This archive report was first published on 18 September 2021.
Guinea's recent coup leader, Col. Mamady Doumbouya, has offered a twist to his story. In a photograph, he was seen wearing a matching white robe with his two wives, both of whom are white - one French and the other German.
While being a polygamist is not uncommon in Africa, the fact that Doumbouya's wives are not from Guinea has raised eyebrows among some African patriots. They argue that as an African leader, he has a responsibility to marry a woman from his own country.
However, the Guineans have welcomed the coup with open arms, with scenes of dancing and selfies with the putschist soldiers showing people visibly excited about the ouster of Alpha Conde.
But African coups notoriously end in tears and heartbreak, and it might not be long before the Guineans are crying again.
Col. Doumbouya, 41, has a 15-year military career that has seen him serve in various missions around the world, including Afghanistan, Ivory Coast, and Djibouti. He was in the French foreign legion and trained extensively before being called back to lead the elite Special Forces Group (GFS) in 2018.
Despite his exposure to the world, Doumbouya and his comrades still needed to sprinkle chicken blood and feathers on the state house fence and blow ash in the air to ward off possible Conde spells.
Observers see Doumbouya and his comrades as representing a strong trend in Africa today - a return to the roots, to the old ways.
Charles Onyango-Obbo is a journalist, writer, and curator of the 'Wall of Great Africans'.
