better life too.
Mamane grew up all over west and central Africa as his father was an ambassador for Niger, posted in various capitals of this region. He said that growing up like that helped him better understand the continent.
“It made me feel like an African, not only from Niger or Mali but truly African," he says.
Having widely travelled in Europe enabled him to see things from the other side of the mirror, “that gave me the keys to understand how they see us, and to find out that the kind of democracy here is not perfect. The Very Very Democratic Republic of Gondwana is not only in Africa, it applies to France too. Here, you cannot criticise the economic groups like Lagardère or Bouygues. It’s the same in England or the USA, the multinationals are the real leaders of this world.”
Mamane uses wit, humour and sarcasm to denounce the folly of power, touching on the absurdities of life … but always using a language that tries not to shock the audience in Africa.
“I know that the audience of RFI is varied and consists of old as well as young people, religious people, jobless … I deliberately use a language that will not offend people. I just want listeners to feel that I respect them.”
You can listen to Mamane’s daily satirical piece on RFI in French here.
Here you can watch videos of Mamane in RFI’s studio:
Mamane regularly performs in west Africa . Some of the upcoming dates in Europe:
12/09/10: Angers.
29/09/10: Théâtre La Traversière, Paris.
22/09/10: Belgium.
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