Editorial...

By Aline M'PANGBA-YAMARA | LNC

Director of LAMINE MÉDIA

Editor-in-Chief of LNC

Let’s talk about ourselves for a change. You have likely noticed: our media outlet rejects advertising. This is a deliberate choice. Advertising distracts the reader and, when it becomes too intrusive, it disrupts the article. In any case, local advertising revenue would hardly cover our salaries. Since publishing for free comes at a cost—and because we do not draw a paycheck from the Presidency to act as praise-singers, unlike so many others—we must find ways to sustain ourselves. That is why we publish anonymously elsewhere. In the Central African Republic, no one makes a living solely from journalism. Truth be told, the profession is virtually non-existent there: anyone can set themselves up as a reporter overnight. In contrast, the majority of our journalists studied in France, at Sciences Po and top journalism schools. They are not a generation of amateur dabblers. Above all, they know how to write—and the best among them is undoubtedly Gilles Deleuze. We do not churn out "Central African-style" gibberish; we write in academic, easily understandable French. The "boss" personally ensures this. Did you know that the population of Bangui has doubled since the Bokassa era, over fifty years ago? It has grown from 500,000 to one million inhabitants. Yet, the city has retained the same infrastructure: a single water and electricity network, one international airport, and just one university. Inevitably, the system is collapsing. The arches in Bangui, like the roads, date back to 1977 and have never been maintained. Deflecting blame by repeating that the situation is worse in neighboring countries is an all-too-easy excuse. A sorry consolation. The goal is not to win a contest for the least reputable country; in that game, we would lose—and by a wide margin. Checking Transparency International’s rankings to verify the level of corruption in the CAR, I was not disappointed: our country is stagnating at 150th place out of 182. In other words, corruption is systemic, and no effort is being made to curb it. This comes as no surprise, given a president who is himself corrupt and engages in ballot-box stuffing. It is worth recalling that there have never been fair elections in this country. Consequently, once one looks beyond its immediate sub-region, does the Central African Republic hold any interest for anyone at all?

For: LAMINE MEDIA

Website: laminemedia.com (in FR and GB)

Date: September 2, 2026

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