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The Dialectics of Transformation in Africa. By Elias K. Bongmba. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. Pp. x, 310. $69.95.
The volume is a socioeconomic and political analysis of the "African crisis." It is also an attempt to define a new moral compass about how individuals relate to each other at all levels of society. The author, a professor of religious studies at Rice University, critically examines literature on various aspects of the crisis and on what he calls "inter-subjective" relations. He has a thorough command of the material, grounding his general points with telling day to day observations from numerous African countries as well as from Cameroon, where he was born and worked for many years.
The study is divided into two distinct parts: The first half discusses power, the state, violence, the colonial legacy, and various attempts at reform. It insightfully reviews the literature on these topics while offering a relentless critique of how Africa's leaders have governed. The second half analyzes political power from a religious, theological, and humanistic perspective, calling on Africans to rebuild their "inter-subjective bonds" (p. 4) to overcome this situation. The author himself refers to his own writings as a "discourse" on the "dialectics of agony" (p. 6).
While not ignoring its historical dimensions, Bongmba argues that Africa's current crisis is mainly the responsibility of its leaders. Using the...