Five

Zaro and his comrades denied the charges, but were imprisoned for over a year before being found guilty and sentenced to death by a specially convened tribunal, hand-selected by the general.

 For Brigadier Zaro, he could be trusted, though the decency of anyone in military office was in question during those military years. Good men never change from what they were. The issue of trust does not come up always especially when coup was involved. It was considered a betrayal at all and should be treated as such. In the outside profession, everyone knew that he could be trusted. He was too decent and civil to plot for the fall of his close friend from their university days in Egypt. A tall and physically imposing man – he looked like a soldier and he was one, yet was easy going and spoke in a slow, measured tone. He was a man of principle who knew all the rules in the code of human relations and was loyal to a fault.  He disciplined himself to fight only when it was an option and to be loyal to a trusted administration, a decision that showed good military judgment.  He was a loyal and forceful friend and repository of military rules; so discreet and kind, reserve and civil and could keep secret as long as they are made to be. He could defend the profession and had in his fingertips the ethics, the punishment and the all. Despite all these, it was sad to note that his effort came crash in a day.   Thus the Majors probably figured that Zaro had to be silenced in order to prevent him from raising the alarm of mistreatment for his dear regional men and thereby preaching them to embrace parliamentary system of government or regional independent.

His sadness multiplied when he heard of the death of Jabi, his fellow infantry soldier and childhood friend, who was hurriedly killed with his colleagues after their arrest and their body dumped in a mass grave on the night of the announcement of his sentence.  Acid was poured on the bodies, and they burnt to be eternally remembered. Military! Inhuman treatment! Abuse of human right! These three words were always carried to heart in any country presided by military.

Amidst cries and anguish these men were hanged, Zaro was the last person to be hanged and so was forced to watch the excruciating pain of the death of his colleagues. These six men were executed in defiance of international appeals for leniency. Calls, letters and telegrams came in succession to save the soul of these compatriots, but it was all ignored. Like flowers that rose with the sun, they died in that hot afternoon in the heart of this African soil. Their families cried out loudly to God in anguish of heart. It was all carried out as planned. But the pattern of killings in the military gave it a partisan appearance: killed where mostly men of note who had come from the southeastern part of Kandala. No honor as supposed, no cenotaph, no recognition. They were treated like common criminals.

As a beginning of pangs of distress, the Republic of Kandala got nailed by such brutality. It beggared believe how things could have got this bad. They had an insatiable appetite for scandal. The international society put a sad face to this action and calls for sanction. They were being backward. Gone were the days when a reasonable government be it ever could just brutalise its citizens. Somehow, somewhere, the devil could be living somewhere in African continent. . His death provoked international outrage and her immediate suspension from the group League of Nations as well as the calling back of many foreign diplomats for consultation. Such death brought too many untold hardship.

Suddenly, war over words and corruption broke out few days after these. It was a sanguinary battle that lasted for a whole three years, making some parts of the country open theatre for war. Civilian rule had lasted for just few years and the military was ever ready to take over power. They tried to restore public accountability and to reestablish a dynamic economy without altering the basic power structure of the country. They wanted the land law promulgated and the resources from the less privileged region to account for the development of other regions simultaneously. The military had become impatient with the civilian government and wanted power by force. Corruption in particular was out of control, and the fraudulent election had been too obvious. Those in power were law and lawless. No one questions what goes underground for fear of death.

The military regime conducted tribunals to curb corruption, and many scandals were revealed. Once again the civil service was cleansed, for a brief period. Yet everything was too bad to be right. This time, however, the military tried to achieve two aims. First, it attempted to secure public support by reducing the level of corruption; second, it demonstrated its commitment to austerity by trimming the federal budget. This national campaign, which lasted just for some months, preached the work ethic, emphasized patriotism, decried corruption, and promoted environmental sanitation. Yet in many hearts lies the tricks and deception and prejudice.

The campaign was a military program for reform and mobilization that achieved few of its aims. In practice, unemployment was on the rise as the recession worsened, so that speeches about working hard seemed out of place. The campaign was enforced haphazardly; some people were executed or given long jail terms while others were allowed off if they were well-connected. No one with little connection dared say anything. Death and sentence was common. Environmental sanitation meant that the state capitals had to be cleaned up, and the principal target was the petty bourgeoisie that eked a living out of selling services or retailing commodities on a small scale. This was to depopulate cities and drag peasants home. Their illegal structures--market stalls and workshops along the streets--were destroyed, and widespread resentment resulted among the small traders, repairmen, and others in the self-employed service sector. Those who were not affected praised military system and held hope that it would serve their interest. While others tried in their heart preaching it to fail.