Spectacle of Unrest: What Should Africans Do?

Published on 24th March 2009

The current spate of turbulence in African governments is worrying and deserves urgent attention.  If this turmoil is not addressed soberly and timely, the continent is bound to not only slide into the bottomless pit of underdevelopment, but also to cost dearly in conflict management.

Africa’s citizenry are finally arising and declaring ‘Enough is enough!’ They can no longer be used as mere tools to satisfy the greed of political leaders. They can no longer be taken for granted by leaders who have turned their countries into private property. They can no longer withstand being shortchanged in electoral promises.

The conflict in Chad, Guinea Bissau and most recently, Madagascar should send a warning to Sudan, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Nigeria, Ghana and other African states that the leadership ought to be accountable to the citizenry. The struggle for independence in most African countries was underpinned by the people’s desire to reclaim their land and free themselves from poverty, ignorance and disease. However the historical conspiracy of exploitation continues to thrive and inform our present political leadership.

Governance paradigms should be reviewed to discard the ‘copy and paste’ culture. African leadership has not only embraced the colonial super structure, they without interrogation simply adopted western trappings of power, authority and economic privileges.

The ongoing turbulence could be a pointer to the fact that the current economic system does not address the interests of the majority and that the continent lacks confidence in the governance apparatus as presently constituted.


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