Message to the Nation of H.E Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, President of the Republic, Head of State and Founder of the Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea, at the occasion commemorating the  35th anniversary of its National Independence on  October 12th 2003.

Benefiting from the coincidence of closing the 2nd Ordinary Session of the Chamber of Representatives for the people with the celebration of the 35th anniversary of its national independence, I will like to direct my thoughts towards the Equatoguinean people in this circumstances of this historic event, to make an  assessment that I believe is positive, of our long march as an independent Country, all as a challenge that we impose to our daily life.

Indeed, the Republic of Equatorial Guinea will next Sunday 12th October commemorates, the 35^th anniversary of its attainment to independence, a historic event of all the time which marks the birth of the Equatoguinean State after a colonial  occupation of 200 years.

It is important to note here that for those who doesn’t know the Colonialism experience which is in our country, was for the Equatorial Guinean people a system of total alienation of all the Rights.

Indeed, all Equatoguineans were considered before the 12^th of October 1968 as irresponsible at all levels of the colony. That is to say we were considered as useless or destitute minors of all responsibilities in the management of public Affairs.

We Equatoguineans, hadn’t any rights in our proper land, if it wasn’t only a patch of land not exceeding a hectare, that the colonial authority could grant to a family for cultivation. Work was compulsory and forceful, without no pay and to the only profit of the colonies. The indigenes  were subjected to slavery and deposited to the concentration camps.

Discrimination was the best aspect shared  in the activities of social life,  Blacks were not taken into consideration by the law of the Metropole, they didn’t take part to eucharistic  celebrations destined only to the whites and hadn’t the rights to reside in the areas reserve for whites, it was for this reason that they created “Residential Halls”

Finally for the colonist, the indigenes only existed and not leaving, there were uniquely considered as objects of exploitation that were suppose to be deposited in America as slaves, or use as work instruments to forceful labour in  farm managements, forestry and public works.

The attainment of the Country to National Independence of 12^th October 1968, after a long fight for freedom at the course of  which a good number of our Countrymen lose their lives, had fortunately come to an end  of this occupation and to this exploitation by which our people were submitted.

With this effect, the pride and joy that the people of Equatorial Guinea feel is more justified, because it calls for his liberation of a regime of ignominy that was recognized as crime against humanity.

It is therefore reasonable and natural to the events of these festivities, and in my capacity as Personal Representative of the people, that I address my warm greetings as well as my peaceful wishes and my sincere congratulations to all the Equatoguinean people be it within or outside the Country, not forgetting the foreigners who resides within us; and I wish that this peace and joy be crown with success and progress in their daily activities, for its greatness and the prosperity of the Nation.

Fellow Countrymen,

The attainment of Equatorial Guinea to independence can, and has to be compared with the falling of the umbilical cord of a new born baby who separates the mother from birth.

Since the 12^th of October 1968, Equatorial Guinea has undertaking a solitary move and continues to move right up to the end of its history.

This goes to say that the people has to assure itself the responsibilities of its proper administration and its auto governance.

Run socially and politically by the people themselves and self administered economically, permitting the State to accomplish its protective function, of defending and promoting the interest of the people.

Probably, the  early stages are difficult and uncertain, certainly by lack of experience due to the fact that the people were not prepared for this transition. For the attainment of Equatorial Guinea to its independence makes a revolutionary act, since it needed to grant this independence no matter the state of the society.

With today’s date, the people have an old history of 35 years, rich in big events and countless socio-economic aspects that constitute an important record before enriching our knowledge and our experience in the management and administration of our nation.

Although we often say that « Rome was not build in a day »   I however believe to the positive values of the equatoguinean people who doesn’t ceased to gain experience and to mature his personality of self control and self administration with effectiveness, efficiency, and   firmness, all along this 35years.

Indeed, after the mix up and the confusion that followed the years before independence, the task of unity building and national reconciliation has been accomplished and met with success, and had permitted to build on a stable base the fundamentals of an Equatoguinean State which are: National Unity, Peace, Political Stability and Social Justice, the realities that can affirm to us, constitute the actual daily life of the equatoguinean people.

A National Unity base on a solid cohabitation of an ethno-cultural and religious diversities that constitute the  Mosaic of our ethnics groups, tribes, cultures and our religion.

We are all Equatoguineans, citizens of the same State, with the same rights and obligations, without distinction of origin, ethnic group, tribe, language or religion. National Unity was voted by all the people on the 11^th August 1968 constituting the Supreme Law that  incarnates all Equatoguineans.

The unity of the Equatoguinean State, as well as its inviolability, equally constitute another irrevocable law, one of the conditions without which there hadn’t been an independence that we have conquered and the existence of the State couldn’t have been any reason.

Definitely, the equatoguinean territory, with its seas, population and land air space that she covers, as a whole, in accordance to the fundamental law, is inseparable, inviolable and indomitable. No political or economic aspects, of course, can’t justify its separation or its reduction.

In this perspective, and to better protect the national territory, we have not been liberal on any effort to carefully lead the peaceful negotiations with the States sharing the common frontiers with our territory, within the respect of the traditional limits establish by the Colonial authorities and accordance to International Law, we have as well signed definitive agreements with the Federal Republic of Nigeria and with the Republic of Sao Tome and Principe.

In the framework of fraternal relations and good neighbourhood, we are showing a vivacious voice of these wishes to see the tracks of our boundaries with other Countries of the Sub Region be made in the spirit of respect of Laws and tradition, for the preservation of peace in the sub region.

Fellow Countrymen,

Administering a Country politically and economically with effectiveness, efficiency and firmness remains our permanent challenge, in order to give a positive value to our National Independence, it therefore calls for a very precarious task for an emerging nation like ours, if you have to recall, you have to account for just ten university senior staff lecturers during its attainment to independence.

Administering a Country both politically and economically with effectiveness, efficiency and firmness remains our permanent challenge, in order to give a positive value to our National Independence, it therefore calls for a very precarious task for an emerging nation like ours, if you have to recall, you have to account for just ten university senior staff lecturers during its attainment to independence.

Thus, it is all about cultivating, moderating and reconciling the mentality and personal class interests and various human groups, sometimes conflicting. It is a job by which we are to get down doing at the course of these last 24years and that, today, we can assert that all the sons of this Country have reach to admit that we can not continue to give priority to selfish, antagonism, radicalism, revenge, exclusion and intolerance.

My fellow Countrymen actually, we have arrived at the conviction that  only through respect of the human person and his dignity, dialogue, consultation, tolerance and respect of the law, justice and equity, as well as State Institutions, we could governed effectively the Nation and administer with equity the economic resources of the State.

However, there are some individuals who of distant lands, coupe the realities of the Equatoguineans and without any experience of the national daily life, thinking that we are about to deceive the people because they were calling for popularity seeking. They claimed to be at the height of the task and satisfied at a given moment the record needed by the people as if they possessed a “magic wand.

Those person there always acted hurriedly and nervousness encouraging the people to take to violence and to the destruction of social fabric as if the Country will finish tomorrow. To that one, we are freshly saying that “Rome was not built in a day» and that the Equatoguinean people are satisfied with the great progress and the accelerate rate that are known in the national development processes of peace, harmony and order.

Although our conviction is to react with tolerance, we can not accept that some individuals destroy the values that the people had difficultly acquired at the course of their political career that is to say the sole democratic census vote that guaranteed peace and development, national dialogue, political consultation, cohabitation and the participation of all to public affairs.

We are no longer at the period where we perpetrate coup d’état or evicting legitimate power to carry out political changes in the Country.

By consequent we are inviting all the authors of the political life of this Country  to be part of this national dialogue that excludes  nobody.

We couldn’t have any longer accept the allegations of those who out rightly deny the positive progress in the subject of economic development that is translated by the free exercise of economic activities by the citizens, private initiative and the promotion of enterprises of Equatoguineans so that those who themselves the leadership in the national economic activities and the economic policy of the market so that competition and competence attracts capital and modern technology.

For its people, the government had necessary estimated to apply the policy of free money  circulation, capital protection, public and private ownership, development of work as man’s dignity as well as the liberalisation of all the associations aiming economic purposes, techniques and scientific in the interest of flourishing the nation.

My Dear Countrymen,

Apparently today the oil that was discover by the efforts of my government has become an appetizing plate so much envied by all those who fight for power in Equatorial Guinea. Imagine that we hadn’t got the advantage to rule this Country without oil and in this very difficult political and economic situations. With all that this presupposes   as sacrifice, we are openly enduring all this difficulties with the people.

Oil doesn’t constitute in any case an attraction to my government. It is no longer the sole wealth that our Country accounts for. That those who nourish the appetite for oil money knowing fully well that  by us making a rational use of this oil money is also for the interest of the present and future generations.

That they shouldn’t hide in their defamatory campaigns for we work with the people and which is visible for all.

That which  is preoccupant of what the Equatoguinean citizens neglect of the importance of other national riches that, contrary to petrol, are not perishable.

Therefore, I call to the ingenuity of our people for that these can benefit from the fall of oil to develop some activities that can serve the nation in a permanent way. These are amongst, agriculture, fishing, livestock, tourism and other derived activities.

The government takes from effect these necessary measures to promote private initiative in Equatorial Guinea.

Finally, fellow Country men, we are not suppose to be caught into  a trap of propaganda deceit that those make use who close their eyes on the undeniable progress that our people knows in the socio-cultural domain. One can quote by way of an example the integration of our traditional ancestral values to our national culture, the union of culture and Country religions  in the interest of a social objective and of common moral, the promotion and protection of the Rights of the Child, Women and the socially Handicaps known as the person more vulnerable, the promotion of education a basis for success for all the Citizens as well as the protection of human health, a fundamental objective for the government.

The youths  are suppose to be the defenders of these values that were transmitted to us by our parents ever since our tender child ages so as to develop the people’s human conscience and to further away these  to the facilities that can transform these men in despots and egoistic, insensitive to the problems of others.  All these values   that the government materialises  across concrete actions have today  transform our Country in an Eldorado of Central  Africa were peace reigns, the socio-political stability and economic development that touches right up to the nooks and crannies of our Country.

Therefore make trips in all the towns of the country and  make an account of an Equatorial Guinea of today and not of yesterday.

My Dear Countrymen,

After identifying the objectives, the government’s effort now has to consist of ameliorating the quality of administrative service and that of the administrative personnel  in order that the citizen can be treated with dignity. Private service has to follow the same line of duty so that satisfaction should be completed.

For this reason and for dialogue treatment, tendentious and the critical destructive of our enemies who sees our actions with bad eyes, I would never ceased to draw the attention of the Equatoguinean people so that they remain vigilant to orchestral machination by the enemies be it within or outside the Country in view of the fact that they are the wicked blind and the ambitious at the same time who are incapable to treat with the devil.

Today Equatorial Guinea is one of the Countries most visited in the Sub region because there exist some security and protection of the Citizenship and also Capital investment. Despite all these, we always request visitors and those with whom we live together to respect the norms of political order and the mural interest of our laws and of our culture which constitute the basis of our political and social equilibrium.

One of pernicious  aspect introduce in the moral schemes of the people is corruption in its traditional culture, it is therefore a need to know who corrupts who.

 In my opinion, Corruption is a habit imported by business men who came to the country in the beginning to easily rich and in whatever price. These makes the prices of imported goods  to arbitrary skyrocket at the same time that it  inflates  excessively these estimate for the execution of development projects that the government gives, in this way, it  submits the functions in charge of the file directives to various pressure all by moving it to breach of trust offences.

It is therefore  the reason by which my wishes force me to personally assure the responsibility of the sole national architect of payments in order to exercise the necessary control in view of the fact, in my capacity as President of the  Republic, with the constitution it has made me the person in charge of good governance in all institutions of the State.

If I give the enterprises that practised corruption in my Country, it is not to leave its functions which cooperates with her. I therefore encourage this aspect. Once more the Chamber of representatives for the people and the tribunal should   continue to track down and condemn those who break the laws.

One of the  multiple necessities of Equatorial Guinea as subject of International Law is to develop its friendly relations and Cooperation with all the International Community. Despite the deformative campaigns against my government, Equatorial Guinea had made known in this sense, its position of its Country’s peace and liberty, that holds its engagements in relation to its recognition and respect of personal human values and the protection of its Rights, to the respect of its State Sovereignty, to the non interference in the internal affairs of other States, and to the development of an international Cooperation to  reciprocal benefits.

It is for this reason that all the economic powers and cultural influence recognised the positive role that my government plays in international relations.

Therefore, we are about to conclude important Cooperation agreements with certain governments; this which will contribute to fast development of our Country, with the reinforcement of bilateral and multilateral Cooperation.

We congratulate the fact that the American government has decided to reopen its embassy in Malabo and to reinforce its Cooperation with Equatorial Guinea.

My Dear Countrymen,

The 12^th of October’s choice for the attainment of our Country to independence was not a haphazard affair.

Indeed, as a new member for the community of Hispanic Nations because, before now the last of the Spanish colonies had reach independence, Equatorial Guinea had wanted to leave its finger prints in this union of friends in arriving to the independence of 12^th  October, the World Hispanic day.

Our national flag floated alongside that of the big World Hispanic family in the Cathedral of “Nuestra  Senora de Pilar” in Saragosse.

Our friendly feelings of fraternity and solidarity goes to all those friendly Countries at the same time that we are sending from us our wishes, that solidarity and mutual collaboration of all enrichment, enlarge and benefit to all the cultural arena Afro-Iberoaméricain all over.

Concluding this message, I am encouraging,  as I have always been doing to the Equatoguinean people who have to take the responsibilities of their proper destiny in  putting work above everything, and that with everyone in his domain of competence with solidarity and union and above all  emphasising on the principles and objectives of the Equatorial Guinean State; that which recalls to us our national motto of UNITY, PEACE AND JUSTICE.

Long live Equatorial Guinea !