Carnal power and the postcolonial state

Achille Mbembe argues that obscenity is an essential characteristic of domination within postcolonial regimes. But what about contemporary African society? Professor Wale Adebanwi draws on examples from Central, Southern and West Africa to reflect on Mbembe’s concept of the “carnality of power”, exploring how political power can carnalise social relations and make sense of subordination.