Pragmatism in the Age of Jihad The Precolonial State of Bundu by Michael A. Gomez. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1992, 252 pp.

Abstract

Without doubt, Gomez has made a great contribution to the understanding
of Islam in Bundu. Although a few works have been published on
Islam in West Africa, Gomez’s work is a valuable addition. The author
begins by locating Bundu on the map of West Africa and explaining the
scope of his research and the sources upon which he relies. Gomez attributes
the success of Bundu as a state to its pragmatic policies, which, he
alleges, were predetermined by its founders. By pragmatism he means:
a policy in which the pursuit of commercial and agricultural
advantage supersedes all other considerations, to the extent that
alliances and rivalries with both neighboring polities and
European powers are determined by economic expediency, and
are subject to rapid and frequent realignment. (p. 2)
Compliance with this policy implies that the foreign and domestic
affairs are not based on advancing the claims of Islam, but rather on promoting
peaceful coexistence among all groups, be they Muslim or non-
Muslim, in Bundu.
This book is designed for general readers. The author discusses major
issues in Bundu and Senegambia before the imposition of colonial rule and
administration. He analyzes critically the significant roles played by Almaamis
(the imams) Malik Sy, Buba Malik, Maka Jiba, Amadi Gai, Bokar
Saada, and Mamadu Lamine and provides a clear explanation of the Bundu
state’s gradual development from the sixteenth century until 1902. He also
shows the French administration’s insidious politics of divide and rule in St.
Louis, Bakel, and Senegal, which was designed to weaken Bundu by instigating
conflict between one imam and another and to control the trade in
this area (pp. 95-97). Throughout his analysis, Gomez reiterates cautiously
his thesis that Bundu’s leaders were never interested in advancing Islam or
establishing a strong Islamic state. Rather, they were “essentially concerned
with preservation and commercial expansion of the state” (p. 99).
Toward the end of the book, he deals more with the leadership of
Bokar Saada, who reigned for a long time despite the lack of popular sup
port. Bokar Saada was a leader forced on Bundu by French administrators ...