Election Fever Grips Africa During 2011
Africa, it is said, is a continent always gripped by paradoxes. On the one hand, its people are resilient and hopeful while on the other, its leaders are self-serving and do not readily respect the will and aspirations of their people. Recent events on the continent appear to underline this perspective.
In La Cote d’Ivoire, elections were held and the incumbent President, Laurent Gbagbo, was defeated. He refused to step down. Instead, he ordered the Constitutional Court to reverse the result by annulling votes from a region of the country where he is believed to have little or no support. Dutifully, the Constitutional Court annulled about 400,000 of such votes and Mr. Gbagbo was declared the winner. The United Nations, the African Union, the Economic Commission of West Africa States (ECOWAS), a regional body, as well as the United States and European Union have all endorsed Mr. Alassane Outtarra, who was declared the winner by the Elections Commission, as the duly elected President of the country. Yet, Mr. Gbagbo has refused to cede power and step down. As a result the country is gripped by a political impasse occasioned by violence which has resulted in the death of more than 170 persons thus far. Gbagbo’s supporters including state security forces have been accused of committing most of the violence. The country appears to be on a precipice of returning to war. Numerous international efforts aimed at resolving the impasse have so far proven unsuccessful. Former President Thabo Mbeki was dispatched by the African Union to mediate but came away empty handed. The ECOWAS sent a team of three African leaders from Sierra Leone, Cape Verde and Benin, but Gbagbo would not budge. The African Union changed its mediator without any explanation and named Kenya’s Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, to mediate. He came away empty handed as well following his initial and second visits.
Meanwhile, in Tunisia, the people took to the street in protest against the military dictatorship of President Ben Ali, who came to power in 1987 following a bloodless coup d’état. He remained in power for more than 23 years through successive elections. All this time, he was supported by the European Union and the United States, which saw him as an ally in the war against terrorism. The World Bank and the IMF portrayed Tunisia as one of the most successful African country given its obeisance to their policies, which included Tunisia accession to GATT and the WTO, by entering into a “closer relationship with the EU, under an agreement removing all tariffs and restrictions on goods between the two.” France and Italy are Tunisia’s two major trading partners.[1]
As a further commitment to the orthodoxies of the IMF and World Bank, Tunisia adopted policies in the areas of “low public sector deficit, controlled inflation and renewed credit-worthiness.” The country proceeded to, as well, privatized “a total of 160 state owned enterprises; while its stock market “capitalization of the 50 largest companies listed on the Course de Tunis was worth US$5.7 billion by 2007.”[2] All this time, the personal fortunes of the Ben Ali’s family were handsomely multiplied while greed and corruption pervaded the political landscape.
Meanwhile unemployment and inequality increased. As is central to the World Bank and IMF economic policies, the Tunisian government removed subsidies to the poor, resulting in “rising housing costs and weaker welfare protections.”[3] Essentially, in Tunisia, as elsewhere in Africa, where these policies have been imposed, the rich gets richer and the poor gets poorer.
It was within this context in the town of Sidi Bouzid that a young university graduate, Mohammed Bouzazi, who was also unemployed, found himself. Mr.Bouzaza a street peddler of vegetables had his produce confiscated by the police. Frustrated, forlorn and with no prospects in sight, he set himself ablaze in protest. Thus igniting what has be labeled the “Jasmine Revolution.” The word spread, the people came into the streets and the President abdicated and fled to Saudi Arabia. The protest has once again given hope in other countries, not only in Africa but elsewhere in the Middle East that people power can and do end dictatorship. Despair in La Cote d’Ivoire and Hope in Tunisia – the two sides of the African coin. The contagion has spread to Egypt, and as this article is being written, Egypt’s President, Hosni Mubarak may be on his way out; or would he?
It is against this background that one must see the myriad of up-coming elections in Africa in 2011. As they say for every two steps Africa makes along the part to democratic governance one giant step is taken backwards. This is not happening because African people do not want to take control of their lives; this is the case because of the prevailing circumstances with the body polity within the African continent – a result of history, of greed, of corruption as well as geo-politics and the doctrine of the free market.
During 2011 perhaps 17 or maybe 19, if Tunisia and now Egypt follow suit, elections will be held across the African continent. In North Africa elections are scheduled in Egypt and perhaps Tunisia. In East Africa, Elections are to be held in Djibouti and Uganda. In Central Africa, elections are on the calendar for Cameroon, Central Africa Republic, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In West Africa, elections will be held in Benin, Cape Verde, Gambia, Liberia Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe and the Seychelles. In Southern Africa, elections are scheduled for Madagascar, Zambia and probably Zimbabwe, where a constitutional referendum is scheduled prior to the elections.
It may be helpful to very briefly examine the state of democracy in Africa more generally before attempting a cursory appraisal of the upcoming elections within some of the individual African countries mentioned. No doubt, the majority of African countries have, at least at the theoretical and rhetorical levels, embraced the concept that democracy is the way of the future. However, the content and character of that democratic agenda remains highly contested.
Leading African commentators, activists, politicians and scholars continue to debate what form or forms should democracy in Africa take. There are those who contend that Western Democracy is an imposition upon Africa. This view holds that given Africa’s history and the condition of state formation on the continent, western democracy is not the appropriate framework for governance. This view questions the relevance and even the efficacy of this form of democracy by pointing out a number of factors including the absence of class formation within which a given class interest is formed and crystallized and then canvassed among the electorates by way of political party formations. It is furthered that in the absence of class formation, ethnicity becomes the vehicle for political mobilization resulting in conflicts and in some cases violence and civil war. This view, as well, points to the absence of a genuine African bourgeoisie or a middle class, as some would prefer, to lead the democracy project. In addition, they posit the lack of industrialization on the continent more broadly with the absence of a working class. It is suggested that given the fact that the vast majority of Africans continue to eke their livelihood through subsistence agriculture and live in rural environment, western democracy becomes anathema in such conditions.
Another point of view suggests that popular participation sometimes refer to as participatory democracy is the preferred paradigm best suited to the African conditions. In the minds of its proponents, Africans cherish consensus over voting and that democracy, as is manifested in voting, is a zero sum game, where the will and interests of the minority or marginalized groups are vanquished. This view contends that community should be at the core of decision making because they are the ones who are most impacted by such decisions.
And yet the situations of African peoples are not all that different from the rest of humanity. Africans sleep, eat and shit; they give birth, marry and die. They have families, seek means of acquiring skills to become productive and strive to live a life of dignity. As a part of the human family, they are part of the world. They influence others and have been influenced by others. They have been oppressed; have struggled against their oppression and won their rights to self-determination, independence, freedom and justice. Therefore, it would appear most improbable for them to some how not be able to fashion a system that would guarantee the dignified livelihood they have so valiantly and gallantly secured for themselves.
Therefore the debates about the nature, form and character of democratic processes in Africa have to, as a matter of moral imperative, be informed by a number of values and principles found almost anywhere else in the world and especially in Africa. These values and principle can be categorized as follows:
1. A constitutional framework which guarantees and protect the basic rights of citizens including the rights to assemble, the right to form association, the right to free speech, the right to information;
2. A political system with checks and balances; that is transparent and accountable; with institutions that ensures rights are enjoyed by all and all are equal before the law;
3. An economic justice system that assures affordable access to health, housing, education and opportunities to be productive;
4. A secure environment that ensures the dignity of the human person, the right to a dignified livelihood, security of the person from violence and freedom from want and
5. A developmental framework that takes into cognizance the protection of the environment or environmental justice and people-centered sustainable development.
Yet, as things now stand in Africa, these principles and values are either being paid lip-service; are pursued haphazardly, if at all; or are ridden roughshod over by the powers that be. Just take a look at Tunisia, Egypt and La Cote d’Ivoire or even the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone. To be sure, there maybe some African leaders, who may be attempting to pursue these objectives tirelessly, but possibly unsuccessfully given the global imperative that suggests the absence of an alternative to the free market paradigm. This then brings us to the cursory appraisals of some of the recently held elections and the upcoming ones.
Uganda
In East Africa the most important election during 2011 may be the Ugandan Presidential and Parliamentary elections which are to be held on 18 February 2011. President Yoweri Museveni who has been President since 1986 is expected to win the Presidential election. Others contenders include Dr. Kizza Besigye, who heads the Inter-Party Cooperation, a coalition of several political formations; Mr. Olara Otunnu of the Uganda Peoples Congress and Mr. Norbert Mao of the Democratic Party. The Country’s 14 million voters, 3.5 million of whom may be voting for the first time, will also elect 375 members of Parliament. About 1,700 candidates are running for Parliament.
President Museveni seized power in Uganda following a civil war and has ruled the East Africa country ever since. He has been credited with maintaining the peace in most parts of the country, improved the economy and reduced human rights abuses. There is on-going conflict in the North where the Lord Resistance Army continues to pose major threats. A peace agreement between the government and the LRA was signed during 2008 but it has not yet come to fruition. In July 2010, Kampala, the capital, was a scene of a massive bomb attacks by Somali Islamist, who claimed they were protesting Uganda’s role as peacekeepers in Somalia. Recently, the Africa Union decided to increase their peacekeeping troops to 12,000, most of whom will be contributed by Uganda. Uganda is a close ally of the US on its war against terrorism and has therefore received substantial support from the United States. High level American Officials including Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Mr. Johnny Carson and the Deputy Secrtary of State Mr. James Steinberg, were recently in Kampala to meet with President Museveni and the opposition leaders.
According to press reports, opposition leaders said that a free and fair election in Uganda is not possible as President Museveni has established networks of supporters in order to rig the elections. They claimed that the voter rolls have been padded by “ghost voters”. Dr. Kizza Besigye threatened that if the elections are rigged, he will lead a protest movement as happened in Tunisia and is now happening in Egypt, to oust Museveni and end his more than 25 years rule.
The London-based Africa Confidential reported that about 18,000 “extra election constables” are being trained to man the polling stations. According to the paper, “the mass training of young men in military science and political education… is a throwback to old NRM mobilization.” The National Resistance Movement (NRM) is the guerilla army that brought Museveni to power in 1986. Opposition leaders believe that these “extra election constables” are militias which will be used to intimidate and harass them.[4]
The discovery of oil in Uganda means that elections would be even more important as different actors seek to control the wealth which might emanate from its exploitation. This may render the politics more volatile. President Museveni has been unabashed about the oil discovery, telling some of his supporters that he can not now leave power after oil has been discovered and even if he did, he would ensure that a stalwart of the NRM takes over.[5]
Uganda is one of the most important countries in East Africa and the result of the election is important in terms of stability in the region. East Africa is historically a theater of war and Somalia is a good reminder that peace and stability is a necessary condition for the people of the region. It is left to the powers that be in Uganda to hold credible elections or indulge in folly and rig the election thus creating the condition for violence in the country. With the discovery of oil the situation is rife for the return to full scale war. The stakes are high indeed.
Nigeria
Perhaps the most important election in West Africa may be the Nigeria elections slated for April 2011. Although the recent elections in Niger, which ended military rule and probably set the country on a democratic trajectory is very significant for the region as well. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country, where internecine violence continues to undermine the search for peaceful co-existence among its more than 150 million people. In October, as the country celebrated its 50th independence celebration a bomb went off in the capital, Abuja. Scores were killed. A militant group in the restive Delta region was the alleged perpetrator. As recently as December 31, 2010, another bomb blast went off near a military barracks, also in Abuja killing more than 10 persons.
President Goodluck Jonathan declared his candidacy and will lead the ruling People Democratic Party. Amongst his rivals are: Nuhu Ribadu, the former head of Nigeria’s anti-corruption Commission under former President Olusegun Obassanjo. He appears to represent a generational shift in Nigerian politics. He is a much respected anti-corruption crusader, even though some Nigerians believe that his prosecution of corruption cases were selective, focusing primarily on those who were in opposition to Obassanjo at the time. He denied these allegations insisting that he only followed the available evidence. Another candidate is the former military dictator Mohammadu Buhari of the Congress for Progressive Change and Mr. Pat Utomi of the Social Democratic Mega Party. Observers believe that with the plethora of political parties and several presidential aspirants, the ruling party, could likely win the Presidential election.
The history of electioneering in Nigeria has been problematic and the up-coming election may not be an exception. It is common practice during Nigerian elections for politicians to go on a vote-buying spree, hire thugs to intimidate, harass or even assassinate their opponents. Nigerian courts have ruled against the ruling party for fraudulently winning elections in several states and those elections results were annulled. In some cases by the time the court reaches its decision, the election calendar has come full circle.
Nigeria epitomizes the tendency among African politicians to see the state as a vehicle for wealth accumulation. The country has some of the best educated citizenry on the African continent; its citizens are extremely enterprising and are not adverse to risk taking. It is amply endowed with mineral wealth including oil. However, the vast majority of its citizens have not benefitted from these attributes. Whereas, enormous steps have been taken, in the last ten years, to make public officials more accountable to the people, the scourge of corruption and abuse of power continue to pervade the political landscape.
Entrenching a culture of democracy, transparency and accountability in Nigeria will have significant impart in the region. It is not foolhardiness to suggest that if Nigeria can get its public policy to benefit the poor majority, the positive impact this will have on the rest of Africa will be impossible to miss. Will Nigeria and Nigerians step to the plate? Some would say, “don’t hold your breath”. But as they say in some parts of Africa, “time will tell”.
Central Africa
In Central Africa, the Cameroon election is one to watch. But once you are thinking Central Africa, it is unavoidable that you have got to check out what is happening in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Of course, in the Central African Republic, the opposition is crying foul following its recent elections. Maybe, except for the opposition parties, everyone who caredto pay any scant attention to this forgotten part of the world, knows that there will never ever be any free and fair election in the CAR until the status quo is purged as was recently and successfully done in Tunisia. (The Tunisia example is now the new thing in town and we will beat it to death.)
To be sure, Central Africa demonstrates a host of commonalities easily discernible in African politics and electoral processes. The first is that the incumbent will not entertain the idea of free and fair election. So we can expect Paul Biya to win in Cameroon and Joseph Kabila to win in DRC.
Second is the tendency in francophone Africa to consider the option of building a dynasty. Gabon, Togo as well as the DRC constitute this tendency. In all of these countries, the sons followed in the footsteps of the fathers, all of whom were, to be charitable, autocrats. In Senegal, it appears that President Abdullai Wade may in fact anoint his son to succeed him.
Third, the urgency is thrust upon Africa political analyst to consider examining opposition leaders who have been heads of their formations from inception. In the DRC, Etienne Tshisekeda has been in the opposition, from like when I first heard of the Congo, as far back as in the late 70’s. John Fru Ndi, a rival to Paul Biya for the presidency of Cameroon is another. He has led the Social Democratic Front in the last twenty years. Some of his colleagues have left and initiated new political formations including Kah Walla of Go Cameroon (Cameroon O Bosso), the only woman candidate for President in Cameroon with grassroots support. In terms of Francophone Africa, this trend needs unpacking given the contemporary history in that part of Africa. In Senegal, Abdullai Wade a long time opposition figure came to power. His pre-occupation since he got power appears to be a penchant for maintaining power. Alas, he wants his son to succeed him. In La Cote d’Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo was an opposition figure during all of Houphouet Boigny reign. He got power and as in the case of Wade, he seems pre-occupy with keeping that power. To hell with the country, Gbagbo just wants power. He held it for 10 years already but that is not the point.
In Central Africa, nothing new is expected to emerge from the electoral processes in Cameroon, and DRC. Central Africa Republic only just demonstrated that sad reality. Burundi and Rwanda offers the world a major challenge as well. In Rwanda, Paul Kagame continues to conduct the state of affairs on the premise that whoever opposes him is a genocidaire or intent on undermining state security. He is too much intolerable and takes extreme actions against his real and perceived opponents. Like Nigeria, political assassination appears to be a strategy in Rwandan politics. Recently, in South Africa, a senior military advisor to Paul Kagame was shot. He did not die. His wife publicly declared that the Government of Rwanda was responsible for the assassination attempt. In Rwanda, journalist who have queried the conduct of the Gcagca process, a government controlled transitional justice process, and/or criticized government policies are thrown in jail. No doubt the government would say, they broke the law and the court found the journalists guilty. This is the rule of law. As they say in South Africa “finish and klarr”.
Central Africa represents a cocktail of a complex and difficult politics in Africa. This condition is only made worsened by the armed conflicts in the region including the on-going war in the DRC and the low-level violent conflicts in CAR and indeed straddling border areas in Rwanda and Burundi. The unconquerable and irrevocable prospects for democratic entrenchment in the region are yet to be demonstrated in the region.
Zimbabwe
Southern Africa is one region in Africa where tenets of democratic expressions are being routinized. South Africa, Botswana and perhaps Zambia are clear manifestations. However, in Botswana, only the ruling party has governed the country since independence but they have had credible elections throughout and different personalities have governed the country and smoothly transferred power. Indeed the current President, Ian Khama is the son of the country’s first post independent President, Sir Seretse Khama. In South Africa, the Africa National Congress has been in power since 1994 following the collapse of Apartheid and the release of Nelson Mandela. South Africa is probably the only country in Africa where the citizens protest in demand of the rights to housing, education and employment yearly and get a measured response from the powers that be. The ANC-led government is perhaps the only existing African government that has improved, the social conditions of a significant section of its population it took power. The government has constructed more than 2 million houses since 1994 for poorer and rural people. Recently, the government has committed itself to creating millions of jobs within the next several years, it’s middle class is among the fastest growing in sub-saharan Africa; the media is free and robust, freedom of association is widespread. Political debates are informed, vigorous and robust. The country boasts the largest economy in Sub-saharan Africa, though largely owned and/or controlled by a minority white interest.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe continues to pose the most difficulties in so far as the political and electoral processes in the region are concerned. President Robert Mugabe, who has been in power since 1980, does not appear to be willing to relinquish power. The coalition government, an outcome of the last elections, whose results were largely condemned by the opposition and Zimbabweans opposed to Mugabe continued rule, is not accomplishing the mandate spelt out the Global
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