South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case

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South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case

News. Analysis. Comment                                                                 September-October 2021   Vol.4 No.16

                      South Africa:
                  land of contradictions
   African leadership:                                                                          Zambia's
   devastating moments                                                                         new dawn

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South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
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South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
PUBLISHER’S NOTE

ECOWAS credibility
PUBLISHER’S   NOTE is
                                                                                                                         Publisher
                                                                                                                      Jon Offei-Ansah

on the line
Africa bucks global
                                                                                                                        Publisher
                                                                                                                     Jon Offei-Ansah
                                                                                                                         Editor

A
         LITTLE over a 10 years ago, I wrote
economic
    a commentarytrend
                  on the coup d’etat in
    Niger saying why it was justified and
                                                                                                                      Desmond Davies
                                                                                                                          Editor
                                                                                                                     Desmond Davies

I
why some coups could be described as good                                                                          Contributing Editors
     n 2018,
coups.        six of the
        My argument      10premised
                       was   fastest-growing
                                       on a simple
     economies   in the  world   were in or leaders, are elected by the people to serve                               Deputy Editor
                                                                                                                      Stephen Williams
democratic principle – that governments,
     Africa,Their
the nation.  according
                  tenure to
                         of the  World
                             office       Bank,
                                    is at the  people’s ‘pleasure’. In order words, they must                        Angela   Cobbinah
                                                                                                                     Prof. Toyin Falola
     with Ghana
not tweak  the lawleading   the in
                   of the land   pack.
                                   orderWith
                                           to entrench themselves in power to the detriment                         Tikum Mbah Azonga
GDP
of thegrowth
       generalfor the continent projected to
               good.                                                                                              Contributing Editor
accelerate to four per cent in 2019 and 4.1                                                                           Contributors
 When governments ignore the wishes of the people for whom they are elected to serve,
per cent in 2020, Africa’s economic growth                                                                         Stephen  Williams
 and whose wishes they have to respect and abide by; when they choose to use their                                  Justice Lee Adoboe
story continues apace. Meanwhile, the World Bank’s 2019 Doing Business Index
 powers of incumbency to extend their stay in power, enriching themselves in the process,                       Director, Special   Projects
reveals that five of the 10 most-improved countries are in Africa, and one-third of                              Chief Chuks Iloegbunam
 then they become prime candidates for a coup, I said.
all reforms recorded globally were in sub-Saharan Africa.                                                             Joseph Kayira
                                                                                                                     Michael Orji
My argument elicited a number of comments. One of them, from a good friend of mine,                                  Zachary Ochieng
What    makes
 went thus:      the where
              ‘I see story more  impressive
                           you appear           and heartening
                                         to be coming            is that
                                                      from on this   one.the
                                                                          Butgrowth
                                                                              if we pursue your
–thesis
  projected    to be broad-based     – ismessage
                                          being achieved   in a challenging   global which                            Contributors
                                                                                                                       Olu Ojewale
        to its logical conclusion, the            poses a danger  to African societies,
environment,                                                                                                         Oladipo Okubanjo
 are far greater bucking   thed’etat
                  than coups   trend.are predisposed to engender.’                                                 Justice Lee Adoboe
                                                                                                                       Corinne Soar
 The
In thecurrent
        Coverpolitical
               Story ofupheavals     in West
                          this edition,   Dr.Africa – the Fofack,
                                              Hippolyte   coups inChief
                                                                    Mali, Chad   and, most
                                                                           Economist   at the                      Chuks   Iloegbunam
                                                                                                                      Kennedy  Olilo
 recently,Export-Import
African    in Guinea had some
                            Bankthings    in common:analyses
                                    (Afreximbank),     incumbentsthetweaking  constitutions to
                                                                     factors underpinning    this                    Joseph Kayira
 prolong their stay
performance.    Twoinfactors,
                        office, corruption   and poor
                                 in my opinion,       political
                                                  stand  out inand
                                                                 Dr.economic   governance.
                                                                     Hippolyte’s   analysis:                            Designer
                                                                                                                   Zachary   Ochieng
trade  between
 The August      Africa
              2020  coupand    China
                           in Mali   wasand the intra-African
                                         preceded               cross-border
                                                   by protests since           investment
                                                                      the previous          and
                                                                                   June, with
infrastructure  development.
 the protesters calling for the resignation of then president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta.                                 Olu Ojewale
                                                                                                                    Simon Blemadzie
 The protesters
Much   has beenwere
                  saiddispleased
                         and writtenwith the government's
                                       about               managementeconomic
                                              China’s ever-deepening    of the ongoing
                                                                                   foray into                      Oladipo Okubanjo
Africa, especially by Western analysts and commentators who have beenand
 insurgency, alleged   government    corruption, the ongoing Covid-19  pandemic,       a
                                                                                   sounding                          Corinne
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 floundering
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 Alpha Condé,
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                                 picture.                                                                                Designer
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 of President of Guinea, started governing the country in 2010 and was re-elected in 2015.                         Edward Walter Byerley
Despite   the decelerating  global   growthlimit,
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                                                                                                              Top Dog Media, 5 Ascot Knights
 The country   had a two-term   presidential        but the 2020  constitutional referendum
China   increased
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                                                                                                                Milnerton 7441, South Africa
dependency between the two major trading partners.
The move had been controversial and sparked massive protests before and after the                                      South
                                                                                                                  Tel: +27      Africa
                                                                                                                           (0) 21  555 0096
Empirical
  referendum, evidence
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                                                                              office. This was again   47 Grand National Boulevard Royal Ascot,
percentage
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                                                          opposition     the expected
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                                                                                   accusing Condé                          Ghana
development       and Protests
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                                                                                                               Milnerton   7441, South Africa
  of ballot stuffing.           continued    throughoutChinese
                                                          the year,investment     on resource-rich
                                                                    and were harshly    repressed by                  Nana Asiama Bekoe
African
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                                        12 civilian lives,         is even
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France distanced itself from Condé following the 2020 election, leaving China, Egypt,
The resilience of African economies can also be attributed to growing intra-African                       Tel: +233 243 393 94381
                                                                                                                Cell:  +27  (0)     331303
                                                                                                                                 / +233  4887
                                                                                                                                           967 470
 Russia and Turkey foremost among the few powerful countries which continued to back                           Email:  ed@topdog-media.net
                                                                                                                 kingsconceptsltd@gmail.com
cross-border     investment and infrastructure development. A combination of the
 the president. This happened as fellow West African and Central African countries have
two   factors is accelerating the process of structural transformation in a continent
 experienced democratic backsliding: Chad went through its own military takeover in                                        Ghana
where    industrial output and services account for a growing share of GDP. African                                        Nigeria Bekoe
                                                                                                                    Nana Asiama
 April 2021.
corporations     and industrialists which are expanding their industrial footprint across                               Nnenna
                                                                                                                   Kingdom       Ogbu Co.
                                                                                                                               Concept
 The above
Africa   and events
              globallyraise
                          arethe question
                               leading  theofdiversification
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 grouping,
value   goodsECOWAS.
                in manufacturing and service sectors. These industrial champions                       Tel: +233 243 393 943 / +233 303 967 470
                                                                                                             Isheri Olowora - Isheri Berger, Lagos
are  carrying
 After  the Maliout  transcontinental
                   coup  in 2020, ECOWAS  operations,  withtheinvestment
                                               suspended                   holdings
                                                                country, imposed     aroundand
                                                                                  sanctions   the              kingsconceptsltd@gmail.com
                                                                                                                  Tel: +234 803 670 4879
globe,   with a strong
 set a roadmap    for the presence    in Europe
                           return to civilian rule.and
                                                    ThePacific
                                                        ink on Asia,   together was
                                                                 the agreement  account
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                                                                                                                          Nigeria
                                                                                                                getnnenna.ogbu@gmail.com
 when75theper  cent ofremoved
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                                  the civilian         outsidethey
                                               prime minister    Africa.
                                                                      had appointed. That was a
                                                                                                                     Taiwo Adedoyin
Aslap  in the face of ECOWAS.
   survey    of 30 leading emerging African corporations with global footprints and                        MV Noble, Press Kenya
                                                                                                                               House, 3rd Floor
 It’s a similar
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              revenue    ofwith
                             more Guinea.  ECOWAS
                                    than $118          have
                                                 billion     demanded
                                                         shows            a six-month
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                                                                              are active          in
                                                                                          in several                  Patrick MwangiIkeja, Lagos
 Guinea. In response,
                                                                                                           27 Acme Road, Ogba,
industries,    includingcoup    leader Mamady
                            manufacturing          Doumbouya
                                               (e.g.,             told the ECOWAS
                                                      Dangote Industries),      basic delegation
                                                                                       materials,the      Aquarius Media Ltd,806
                                                                                                                              PO Box
 will of the Guinean people
telecommunications          (e.g.,should
                                   Econet,be Safaricom),
                                             taken into account.
                                                            finance (e.g., Ecobank) and oil
                                                                                                                 Tel: +234       29110668-11000
                                                                                                                                      7100
                                                                                                                      Nairobi, Kenya
and   gas. In addition
 ECOWAS’s       credibilitytoinmitigating
                                Guinea hasrisks
                                             beenhighly
                                                   strainedcorrelated
                                                             since 2018,with
                                                                           whenAfrican
                                                                                 the bloceconomies,
                                                                                          failed to
                                                                                                               taiadedoyin52@gmail.com
                                                                                                              Tel: 0720 391 546/0773 35 41
these
 condemnemerging
             Conde African     global
                     for running   for acorporations    are accelerating
                                         third term in office                the diversification
                                                               last year, despite a law declaring of                     Kenya
                                                                                                            Email: mwangi@aquariusmedia.co.ke
sources    of growth
 that presidents   mustand
                         stepreducing
                               down after the exposure of countries to adverse commodity
                                            two.
terms    of trade.
                                                                                                                      Naima Farah
 The bloc   also failed to act when Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara went for a third                   Room©Africa
                                                                                                                  22, 2ndBriefing   Ltd Wing
                                                                                                                             Floor West
term makes
This in officeme
               contrary to the country’s
                 very bullish            constitutional provisions.
                               about Africa!                                                                2 Redruth Close, London
                                                                                                          Royal Square, Ngong Road,  N22 8RN
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Being more reactive than proactive, is the ECOWAS losing its credibility?                                            United Kingdom
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South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
Contents                                                                     Vol.4 No.16 September - October 2021

LEADER
6       Security in the Sahel in the
        wake of US withdrawal from
        Afghanistan
                                                      10
COMMENT
07         Governance goes from
           pillar to post

COVER STORY
10           South Africa: a country
             of huge contradictions
The recent pillaging and violence highlighted the desperation
of the poor in a country with the world’s widest wealth gap. It
is a situation where there are a number of dollar billionaires,
but with more than half the population having more liabilities
than assets. South African industrialist and philanthropist Ivor
Ichikowitz gives an insight into these inconsistencies in an
interview with Jon Offei-Ansah

ANALYSIS
14
             Devastating moments for African
             leadership
             With rampant cases of selfish and visionless leaders,
             governance in Africa has become a practice in
                                                                                                                 20
             divisions, victimisation, alienation and marginalisation,

                                                                             34
             argues Toyin Falola

20
             What is the current state of Nigeria?
             Questions have been asked recently about whether Nigeria
             is a failing state or is already a failed state. Toyin Falola
             argues that these posers could only be answered if the
             government first of all accepts these claims and then seeks
             to get the country out of the position it finds itself today

BUSINESS & ECONOMY
34
             A new dawn for Zambia
             Now that the elections have passed, people are focusing
             their sights on whether the brand-new government would
             walk the talk and fulfil the promises made during the
             campaign trail to deliver a united, prosperous and equitable
                                                                             REVIEW
                                                                              40
             Zambia and change the status quo which has been largely                 ‘Happiness was our vibe’
             uninspiring, writes Nawa Mutumweno                                      Angela Cobbinah talks to Teddy Osei, founder and
                                                                                     leader of legendary ‘sunshine’ band Osibisa, which

38           How Africa needs to seize the day                                       has just released a new studio album
             Covid-19 has hit Africa hard. The continent needs to
             cooperate and integrate in order to empower an African
             recovery, writes Theresa Henshaw
South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
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South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
LEADER

    Security in the Sahel in the wake of US
    withdrawal from Afghanistan
       T
                HE recent spectacular collapse     Barre’s government in Somalia in 1991          Nigeria. It is now clear that the Northern
                of the US-backed government        had already given free rein to Somalis         politicians who were quick to re-introduce
                in Afghanistan, ushering in the    with militant tendencies. Crisis Group         a wider form of Sharia law in 1999 no
    Taliban to power after 20 years, came as       notes that young people from East Africa       longer seem to be on top of things, as is
    a shock to the world. African countries in     travelled to Afghanistan in the 1980s to       usually the case when the foot soldiers
    the troubled Sahel must now be worried         join the anti-Soviet resistance. They then     take charge.
    about the way things will play out in their    returned to their home countries to create         That’s the name of the game. You
    troubled region.                               their own militant cells.                      start off playing with one team, only for
        The last few years have seen                   Africa’s political leaders have been, in   the players to change sides mid-game.
    an exponential growth of terrorist             some ways, responsible for the growth of       Everyone remembers that under Ronald
    organisations and activities in the Sahel,     these militants. Take Nigeria, for example.    Reagan, the US supported the Mujahideen
    pushing some countries almost to the           When Olusegun Obasanjo became                  in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union.
    brink. The jihadists in this region are        president of Nigeria in 1999, the Northern     Then, one Osama bin Laden was a staunch
    clearly making headway, as well as in          oligarchs who had been in charge at the        US ally, who was to later turn against
    places such as Somalia.                        centre for so long retreated.                  America.
        Crucially, while the US was                    They saw Obasanjo, a Southern                  In Africa, the rise of armed resistance
    prosecuting its War on Terror, Al Qaida        Christian, as a threat to the status quo       – religious or otherwise – is really down
    and ISIS retreated from their original         that had existed in the country. So, the       to governance and socio-economic issues.
    spheres of operation to different African      Northern Muslim states declared Islamic        Jihadist groups in some parts of Africa

                                                   ‘
    countries. They have become one of the

                                                       The last few years have seen
    most potent threats to peace and security
    in Africa.
        For the region, though, the precarious
    security situation in the Sahel exploded           an exponential growth of
    after the fall of Colonel Muammar
    Gaddafi in 2011. The disastrous NATO-led           terrorist organisations and

                                                                                                                 ’
    bombing, without any contingency plan to
    secure the immense stockpiles of weapons
    that were part of Gaddafi’s formidable
                                                       activities in the Sahel
    arsenal, opened the floodgates.                Sharia law in their territories. While,        have been able to provide some succour
                                                   before 1999, Sharia law was limited to         to their young recruits – better than they
        In the first place, as experts point
                                                   civil matters, the new order incorporated      could get from their governments.
    out, Libya’s weapons stockpiles were far
                                                   civil and criminal matters.                        As a result, in Africa today there are
    beyond the country’s needs. Naturally, the
    weapons fell into the wrong hands. Today,           In any such situation, there are those    more Islamists groups than at the start of
    they are being illegally traded around the     waiting in the wings to capitalise on          the War on Terror.
    continent.                                     the opportunity presented for enforcing             This is where Africa’s political leaders
        As African diplomats trying to tackle      strict Islamic law. Under the Nigerian         will have to work hard. They need to put
    the spread of illicit weapons on the           Constitution, Federal law supersedes state     their houses in order so that young people,
    continent have pointed out, thousands of       law including sharia. But there was no         who have a long life ahead of them, do not
    Africans have been killed in the Sahel         going back by the North.                       feel disillusioned enough for them to take
    and other trouble spots in Africa by these         As fanatics tried to implement Sharia      their chances with terrorist organisations
    terrorist groups using the diverted Libyan     law a wave of inter-religious violence         whose message is loud and clear: that
    weapons.                                       exploded that claimed thousands of lives       jihadism is the best way to change
        Security experts have noted that the       and the destruction of properties. When        illegitimate and corrupt local governance
    growth of Islamic terrorism in Africa is not   the War on Terror began, it just fuelled       systems and that these local wars were
    solely down to America’s War on Terror.        the expansion of Islamist support that saw     part of a larger, just cause, as Crisis Group
    The seeds of discontent had been sown          many disaffected young people joining the      argues.
    long before then and had germinated into       ranks of Boko Haram, which was founded             Thus, African governments have some
    terror atrocities such as the bombing of       by Mohamed Yusuf in the Northern               hard lessons to be learned from the War
    the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es         Nigerian town of Maiduguri.                    on Terror to make sure that the continent
    Salaam in 1998.                                     Boko Haram has now become a thorn         is not saddled with Islamist violence for
        The collapse of President Siad             in the flesh of subsequent governments in      another 20 years.                         AB

6                                            AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021
South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
COMMENT

Governance goes from pillar
to post                                                                                                Desmond Davies

 A
             FTER six attempts at               of hand when it comes to political                 To be honest, the matter of term
             the presidency, Zambian            manipulation.                                  limits is no longer important. These
             businessman Hakainde                   Conde himself is not a stranger to         should be removed while the processes of
Hichilema finally made it to the top office     political chicanery. After contesting the      governance and elections are strengthened
in his country when he overwhelmingly           1998 presidential election against Lansana     so that they become watertight.
defeated the incumbent, President Edgar         Conte – which he lost – he was arrested             Then it will be the voters who will
Lungu, in the election on August 12.            and sentenced in a trial that many felt was    ultimately have the final say on which
Hichilema’s victory was quicky seized           unfair. When he was released in 2001, he       leader extends his or her stay in power.
upon by African opposition politicians as       visited me in my office in London while I      And who are these voters? Africa’s
a positive sign for their own leadership        was editor of West Africa magazine.            overwhelmingly young people. They
ambitions.                                                                                     should no longer allow themselves to be
                                                    Conde waxed lyrical about democracy
     But as they were celebrating,                                                             used as cannon fodder by politicians who,
                                                and the rule law not only in Guinea but
the soldiers intervened in Guinea to                                                           once ensconced in power, fail to deliver
                                                also in Africa. In an interview with one
oust President Alpha Conde who had                                                             for their young citizens.
                                                of my journalists, Conde said he was
been elected to a controversial third                                                              It's a difficult ask, though, for young
                                                “fairly optimistic” about the progress of
term just under a year ago. So, while                                                          Africans who suffer the most from
                                                democracy on the continent, adding that
opposition politicians were cock-a-hoop                                                        unemployment and lack of opportunities
                                                much had changed.
at Hichilema’s victory, the spectre of                                                         to make their live better. But they have
“unconstitutional” change of government             “Suppressing information is no longer
                                                                                               to ensure that their future is secure
still loomed large over the continent.          possible because of the globalisation          now by regularly holding their leaders
                                                of information. And almost 75 per cent         accountable. If they do not deliver, they
    This issue is a moot one. The
                                                of Africans are under 30, many are             should be kicked out of power through a
Economic Community of West African
                                                unemployed and have no interest in             system that is free and fair.
States quickly suspended Guinea, which
                                                maintaining the status quo; they are a force
was expected. But whether this would hold                                                          In Ghana, for instance, since the
                                                for change,” Conde said.
is another issue.                                                                              return to regularly held elections in 1992,
                                                    How right he was. Since Conde              the electorate has been in control. The
     The problem with the ECOWAS action
                                                gave that interview 20 years ago, young        two main parties have been changed on a
is that Conde himself had been accused of
                                                Africans have been gradually making            regular basis – that is, after serving two
manipulating his country’s Constitution
                                                their presence felt on the governance and      terms.
to go for a third term as president, which
                                                law and order fronts. In Nigeria, young
he got in October last year. But there was                                                          John Mahama got a shock when he
                                                people forced the government to disband a
no harsh action taken against Conde by                                                         lost the presidential election in Ghana in
                                                murderous police unit.
ECOWAS, such as we are now witnessing                                                          2016, even though he had just done one
in regard to the military regime in                 In Zambia, it was the massive turnout      full term, having become president on
Conakry.                                        of young voters who gave Hichilema             the death of John Atta Mills in July 2012.
     Conde could argue that there was some      victory. Young Zambians clearly see him        He was entitled to another term, but for
sort of legality to the constitutional change   as a leader who could create the enabling      Ghanaian voters his party, the National
because it was approved in a referendum         environment that would serve them in           Democratic Congress, had already
in March 2020, although there were              good stead in the future.                      done two terms and they voted for the
violent demonstrations after the result             After all, young people are the future     opposition New Patriotic Party.
was announced. Some 30 protesters were          of Africa but they seem to be being let            This is how things should really work.
killed.                                         down regularly by leaders who seem             Forget about term limits; strengthen the
    This is where one has an issue with         to be clueless about what is needed to         electoral process and ensure that it works.
the debate on democracy and governance          make their countries more welcoming for        Then everything will be in the hands of the
in Africa. African leaders have a way of        their young citizens. They want to see         voters who matter instead of allowing the
doing things in a manner that borders           leaders who are ready to rein in corruption    continent’s political process to be going
on illegitimacy but with some veneer of         in government, make judicious pubic            back and forth when it suits the whims of
legality. They are masters of the sleight       expenditure and be politically accountable.    power-hungry politicians and soldiers. AB

                                         AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021                                                            7
South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
COMMENT

    Democracy rocks in
    Buhari’s Nigeria                                                                                  Chuks Iloegbunam

       T
                HE two dates: July 5, 1984        Mossad agent led the kidnap team that           he had checked in a day earlier, one of the
                and June 27, 2021! What do        included a Nigerian intelligence officer,       businesses that made him wing his way
                they have in common, in so        Major Mohammed Yusufu, and two other            from Europe to the East African country
    far as Nigeria is concerned? Only an          Israelis, Felix Abitbol and Dr. Lev-Arie        nicely tied up. How wrong he was. He
    extraordinarily gifted genius would be        Shapiro, who was to inject Dikko with an        ended up repatriated to Nigeria, from
    in a position to readily hazard a rationale   anaesthetic. Crated, Dikko was driven to        where he had escaped a few years earlier,
    answer to this poser. To save readers from    Stansted airport, 40 miles (64km) north         one step ahead of cadres minded to do him
    needless mind racking over dates separated    of London where a Nigerian Airways              in.
    by a chasm of 37 years, the answer is here    Boeing 707 aircraft was on the tarmac with

                                                   ‘
    provided: Muhammadu Buhari! How is

                                                       Nigeria has not
    this so? Please read on.
         On the last day of 1983, the
    democratically elected government of
    President Shehu Shagari was toppled by
    selected factors in the hierarchy of the
                                                       said a word on the
    Nigerian Army which set up a regime that
    drove into exile and jail houses scores            circumstances of Kanu’s
                                                       return to Nigeria
                                                                                                                ’
    of politicians they had quite thoroughly
    discredited. One of those that luckily
    escaped the dismal prospect of a dreary
    stretch behind bars was Alhaji Umaru                                                              His Special Counsel, Mr. Aloy
    Dikko, the influential Transport Minister     engines revving. Two crates waiting to be       Ejimakor, told the BBC Igbo Service
    in Shagari’s government, who relocated        loaded into the aircraft lay on the tarmac.     what happened. He said that Kanu was
    to London for what he thought would be        But the elaborate plan was aborted by Mr.       abducted on June 19, 2021 in Nairobi,
    a peaceful, even if lonely, sojourn outside   Charles David Morrow, an eagle-eyed             held incommunicado for eight days during
    the shores of his fatherland. He was rudely   customs officer, who contacted higher           which he was chained to the bare floor
    disappointed.                                 authorities. The crates labelled diplomatc      by Kenyan security operatives who then
         “On a summer's day, (July 5, 1984),      baggage were prised open. Airport officials     bundled him on a plane and flown to
    Mr Dikko walked out of his front door in      found an unconscious Dikko and Dr.              Abuja.
    an upmarket neighbourhood of Bayswater        Shapiro in one of the crates. The second
                                                  crate had in it the other two Israelis –            “The people that abducted him said
    in London. Within seconds he had been                                                         that they were told by their sponsors that
    grabbed by two men and bundled into the       Barak and Abitbol. The incident, an
                                                  international scandal, caused a diplomatic      Kanu was a Nigerian terrorist linked to the
    back of a transit van,” reported a BBC                                                        Islamic terrorists in Kenya, presumably
    Witness programme. Said Mr. Dikko             row between Britain and Nigeria.
                                                                                                  Al-Shabab.
    to the BBC a year after the nightmarish           During June 2021, something
    experience: "I remember the very violent      somewhat similar to the Dikko Affair                 “But after several days when they
    way in which I was grabbed and hurled         happened in Africa. On June 19, Mazi            discovered his true identity, they tended to
    into a van, with a huge fellow sitting on     Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the separatist       treat him less badly. Despite that, they told
    my head – and the way in which they           group known as the Indigenous People Of         him they felt committed to hand him over
    immediately put on me handcuffs and           Biafra (IPOB) and a remorseless nemesis         to those that hired them.
    chains on my legs.” The plan was to           of the controllers of the levers of political       “Kanu was, in point of fact, tortured
    kidnap Mr. Dikko, drug him, stick him into    power in Nigeria thought that a quiet,          and subjected to untold cruel and inhuman
    a specially made crate and put him on a       anonymous drive to the Jomo Kenyatta            treatment in Kenya. He said his abductors
    plane back to Nigeria – alive.                International Airport will, after a couple      disclosed to him that they abducted him at
       Alexander Barak, said to be an ex-         of hours, terminate inside the hotel where      the behest of the Nigerian government. He

8                                           AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021
South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
COMMENT

was blindfolded and driven to the tarmac           But there is a third country in this       cities agitating for Yoruba independence.
very close to the plane without passing        triangular charade – the United Kingdom        Abuja did not find his effrontery funny.
through the airport immigration. The           of Great Britain and Northern Ireland – the        On July 1, 2021, A joint security team
plane departed Nairobi at about 12 pm and      bastion of protocol and constitutionalism.     led by the DSS stormed Igboho’s Soka,
arrived Abuja in the evening.”                 Prime Minister Boris Johnson is yet to         Ibadan residence in the dead of the night.
     In both London of 1984 and Nairobi        say a word on the absurd affair involving      By the time they left, the place stood
of this year, Muhammadu Buhari looms           Kanu, a holder of the British passport. Nor    ransacked, two of Igboho’s supporters lay
large as the political leader of Nigeria,      has the Foreign Office. Would all of Britain   dead while 13 others were seized and taken
first as military Head of State, and then as   have remained tight-lipped had Kanu,           away. A DSS spokesman told the Nigerian
elected President. The Dikko Affair ended      instead of being born an Igbo from an area     press that Igboho’s aides subjected the
in dismal failure for the perpetrators. As     of Nigeria formally known as Biafra was a      joint security team to heavy gunfire as
is common knowledge, failure invariably        blue-eyed son of pure white parents from       they approached. A “gun duel” naturally
comes at a rather high cost. The three         Birmingham or Bristol or Cambridge or          ensued during which two of Igboho’s
Israelis involved in Dikko’s kidnap and a      Cardiff or Derby or Dover. Two weeks
                                                                                              men were shot dead. Igboho escaped. The
Nigerian were in February 1985 convicted       after Kanu returned to detention in Abuja,
                                                                                              DSS claimed it searched the premises and
by the Old Bailey Central Criminal Court       Johnson met with Buhari and Kenyatta
                                                                                              recovered seven AK47 assault rifles, three
for kidnapping and drugging Dikko and          in London, the communiqué issued at the
                                                                                              pump action guns, thousands of rounds
sentenced to jail terms ranging from 10 to     end of their meeting being, in so far as the
                                                                                              of ammunition and charms and amulets!
14 years. Barak got 14 years. Shapiro and      Extraordinary Rendition was concerned, a
                                                                                              Igboho was next heard of in neighbouring
Abitbol each got 10 years. Major Yusufu        silence of deafening proportions.
                                                                                              Benin Republic where he was arrested as
got 12 years.                                      While political prevarications play        he attempted to board a flight for Germany.
     In Kanu’s case, only one benefit has,     out, one thing is sure about Nnamdi Kanu.      He has German residency permit. Officials
so far, accrued to ordinary Nigerians. It      Of the numerous thoughts that must be          in Benin did not consider Igboho’s
is something tied to language. Nigerians       fleeting through his restless mind, one        Extraordinary Rendition to Nigeria an
have since learnt from Kanu’s lawyers          must stand out for its uniqueness. That        option. They paid scant attention to Abuja
that the abduction, torture, and forcible      is whether or not Sunday Adeyemo aka           pressures for the fugitive to be turned over.
repatriation of Kanu to Nigeria amounted       Sunday Igboho would, sooner or later,          Instead the matter ended in a Cotonou
to Extraordinary Rendition. It is legalese.    become his co-tenant at the detention          court where Igboho is fighting against
It is high-sounding. But people have got       facilities of the Department of State          extradition.
the hang of it.                                Services (DSS) in Abuja. Like Kanu,
                                               whose eternal mission is the restoration            It is obvious that anyone or body
     A question now arises. Since                                                             propagating self-determination in today’s
Extraordinary Rendition is a crime against     of the defunct Biafran Republic, Igboho
                                               recently had the temerity to agitate for       Nigeria has pitted themselves against the
international law, who gets punished for                                                      Buhari government. In some quarters,
its perpetration against Nnamdi Kanu, a        his Yoruba ethnic group’s independence
                                               from Nigeria, something anathema to            this is puzzling because of positions
British citizen, and a Nigerian, apparently                                                   taken by President Buhari at international
conducting lawful business in an African       Buhari’s ears. Unlike Kanu, who has
                                               been a constant in the Nigerian psyche         forums. In 2015, Buhari urged the United
country? Nigeria has not said a word                                                          Nations to grant the State of Palestine
on the circumstances of Kanu’s return          for nearly a decade, Igboho was to most
                                               people outside Yoruba land an unknown          self-determination and recognise it as a
to Nigeria. It has returned Kanu to the                                                       sovereign nation. This was during the
Federal High Court in Abuja, for the           quantity a spare six months ago. But he
                                               got roused into activism because of the        United Nations Summit on Sustainable
continuation of a trial truncated when                                                        Development Knowledge Platform held
he jumped bail and fled the country in         peculiar rocking of Nigerian democracy
                                               under Buhari.                                  from 25 to 27 September 2015, in New
2017. How does one talk of sanctions                                                          York.
when the prime suspect has neither been            When herdsmen of Buhari’s ethnic
formally charged nor entered a plea? The       Fulani nationality killed Dr. Aborede in            Recently, President Buhari said on
other corporate entity involved is another     Ibarapa in January 2021, Igboho gave           the network service of the Nigerian
country – Kenya. If the country’s leader,      them an ultimatum to leave the place,          Television Authority (NTA) that the
President Uhuru Kenyatta, has heard of         and enforced it! That was audacity at          ethnic Rohingya in Myanmar should be
Kanu’s extraordinary rendition inside          its most prominent display. The Fulani         protected and granted self-determination
the country he is president of, he has         herdsmen are all over the place, burning,      by the United Nations. He appealed to
not as much as favoured the story with         looting, raping and killing people in          the global organisation to impose one
a single word. Ashen-faced, his High           their traditional homes without a word         of its principles which protects ethnic
Commissioner in Abuja called a hurried         of condemnation from the Federal               minorities fighting for self-determination
press conference, denying that Kenya was       Government and without any of them ever        and facing brutality and murder in the host
in any way involved in Kanu’s plight. He       being arrested, let alone prosecuted. Thus,    country. Both Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday
has since slammed shut his lips when it        Igboho, for achieving the unimaginable         Adeyemo Igboho have ben shouting from
became proven beyond any iota of doubt         became an instant Yoruba hero. He called       the rooftops that their people are facing
that Kenyan authorities had handed Kanu        demonstrations and drew tumultuous             brutality and murder at the hands of Buhari
over to their Nigerian counterparts.           crowds across many Yoruba towns and            and his brand of democracy.
                                                                                                                                      AB

                                         AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021                                                             9
South Africa: land of contradictions - Liberia: Boakai states his presidential case
COVER STORY

     South Africa: a country of huge contradictions
     The recent pillaging and violence highlighted the desperation of the poor in a country
     with the world’s widest wealth gap. It is a situation where there are a number of dollar
     billionaires, but with more than half the population having more liabilities than assets.
     South African industrialist and philanthropist Ivor Ichikowitz gives an insight into these
     inconsistencies in an interview with Jon Offei-Ansah

        B
                USINESS owners are counting         without trial was complete nonsense – it                   corruption during Zuma’s tenure was more
                the cost after mass looting         was an absolute lie.’                                      than $30bn.
                and damage to property in                Zuma was in office from 2009 to 2018,                      In February this year, Zuma refused
     some of the worst violence seen in South       a time marked by corruption and cronyism                   to appear before the Zondo Commission
     Africa since apartheid in the 1990s. More      at the highest levels of government. Zuma                  set up to investigate corruption during his
     than 350 people were killed. Some shot,        was forced to resign in 2018 because of                    time in office, even though he testified
     some trampled in stampedes. Across two         all the allegations against him. He has                    before. In June the Constitutional Court
     provinces – KwaZulu Natal and Gauteng –        been fighting those allegations ever since,                sentenced Zuma to 15 months in prison for
     people burned down factories, the transport    and denies he did anything wrong. But                      contempt of court. He was given a deadline
     and supply system was paralysed. Small         President Ramaphosa says the cost of                       to turn himself in and at the last minute, he
     businesses were destroyed.
         President Cyril Ramaphosa sent in
     soldiers, saying the violence was planned.
     So, what triggered the violence free-for-
     all? Where does former president Jacob
     Zuma fit in? And what does this mean for
     South Africa? In a frank interview with
     Africa Briefing, South African industrialist
     and philanthropist Ivor Ichikowitz gave his
     take on the situation and his hopes for the
     country’s future.
         In Ichikowitz’s view, elements
     within and outside the ruling African
     National Congress (ANC) are engaged in
     a political battle to make a point. ‘They
     had threatened insurrection and they had
     carefully orchestrated a planned process of
     igniting the flames that they thought would
     lead to an insurrection,’ he said.
          ‘Now it actually failed spectacularly
     because what happened was that in
     KwaZulu Natal, which is Zuma’s ground,
     they were successful, sparking what
     became criminally motivated riots and
     looting and they dissipated a lie and the
     lie was that Zuma had been jailed without
     trial – that was a complete lie, Zuma
     brought his incarceration upon himself.
     You could question whether it was to test
     his populist support or was to give the
     finger to the South African system, but
     it was an absolute act of defiance which
     brought about his incarceration and that the
     whole concept of the fact that it was arrest

                                                    Ichikowitz: I’m extremely hopeful and extremely positive

10                                           AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021
COVER STORY
                                                                                                             ‘I think that there are many examples
                                                                                                        like that, that indicate that this was more
                                                                                                        based on tactics that were used against
                                                                                                        the apartheid government than they were
                                                                                                        tactics that were copied from the United
                                                                                                        States. Sure, there are parallels between
                                                                                                        what happened in the US seven months
                                                                                                        ago and what happened in South Africa and
                                                                                                        I think that the parallels come out in the
                                                                                                        fact that there were people in America that
                                                                                                        turned around and said “not in my name,
                                                                                                        we’re not going to allow this to happen,
                                                                                                        and that happened in South Africa” – and
                                                                                                        that civil society and elements that were
                                                                                                        not even part of civil society, just people
                                                                                                        out of everyday life, just turned and said
                                                                                                        “no way, we’re not getting involved in
Zuma’s term was marked by corruption and cronyism at the highest levels                                 this, we’re not going to join this looting
                                                                                                        and rioting, we’re not going to allow this
showed up at a police station.                          than the poorest 32 million, and only one       to be an insurrection, we’re going to do
    While all that was going on, hundreds               in five 18-to-24-year-olds are in work.         everything we can to stop, even if the
of Zuma supporters, some carrying                            ‘It’s also been very negative in that it   police and army can’t and that’s a huge
weapons, rallied in KwaZulu Natal, his                  has exposed the soft underbelly of South        thing.”’
home province. South Africa is dealing                  Africa’s true issues and that is that we’ve         According to Ichikowitz, one of the
with a lot of problems: the legacy of                   got to deal with this massive poverty and       fundamental structural problems in South
apartheid, huge economic inequality,                    massive inequality between the haves            Africa is the lack of a well-trained, efficient
crushing unemployment and the most                      and the have nots - that is today South         police force and a well-trained, efficient
recorded cases of unemployment in Africa.               Africa’s biggest risk, its biggest challenge.   military.
But none of that, except for the pandemic,              I think that what started as a Zuma issue           ‘Part of that, by the way, is because
is new. So why did things kick off back in              very quickly turned into an issue around        there’s been a lot of pressure on South
early July?                                             desperate poor people,’ Ichikowitz said.        Africa by the West, by the rating agencies,
     ‘What the people around Zuma did, is                   He disagreed with some comparisons          by international institutions – to not
that they used this as a mechanism to light             with the January 6 insurrection in the          invest in institutions of security – and
a flame, to ignite a spark which they hoped             United States, saying that most of the          that’s a catastrophe. If you’re going to
would then catch on to a national flame.                instigators of the lootings and violence in     have a democracy, you’re going to have
It caught on in KwaZulu Natal because                   South Africa were former combatants from        to have strong institutions to protect that
they planned it in KwaZulu Natal and                    the armed wing of the ANC who were              democracy. If nothing else has come out
there is evidence that a lot of the riots were          schooled in sparking insurrection under the     of this, the wake-up call to South Africa, is
actually initiated by this organised action             apartheid system.                               to say sort out your police force, sort out
around Zuma. And what happened? Very                        ‘I think these people used tactics that     your defence force to give them the ability
similar to what happened in the United                  were used during the apartheid days. I          to deal with these kinds of criminal actions,
States, was that criminal elements and the              think they manipulated the masses by            because if you don’t do that, you’re not
desperate poor then just jumped on the                  spreading false information. I think they       going to be able to defend what everyone
band wagon,’ he explained.                              used a lot of strategies around that they       else is fighting for from a democratic and
                                                        used in the apartheid days – and I’ll give      economic perspective,’ he said.
    ‘Was this in support of Zuma? I really
                                                        you a personal example. There was an                Ichikowitz believes that the looting and
don’t think so and there seems to be very
                                                        orchestrated, well-co-ordinated, planned        violence of July have swung public opinion
limited evidence that it any case that the
                                                        attack on ATMs in shopping centres.             in President Ramaphosa’s favour.
population by and large rose up in support
                                                        Those ATMs were not attacked by the
                                                                                  ‘I think this was a real test of public
of Zuma and I think that that has been very
                                                        masses. The masses stole food, they stole
                                                                             opinion that happened to have come out in
positive because it emboldened President
                                                        clothing, they stole underwear, they stole
                                                                             favour of Ramaphosa and his faction and I
Ramaphosa.’
                                                        basics. But there was a group of people,
                                                                             think you’re right, you can’t avoid splitting
     The looting and violence highlighted               or organised criminals who went around
                                                                             the ANC today - into the element of good
the desperation of the country’s poor                   big shopping centres and used the chaos
                                                                             which is represented by Ramaphosa and
and the world’s widest wealth gap.                      as cover to professionally extract cash
                                                                             the element of bad which appears to be
South Africa boasts a number of dollar                  from ATMs,’ he said. He explained that the
                                                                             represented by Zuma. We mustn’t fool
billionaires, yet more than half the                    objective behind that was to then use the
                                                                             ourselves, these are not new factions,
population have more liabilities than                   cash to pay off more criminals to create
                                                                             there have been factions in the ANC since
assets, according to the World Inequality               more chaos. And that was a strategy that
                                                                             Mandela’s day. There have been people in
Lab.                                                    was applied in the apartheid days, going
                                                                             the ANC who believe that they have a right
     The richest 3,500 citizens own more                back to the 70s and 80s.
                                                                             to right the wrongs of the past through
                                        AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021                                           11
COVER STORY
     looting and pillaging. Then there’s always           ‘If that campaign was used in the                  not cool that lives were lost, as much as
     been a faction in the ANC who are driven        UK, was used in the USA, people would                   it’s not cool that the police force couldn’t
     by ideology, who are driven by the interests    have seen if for what it was. The problem               do their job and that intelligence services
     of the people and who believe that the way      in South Africa is you were talking to                  failed, what is cool is that South Africa is
     to right the wrongs of the past is through      a fundamentally uninformed illiterate                   intact, we have a very, very credible and
     hard work and honest contribution to the        population at that time and they took this              strong President in place (albeit some of
     development of society,’ he said.               promise literally and 27 years on there are             the people around him are not yet) and we
          According to him, it is not just about     still people sitting on the floor of mud huts           have a foundation now to rebuild. I use the
     two individuals who represent two different     waiting for government to give them a                   analogy of a bush fire – in African culture,
                                                     house, still waiting for government to give             in nature in Africa, the whole concept of
     sides of the ANC, but South African society
                                                     them a job,’ he added.                                  sometimes having to destroy before you can
     at large and the ANC. ‘One of the big
                                                         ‘In South Africa everybody has looked               rebuild is a constantly reoccurring theme
     myths about South Africa is that we’re a
                                                     to government with completely unrealistic               and if you’re a conservationist, as I am, you
     democracy. It’s a huge myth, everyone
                                                     expectations. I think the other positive that           are constantly watching how the African
     talks about South Africa’s democratic
                                                     has come out of this rioting was that people            bush has to go through catastrophes before
     experiment, we talk about the most liberal
                                                     in South Africa got a serious wake up call.             it rejuvenates and I think to a large extent
     constitution in the world and we talk
                                                     They quickly came to the realisation that               that’s what’s going on in South Africa right
     about the fact that this is a great example
                                                     government can only do so much and that                 now and we need to embrace it.’
     of democracy at work – but it’s not a
     democracy – the ANC has ruled absolutely        average citizens had to do the rest. That’s                 Last month’s riots and looting spree,
     for the last 27 years and it has not been       the long answer, but the truth is that this             in which more than 350 people died,
     completely successful because of these
     constant factional fights, or this constant
     moral dilemma that exists inside the heart
     of the party.’
         He believes that the events of July have
     forced this factionalism completely into the
     open and put it to a test by the public.
          ‘What could have happened here and
     what the Zuma supporters were hoping
     would happen is that this rioting and looting
     would spread throughout the country in
     all 11 provinces, that the country would
     become ungovernable and I would not be
     surprised if the ultimate plan was some
     form of a coup inside the ANC. I have no
     evidence of this but knowing the ANC,
     knowing some of the individuals, knowing
     the way they think, I would be pretty sure      The element of good in SA politics is represented by Ramaphosa
     that was the plan, the masterplan.’
                                                     today remains one of South Africa’s biggest             highlighted the desperation of the country’s
          Ichikowitz agrees that the ANC has
                                                     challenges - the fact that the rank-and-file            poor and the world’s widest wealth gap.
     failed to manage the high expectations
                                                     population has unrealistic expectations                 South Africa boasts a number of dollar
     of economic upliftment among the Black
                                                     of government and even somebody like                    billionaires, yet more than half the
     population with the advent of majority rule
                                                     President Ramaphosa – who has his heart                 population have more liabilities than assets,
     in 1994, blaming the party for creating
                                                     in the right place, who understands what                according to the World Inequality Lab.
     those expectations in the first place.
                                                     needs to be done, who I don’t believe has
     ‘These expectations were created by the                                                                     The richest 3,500 citizens own more
                                                     a corrupt bone in his body, can’t fix this
     ANC itself. The ANC came up with a                                                                      than the poorest 32 million, and only one in
                                                     on his own. And he can’t fix it in a 5-year
     campaign [in 1994] that said, “elect us into                                                            five 18-to-24-year-olds are in work.
                                                     presidential term. You can’t take 60 years
     government and we will ensure jobs, we                                                                      The government has twice had to
                                                     of apartheid and fix the results, fix the
     will ensure housing and we will ensure                                                                  implement a blanket pay out of about
                                                     consequences in 20 years or 25 years of
     your prosperity” – that was the campaign.                                                               $24 a month to the needy on a temporary
                                                     democracy.’
     I might have got the words slightly wrong                                                               basis, first during the initial stages of the
     but the principle was that if ANC came into         But Ichikowitz is bullish about South
                                                     Africa’s future. ‘I’m extremely hopeful                 coronavirus pandemic and now in the
     power all of the wrongs of the past would
                                                     and extremely positive. This thing could                aftermath of the riots. Yet to meet South
     be corrected and the ANC would take
                                                     have gone very wrong and it didn’t. And                 Africa’s own definition of what makes
     responsibility for ensuring that everybody
                                                     as much as it’s not cool that $3 billion                someone poor requires a stipend of almost
     in South Africa would become prosperous,’
                                                     of damage was done, and as much as it’s                 four times that amount.                     AB
     he said.

12                                           AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021
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ANALYSIS

     Devastating moments for African leadership
     With rampant cases of selfish and visionless leaders, governance in Africa has
     become a practice in divisions, victimisation, alienation and marginalisation, argues
     Toyin Falola

        M
                      OST of post-independence                                                       fortunes at the turn of the millennium
                      Africa had been dominated                                                      gradually take a downward turn.
                      by an unsuccessful                                                                 Continuing on an economically fragile
     struggle to achieve the modest goals of                                                         and politically precarious state, it was only
     political stability, economic prosperity                                                        a matter of time before all the negative
     and development laid out in the liberation                                                      actions and failures of government tipped
     manifestos of nationalist leaders and                                                           the balance over towards anarchy. This was
     revised by subsequent governments.                                                              brought on by a convergence of certain
     But the new millennium brought certain                                                          factors, some of which were foreseeable
     developments that gave hope to spectators                                                       and others that can be summed up as
     and stakeholders alike that the continent                                                       coincidences or acts of providence.
     was approaching a new dawn.                                                                          In the foreseeable future, there is
         These developments were evident in                                                          the issue of endemic poverty, a growing
     the appreciation of the per capita figures of                                                   population of young, unemployed,
     certain African economies, an increasing                                                        dissatisfied and restive people, and that
     transition from despotic to democratic                                                          of limited government, slowly leading to
     governments and in the successful                                                               failing states.
     resolution of some of Africa’s protracted                                                           Though there were some warning
     conflicts. This, though, did not mean the                Africa: different shades of leaders    indications of an impending crisis, such
     disappearance of underlying factors like                                                        as the growing exodus of young Africans
     poverty, ethnic divisions, climate change                                                       through the Sahara and across the
                                                      to attain its development potential, but
     and bad governance.                                                                             Mediterranean to Europe, as well as other
                                                      the said resources have turned around to
          It was taken as an indication that Africa   become a curse on the African people, also     minor cases of xenophobic expressions,
     had turned a corner in its development           attracting the worst kind of characters to     particularly in South Africa, things started
     journey, with better prospects for the           its shores.                                    to come to a head in Africa, perceptibly
     future. Hence, for a period, especially                                                         from 2009. And for deducible reasons,
                                                          With the rampant cases of selfish          countries both in and bordering the
     with the economic revolutions inspired
                                                      and visionless leadership, governance          Sahelian regions were worst hit by the
     by the proliferation of communications
                                                      in Africa has become a practice in             crisis.
     technology on the continent, this vision of
                                                      divisions, victimisation, alienation
     a transformed Africa seemed even more                                                               Stretching from the Red Sea in the
                                                      and marginalisation. To perpetuate
     viable.                                                                                         East to the Atlantic coast in the West,
                                                      themselves in office, power-mongering
         Unfortunately for Africa, the question       and kleptomaniacal African leaders have        the Sahelian region, which comprises
     of good governance has persistently              organised and supervised reigns of terror,     parts of Eritrea, Sudan, Mali, Burkina
     remained an albatross to political and           heavily suppressing dissents and ruling as     Faso, Senegal, Chad, Niger and Nigeria,
     economic advancement and growth                  kings at the expense of mobilising social      is known to contain some of the world’s
     sustainability on the continent. For a region    energies towards combating the ever-           poorest countries, according to the UN
     endowed with enough human and material           present threats of poverty and conflict.       Development Index. Niger is at the bottom
     resources to emerge as one of, if not the        These have been further worsened by            position, with Chad, Burkina Faso and
     most, prosperous region of the world,            population explosion and climatic changes.     Mali ranking directly above it.
     Africa has not been so lucky with the crop           Starved of critical investments by             Outside of the endemic poverty, lack
     of leaders who have managed its affairs.         these larcenous tendencies, the strategic      of education, employment opportunities
         The continent has witnessed a                institutions of already fragile, colonially    and state presence, which made it easy for
     combination of authoritarian dispensations       inherited African states have begun to         armed groups to recruit and thrive in these
     with their characteristic despotic, sit-tight    collapse, resulting in limited government      areas, the ill-fated NATO-backed regime
     leaders, and other democratic kleptocracies      coverage and failing states. Thus, Africans,   change in Libya, and the attendant uprising
     manned by “fantastically corrupt”                and the rest of the world, have had to         in Northern Mali in 2012, worsened the
     presidents. As a result, not only has the        watch as what seemed to be a revolution        security situation in most of the region.
     continent been unable to use its resources       in Africa’s social, economic and political         In Mali, the armed groups that emerged

14                                            AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021
ANALYSIS
in areas neglected by the state for decades   humanitarian groups to generate the funds      and a prominent practice in Northern
took advantage of available recruits and      to mitigate its impacts. In the meantime,      Nigeria, it is considered within African
today have increased their ranks, spreading   tens of thousands of refugees across the       “democratic” circles as a necessary
conflict and violence to the central          region continue to live in displacement,       political arsenal for any candidate hoping
regions of the country and spilling over to   unable to return home due to the persistent    to run on the platform of any major
neighbouring Burkina Faso and the Niger       situation of insecurity.                       political party.
Republic. Also, the impact of climate              The more recent conflicts in Ethiopia         Africa in 2021 is a cause for worry
change on the region and livelihoods of       between state security forces and the          for everyone interested in the peace
about 50 million livestock herders, which     “rebel” Tigrayan region, as well as the        and prosperity of the continent. Almost
has instigated increased farmer-herder        rioting in South Africa over the arrest        everywhere one turns, a conflict is
clashes, has resulted in scores of people     of former President Jacob Zuma, cannot
                                                                                             happening or waiting to unfold. Daily
being killed and millions displaced.          be separated from the aforementioned
                                                                                             reports of deaths and numerous forms of
     In Nigeria in 2002, what began as        underlying factors: poor governance
                                                                                             human suffering steadily plague the senses
a clampdown by government security            practices, high youth unemployment rates,
                                                                                             of all who call it home.
agencies on a “radicalising” Islamic sect     climatic changes and debilitating poverty.
led by an obscure Islamic cleric named                                                           Indeed, these have become a
                                                   In Ethiopia, the Tigrayan People’s
Mohammed Yusuf, and comprised mainly          Liberation Front (TPLF), the front-line        devastating period for everyone, especially
of “poor Muslim families from across          unit defending the interests of Tigrayans      after emerging out of the scourge of a
Nigeria and neighbouring countries,”          (the third largest ethnic group in Ethiopia,   global pandemic that is yet threatening to
grew into a full-fledged insurgency by        constituting 67 per cent of the population),   make a comeback. In today’s Africa, the
2009. This rebel group, which came to be      was formed in the mid-1970s in reaction        streets are no longer safe; children live in
known as Boko Haram, gained notoriety         to allegations of marginalisation.             fear and danger of a bleak future; people’s
for its disavowal of the canons of Western    Additionally, the ongoing war between the      identities are redefined as they flee from
civilisation.                                 TPLF and the central government of Prime       war, roaming the world as unwanted and
     This was backed up with a repudiation    Minister Abiy Ahmed is an outcome of the       unwelcomed aliens.
of the Nigerian state, the sacking of         latter’s ambition to suppress the former           To reflect on how far we have come
its North-Eastern towns, and the mass         by diminishing its power and political         and how much efforts have been invested
slaughter of its inhabitants. Since 2009,     influence. As it stands, the conflict has      to see Africa rise and remain standing,
Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for     not only claimed the lives of thousands of     only to watch it all fall apart again before
the deaths of tens of thousands of Nigerian   civilians, while displacing over a million,
                                                                                             our very eyes, is heart-wrenching – a thing
citizens and the displacement of millions.    but is also riddled with allegations of
                                                                                             that would break lesser men and women.
                                              sexual violence and other atrocities.
    By 2014, the armed conflict in North-                                                    However, are we lesser men? This is one
East Nigeria between security forces and           Another evidence of the tragedy of        question that providence seems to want
non-state armed groups, with ties to ISIL     governance in Africa is the pro-Zuma           us to answer again, after many occasions.
and factions like IS West African Province    rioting in South Africa. This is a classic     We have come to a point where we must

                                               ‘
(ISWAP), had spread to neighbouring
countries, drawing Cameroon, Niger and
Chad into the conflict. The devastating             The ill-fated NATO-backed regime
impact of this conflict on the region is
perhaps best captured in Cameroon, where            change in Libya, and the attendant
the schism in areas bordering Nigeria
and Cameroon, coupled with pre-existing             uprising in Northern Mali in 2012,
unrests between the French-speaking
north-western regions and the English-              worsened the security situation in

                                                                             ’
Speaking south-west, has resulted in
massive destabilisation in the country. By          the Sahel
2018, the violence in Cameroon had led to
                                              African scenario where the leader of
the displacement of an estimated 437,000
                                              a multi-national state takes advantage         acknowledge that much more is required,
Cameroonians, with about 30,000 refugees
                                              of the teeming number of unemployed            notwithstanding the numerous sacrifices
crossing over into Nigeria.
                                              youths amongst his sub-national group          we have made. With the fragments of our
    This interconnected conflict between                                                     broken hearts in our hands, we are obliged
                                              and develops a cult-like following. He
the countries of the Sahel belt has                                                          to rebuild, and we must rebuild because
                                              allows this group the best benefits of
continuously expanded in scale and scope                                                     now is the time to build and not to tear
of devastation over the years, especially     his administration, and in return he gets
                                                                                             down.
between 2018 and the present. It has also     unquestioned allegiance, even against the
                                              general interest of the federation.                The alternative is to sit and watch our
risen to the status of “one of the world’s                                                   beloved and beautiful Africa die – from
worst humanitarian crises,” especially           Unfortunately, this is not peculiar to      numerous blows dealt by division,
owing to the growing difficulty for           South Africa alone. Spread around Africa       hatred, poverty, war and hunger.      AB

Toyin Falola is University Distinguished Teaching Professor and Humanities Chair at The University of Texas at Austin in the US

                                       AFRICA BRIEFING SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2021                                                             15
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