Chad’s quest for a national voice
During a visit to France, President Tombalbaye made a deliberate detour to the Pavillon de La Muette, nestled within the Saint-Germain forest in Maisons-Laffite. This location housed the Société de Radiovision d’Outre Mer (SORAFOM), an institution critical to his vision for a new Chadian broadcasting landscape.
It was there that he declared his clear objective: “I want an excellent journalist to establish Radio Tchad.” His request led him to Pierre Shaefflert, a renowned sound engineer celebrated for his revolutionary contributions to radio music. Without hesitation, Shaefflert pointed to a “tall, distinguished Black man from Kamerun,” Pierre Mabè Gwet.
Mabè Gwet, who had completed his program presenter training at Studio-École between 1956 and 1957, and further perfected his skills from 1960 to 1961, had by then become a key figure in French cooperation efforts. He was the ideal candidate to spearhead the transformation.
Tasked with this monumental mission, Mabè Gwet oversaw the relocation of the rudimentary Free French radio station from Fort-Lamy to its modern-day site in N’Djamena. More than just a physical move, he was instrumental in nurturing the first generation of Chadian journalists, laying the groundwork for a robust national media.
His pioneering spirit ignited a passion for broadcasting in numerous young talents, including Garambaye Adoum Saleh and the vibrant Saleh Kedzabo, who would later become a prominent writer for Jeune-Afrique magazine. Mabè Gwet’s impact transcended technical development; he was a true creator of dreams.
President Tombalbaye, captivated by Mabè Gwet’s eloquent writing, profound general knowledge — particularly his grasp of the panafricanist theodicy from Trinidadian thinkers — and his expansive geopolitical strategic insights gained at Science-Pô in Paris, appointed him as his trusted advisor.
As President Tombalbaye’s ‘Sherpa,’ Mabè Gwet was entrusted with crafting all the president’s speeches, especially during Tombalbaye’s profound shift towards panafricanism and his emergence as a champion of African authenticity.
However, this era of national development was abruptly interrupted by a coup d’état that deposed President Tombalbaye. Pierre Mabè Gwet, demonstrating quick thinking, managed to cross the border into Kousseri, thus evading the assassins who tragically claimed President Tombalbaye’s life.
Pierre Mabè Gwet stands as a prime example of an extraordinary generation of trailblazers whose immense contributions to the propagation of ideas across Africa are etched in history. This cohort includes figures such as Georges Rawiri from Gabon, who would become his country’s vice president and was central to the establishment of Radio Garoua, and Pierre Mouasso Priso, the founder of Radio Cameroun.
In Côte d’Ivoire, following in the footsteps of Thiam, Sylvain Zogbo – father of the prominent Ivorian audiovisual personality Yves Zogbo Junior and an equal to Consty Eka – played a pivotal role in establishing the nation’s Radiotelevision. Further east, in Bangui, an Afro-Lebanese individual from Togo named Toufic laid the initial foundations for local broadcasting.