FrançAfrique: Kemi Seba firmly rejects support from Robert Bourgi

In a recently circulated clip from the YouTube show Les funérailles des Tabous, shared by activist Kemi Seba on social media platform X, Robert Bourgi—once a key figure of the FrançAfrique network—expressed willingness to support Seba. The response from the pan-Africanist leader was unequivocal: a clear and resounding no.

During the broadcast, Bourgi, a Franco-Lebanese lawyer and former adviser to several African and French presidents, was asked whether he would consider supporting contemporary pan-African leaders, particularly Kemi Seba. “Yes, why not,” he answered, surprising the hosts. He went on to say he was familiar with Seba and encouraged African youth to “take your destiny into your own hands and believe in yourselves—you have the means to earn respect.”

But Kemi Seba, now a naturalized citizen of Niger and a prominent voice of radical pan-Africanism, wasted no time in responding. In a caption to the video he reposted, he wrote: “Robert Bourgi, ex-pillar of FrançAfrique, regrets his past actions and says he’s ready to support Kemi Seba… No thanks, I’ll pass.”

This firm refusal underscores Seba’s consistent stance: a rejection of any association with figures he views as architects or beneficiaries of neocolonial influence in Africa. For him, aligning with someone so closely tied to the old guard of FrançAfrique would undermine the integrity and clarity of his political and ideological struggle.