But what depressed me most was the Democrat representative, a woman called Monica, who was unable to respond to a question I put to her, which went more or less like this:

‘I hope Obama becomes the next President of America. I’m sorry, as a British citizen, I cannot vote for him. However, in terms of his interest in Africa, I think we need to look at a couple of elements. First, this is a man too frightened to challenge the Israeli-Jewish vote in the States, a man who has said he wants to see Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel. Anyone who is prepared to sacrifice the Palestinian interest so readily, surely cannot be trusted in Africa.

‘Secondly, I’m amazed that none of the panel have mentioned ‘oil’. North of South Africa, in the Gulf of Guinea, there are several major oil producing states that supply the USA with 15% of its oil imports. One of them – Angola – is also the leading exporter to China in terms of Chinese oil imports. Bigger, in other words, than Saudi Arabia. Given the American love affair with the car, the American obsession with cheap petrol, I would like to learn what Obama’s policy is on oil, and what his policy might be towards Africa’s oil-producing states. And I’d be interested to hear what you think about the fact that several of the oil producing states – Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and Angola – have authoritarian leaders who’ve been around a lot longer than Mugabe and are just as authoritarian – even if they exercise that power in an apparently more sophisticated way. Don’t think their people don’t live in fear.’

She ummed and ahhed, and spluttered, and then muttered something about this being a matter for several nations.

Oh dear oh dear oh dear.