All Together Now: Corruption and RealPolitik Pirouette

"At the moment the president of France stepped up and said 'I back the Rwanda candidate', the expenses [scandalous use of la Francophonie finances by Michaelle Jean to 'upgrade' and 'renovate' a rental apartment in France for her personal comfort and aggrandizement] took a back seat."
"I think it's a question of geopolitics. France has a plan for consolidating its presence in Africa, because it is challenged by China and other powers."
"Do we want to jeopardize our relations with African countries at the moment that we are looking for votes for our bid at the [United Nations] Security Council?"
Jocelyn Coulon, Quebec scholar, writer

"Behind the scenes, Canadian diplomats are probably asking Michaelle Jean to not propose her candidacy [this week]."
"The right thing is to ask her to not propose her candidacy, for the goodness of the organization and the issues."
Alupa Clarke, Conservative deputy critic, la Francophonie

"French remains the second international language, and there are countries who want to rely on French to integrate into international networks."
"There may be countries in there that have trouble dealing with English and the Commonwealth and who see an alternative in la Francophonie."
Martin Normand, post-doctoral researcher, University of Ottawa

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Michaelle Jean at the headquarters of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie in Paris, France, April 16, 2018.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

The colonial imperialist powers of France and Britain, long bitter rivals for international influence and control of weak, Third-World countries in the 19th centuries, played the Great Game along with other nations such as Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany and Russia to name a few in occupying weak countries to establish their rule, exploit their natural resources, pattern the politics and economies after their own and exert all the power of victors over the weak and the compliant. They're still at it, though they've long since acquiesced to self-rule for their former colonies.

Britain's old colonies, from the Middle East to India, are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, more numerous than France's colonies, celebrating the traditions they received from British rule in governance, politics, justice and the rule of law, just as France's has done with the establishment of la Francophonie, now mostly engaged in a rivalry of language superiority of numbers. France and the French are inordinately jealous of the predominance of English as an international language, furiously promoting French, the second-most popular language globally used, as a preferred alternative.

Canadian loyalties are split between Britain and France, but it is Britain who fought a winning war against France in emerging Canada whose near-total influence is more reflective of Canadian culture, jurisprudence, politics and social values. Still the ties with France are kept partially maintained through membership in la Francophonie. When the Liberals were in power under Prime Minister Paul Martin, the leitmotif of 'progressivism' led him to nominate a Haitian immigrant to Canada, Michaelle Jean.

In September, 2005, Michaelle Jean, newly sworn in as Governor General greets people in the Hall of Honour on Parliament Hill, with her then-six year-old daughter Marie-Eden Jean, in front, and then-Prime Minister Paul Martin in back.

In one fell swoop accomplishing what his eventual successor, Justin Trudeau, has yearned to do in all his own appointments, by establishing a woman, an immigrant of colour and a Francophone to the imperial post of representing the Queen of England in Canada. Mr. Martin's PMO minions failed somehow to alert him to the fact that Ms. Jean and her husband were separatist sympathizers, finding much in common with those in Quebec advocating sovereignty for Quebec through separation from Canada, as a "distinct nation".

Once the public outcry dissipated, Michaelle Jean performed very well in her state position. All the ceremonial duties of a Governor General were dispatched with panache, and her visit to her native Haiti conferred great pride on Haitians, so many of whom live in squalor. Michaelle Jean may have come from a country established beside another more successful one on a shared island where natural disasters regularly strike, and Haitian leadership is stuck in corrupt mode, but the finer things in life have their appeal.

Haitians may suffer, but Michaelle Jean was determined not to, and her ambition and the vital connections she made in the international community stood her in good stead after her Governor General stint was completed. When she wound up as secretary general of la Francophonie the order of business she seemed to find most pressing was spending a half-million dollars on renovating, the apartment she rented in Paris, to reflect her grand status, along with a $20,000 grand piano. Gasps of incredulity didn't stop her from successfully working well with the 20 of la Francophonie's 54 members that are dictatorships.

Her agenda as secretary general was to promote gender equality, economic development and enhanced cooperation with African partner nations. The time has come, however, for her to step down, though she plans to run again for the position she will be vacating. Presumably she made all the important connections she felt were required for re-election, and would be confident of the support of Quebec and Canada for her continued candidacy. Both of which have decided to abandon her, however, and vote instead for the preferred candidate of the majority of African countries and France.

And that would be Rwandan Foreign Affairs Minister Louise Mushikiwabo, chosen at la Francophonie's summit in Armenia. Yes, Armenia! How many French speakers in Armenia? Not many, but la Francophonie is now open to extending its memberships to any country within which a single soul may have a smattering of polite French expression, oui? Rwanda's human rights record? Pretty dismal. But then this is Africa, tribal, divisive, corrupt, conflict-ridden. So why not Louise Mushikiwabo?

Mind, fewer than one percent of Rwandans speak French. Details, inconvenient and irrelevant. Of the 84 members, associates and observers many wouldn't qualify as French-speaking nations. But networking and the power and influence observed to be useful in joining any group that commands attention as an international organization invites prospects. So Canada, looking to influence African votes for its nomination to the UN Security Council revolving two-year membership, sees fit to drop Michaelle Jean and enthusiastically vote for Rwanda's Louise Mushikiwabo.

Canada's back, though it never ventured very far from where it has always been. In this instance licking the bootstraps of authoritarian regimes and dictatorships for that elusive UN seat that it feels confers such prestige. A world organization of high repute that is corrupt through and through. Just like la Francophonie, just like the phony touchy-feely, sanctimonious, progressive administration that Canada now labours under.

Rwandan Foreign Affairs Minister Louise Mushikiwabo, who is running for Secretary General of the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF), poses for pictures on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Sept. 25, 2018 in New York.
LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/Getty Images