According to Mbembe, there is a definite search for majesty and prestige within the post colony. This search contains elements of what he refers to as “crudeness and “the bizarre,” of which the official tries to hide. (89) Mbembe also adds that the people-the ordinary-however, keep bringing this facet back to the official’s attention, and this is often done so unwittingly (89). Despite this usage of crudeness and the bizarre to display majesty, it is manipulated by the people and played on, turning it into a weapon to examine the official and its vulgarity in the process. This can be seen in Hama Tuma’s “The Case of the Socialist Witchdoctor,” in the cases of The Illiterate Saboteur and The Professor of Insanity, as well as The Professional.
According to Ogude African regimes, in the post colony setting, are…show more content… A resistance is played out through the façade of the obedience and acceptance as portrayed by the people, who in turn force the search and manipulate it into a weapon to rather examine the official, examining its own vulgarity.
Such can be seen within Hama Tuma’s “The Case of the Socialist Witchdoctor.” The Case of the Illiterate Saboteur is the opening case within Tuma’s collection. The first case tells of the trial of an elderly, illiterate and poverty-stricken man in Ethiopia being prosecuted for publically urinating outside the Kebele Offices, where signs strictly prohibiting the act. The case clearly depicts how the official searches for majesty and prestige within the post colony; the narrator begins by describing the space wherein the trial takes pace, commenting on the “raised platform” and “high-backed chair” for the judge whilst leaving
