Who is Samba from God's Bits of Wood and what is their importance?

Samba is another pro-strike unionist. Gossipy and impulsive, his enthusiasm triggering an initial, fatal confrontation with management and leading to his tragic end when he is shot near the end of the march to Dakar. The fact that he is revealed to be the father of Maimouna's twins can be seen as further defining his perhaps archetypally male irresponsibility, a contrast to Maimouna's perhaps equally archetypal responsibility and maternal instincts.