Guinea's coup leader declared a zero tolerance policy on corruption Saturday, vowing to renegotiate the country's numerous mining and trade contracts and warning that anyone who embezzles state funds will be killed, AP reported.
Capt. Moussa Camara also extended an apparent concession to Guinea's powerful unions, telling them they could help choose a prime minister following international criticism that elections are not planned for two more years.
On a concrete stage inside the barracks from where he launched his rebellion Tuesday, Camara jabbed his finger at the sky as he swore to do away with the corruption that has drained the mineral-rich state's coffers and impoverished the West African nation's 10 million people.
"For the person who embezzles money, there won't be a trial. They'll be killed," he said as the crowd went wild. "I was born in a hut. I walked to school. ... Money means nothing to me."
Guinea is the world's largest producer of bauxite, the raw material used to make aluminum, and also produces diamonds, gold and timber. Yet its mineral wealth was siphoned off to enrich the country's longtime ruling family and its closest associates.
Dictator Lansana Conte, who had ruled since 1984, died on Monday. The military junta led by Camara declared a coup a day later.
Camara said Saturday the country's ruling clique "spit on the faces of the poor," enriching themselves at the population's expense.
One of the remedies he proposed was reviewing the country's mining and trade contracts and renegotiating them if the terms are unfavorable. He did not name any specific companies whose contracts might be affected.
The coup has been condemned by the international community. The European Union and the United States have called for restoration of democracy in Guinea; Camara has said elections will be held in December 2010 though he does not intend to run. The president of neighboring Senegal has declared support for the military group.
On Saturday, Camara said he would allow Guinea's unions and others to propose the name of a prime minister. Rabiatou Serah Diallo, head of one of Guinea's largest unions, welcomed the move.
"Guineans are now awake and we need to closely watch what they do," she said. "If they deviate from the road they promise to take us on, then they'll find us blocking their path."
In 2007, Guinea's unions led weeks of deadly demonstrations calling for Conte to step down. He managed to retain power by agreeing to name a prime minister from a list of five potential premiers approved by the unions.
But Conte unexpectedly fired Lansana Kouyate through a presidential decree in May after an uneasy 15-month power-sharing agreement and chose a replacement.
Camara was largely unknown to most Guineans before his group seized public airwaves and declared the coup. On Saturday, he invited civilian community leaders - including union leaders, religious heads, politicians and human rights workers - to meet him at his barracks.
He arrived surrounded by a cordon of soldiers, who hollered at the crowd to move back. Many wore fetishes tied around their arms and necks intended to protect them from harm. Camara - a short man with a taut face - took the microphone, electrifying the crowd with one pronouncement after another.
Even though the coup leader appears to enjoy broad support, tens of thousands turned out for the dictator's funeral on Friday.
It ended on the manicured grounds of the ex-president's estate in his village located around 40 miles (65 kilometers) northwest of the capital. With state funds, Conte built himself a house the size of a hotel fronting a lake.
His family - including two of his three wives and an estimated 20 children - showed up in Hummers, stretch limousines and flashy SUVs.
As they put his body to rest, the sun went down over the village of his birth. Most of the country - including much of the capital - has no electricity. But as darkness fell, the homes in the village shone with light.