LE WAZZOU POLYGAME

Class struggle in Niger. El Hadj is the rich Muslim everyone gives credit to; Garba is a have-not who believes in the common sense of traditional laws; Saitou is a young carefree girl. When El Hadj asks for Saitou's hand as his third wife, all hell is let loose: the despair of his second wife and the rage of two other suitors, Garba and El Hadj's son. In a dramatic crescendo, on the eve of the wedding, the second wife tries to stab Saitou but by mistake kills another woman. Saitou runs away and Garba emigrates to the Atlantic coast. Even people who do not want to emigrate end up being forced to do so. "Wazzou" or "El Hadj" is the title given to Muslims who have made the pilgrimage to Mecca.

"Attacking a 'wazzou' in a Muslim country like mine was not an easy thing to do, but at all costs I wanted to expose the fact that they often use their journey to Mecca as a screen to hide their foul deeds" (O. Ganda).

Director and screenplay: Oumarou Ganda.
Cast: Goumbokoye Issa, Souley Zalika, Dia Lam Ibrahima, Salamatou Joseph, Oumarou Ganda.
Production company: Argos Films (Paris), Ministère de la Coopération Français.