Strauss-Kahn Vs. The Powers That Be

Honestly, I almost wrote a piece condemning Strauss-Kahn but something at the back of my head kept shouting: CAUTION! And I am most grateful that unlike my usual self, I heeded that voice. Ordinarily, I would have started this piece with an apology to him.

A little history: Am not good with dates (forgive me), the former IMF
boss was arrested a couple of months back for sexually assaulting a
New York maid. Our televisions were awash with images of this man in
handcuffs being led away by security men. Someone made sure we saw
those pictures and ensured that they remain with us owing to the
boring monotony of its repetition.

Just in tow, some women groups join the "crucify him" chant. Everyone,
at least on TV seemed to be crying for blood. It was just
unimaginable: IMF boss and an ordinary hotel maid. I can't remember
her colour or nationality. Had she come from any of the IMF-victim
nations of the South, their people would have been induced by their
governments to spill into the streets until they get an IMF-verified
debt write-off. That is a matter for another day and occasion.

So, he is harangued into resigning his job. Of course, he cannot be
undergoing criminal investigation and still be trusted with keeping
the health of the economies of the nations. With the resignation, a
prosperous career of an individual comes tumbling down ostensibly for
his inability to curb the excesses of his member.

And as if he wasn't ever there, the scramble for his seat begins in
earnest. Global campaign and political intrigues pitched so-called
emerging economies against developed ones as the former occupant of the
position languishes in detention and public humiliation.

Indulge my bewilderment at learning shortly after his replacement has
been announced that holds have been identified in the deposition of
the hotel maid that he is supposed to have raped. It's good news for
is supporters but for me the timing leaves a soup test in the mouth.
Try answering this question if you are still dazed by the predilection
of my confusion: why were the holds not discovered before his
resignation? Or this: why were they found after someone have safely
taken over his seat?

Fighting with the powers that be comes with its complexities not only
for the contestants but mainly for those watching. We can hardly make
sense of the proceedings and yet we are often constrained to watch the
irrational macabre story unfurl before our very eyes.

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