The curse of African Presidents: Voxi Populi, Voxi Dei!
Today, my President is mid air travelling from Sudan, heading to Addis Ababa. Yesterday he was in Ivory Coast and later he went to Sudan, meeting Al Bashir before going to Juba for a meeting with officials of Southern Sudan.
I would have said a lot, except that we are living in days of trying to define a direction for our country. Days of uncertainity, gossip and rumour mongering and at times sometimes the destruction of peoples careers based on pure hearsy.
Last night I spent four hours on a petrol line and went to bed only around midnight, my bosses were expecting me at 7.30 pronto.
I could not have given a damn about where my President was today, was it not for Uganda President who graced the BBC airwaves and could not say as to whether he will or not run again in 2016.
Instead, he was busy saying his country might be a developed country by then. Might after almost 30 years in power he has yet to find solution to the basic challenges that millions of Uganda face. He has no shame trumpenting his own success.
Africa, with many countries self professing to be democracies is even being beaten by China in terms of sucession. Chinese Vice President is expected to take over 2012, returning power to the Shanghai team which is more business oriented and will likely take the new economic giant to greater levels.
If your ask President Yoweri Museveni if it is not time to go, he will tell you the people will tell me.
After 30 years, President Museveni, alongside other dictators like Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Dos Santos of Angola, Muammur Ghaddafi of Libya, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and other tin post disctator masquedering as democrats in Ethiopia, Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Morroco, Eritria among others dont think the same people have a right to speak.
Gods people, no matter how long oppressed, the will always remember where they come from and will stand up one day and demand their freedoms.
Tunisia's Ben Ali left like a thieve, chased by his own people. Charles Taylor was captured as a criminal and now Hosni Mubarak believes the might of Police will pacify anger.
I know regime change is treasonous in most African countries, just like asking a President when he is supposed to depart from his post.
The lessons from Tanzania and Botswana dont seem to be adapted by any other country. Tanzania has three former Presidents, Botswana has an equal number, none of them chased from their positions but willingly gave back power to the people to choose from.
In other semi-democracies like Malawi, Kenya and Zambia, though elections are held every five years or so, the participation of the citizenry in the post election is almost zero, which has led to development of chameleons who cannot be classfied not as dictators or democrats.
The curse of African leaders lies in their deliberate attempts to keep power at all cost, abuse of public resources and believing that out of all the people in their countris they are the most intelligent people.
They hire dull and poorly educated people to praise sing them, tolerate gossip and more often than not, they are very nepotistic that one South African Newspaper reported billions of business contrats going to Jacob Zuma's son.
In Uganda, Museveni decided to share the country's public resources with his wife by hiring her into cabinet while in Congo first lady yields power more than cabinet ministers. People elect Presidents and not their wives!
As people of Tunisia won their revolution, African dictators are shaking and shaking as Egyptians take to the streets. The truth is that it will trigger a third wave of revolution Africa has never seen before.
The first was the fight for independence, then we fought dictators, it is time Africa will be governed by the youthful, intellect and mostly people centred Presidents who will not leave hospitals, fuel pumps and even electricity dry and proclaim themselves as saviours.
It is time for any serious African leader to start reviewing his or her own character towards his or her own people, fellow politicians in Government and oppostion and accept that public criticism helps him to perfect himself in service deliverly.
The curse that Africa had in having mediocre leadership is about to be removed. If you are a President, its time to wake up and recognise that power comes from the people.
Someone somehwere said long time ago. THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE IS THE VOICE OF GOD!
I would have said a lot, except that we are living in days of trying to define a direction for our country. Days of uncertainity, gossip and rumour mongering and at times sometimes the destruction of peoples careers based on pure hearsy.
Last night I spent four hours on a petrol line and went to bed only around midnight, my bosses were expecting me at 7.30 pronto.
I could not have given a damn about where my President was today, was it not for Uganda President who graced the BBC airwaves and could not say as to whether he will or not run again in 2016.
Instead, he was busy saying his country might be a developed country by then. Might after almost 30 years in power he has yet to find solution to the basic challenges that millions of Uganda face. He has no shame trumpenting his own success.
Africa, with many countries self professing to be democracies is even being beaten by China in terms of sucession. Chinese Vice President is expected to take over 2012, returning power to the Shanghai team which is more business oriented and will likely take the new economic giant to greater levels.
If your ask President Yoweri Museveni if it is not time to go, he will tell you the people will tell me.
After 30 years, President Museveni, alongside other dictators like Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Dos Santos of Angola, Muammur Ghaddafi of Libya, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and other tin post disctator masquedering as democrats in Ethiopia, Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Morroco, Eritria among others dont think the same people have a right to speak.
Gods people, no matter how long oppressed, the will always remember where they come from and will stand up one day and demand their freedoms.
Tunisia's Ben Ali left like a thieve, chased by his own people. Charles Taylor was captured as a criminal and now Hosni Mubarak believes the might of Police will pacify anger.
I know regime change is treasonous in most African countries, just like asking a President when he is supposed to depart from his post.
The lessons from Tanzania and Botswana dont seem to be adapted by any other country. Tanzania has three former Presidents, Botswana has an equal number, none of them chased from their positions but willingly gave back power to the people to choose from.
In other semi-democracies like Malawi, Kenya and Zambia, though elections are held every five years or so, the participation of the citizenry in the post election is almost zero, which has led to development of chameleons who cannot be classfied not as dictators or democrats.
The curse of African leaders lies in their deliberate attempts to keep power at all cost, abuse of public resources and believing that out of all the people in their countris they are the most intelligent people.
They hire dull and poorly educated people to praise sing them, tolerate gossip and more often than not, they are very nepotistic that one South African Newspaper reported billions of business contrats going to Jacob Zuma's son.
In Uganda, Museveni decided to share the country's public resources with his wife by hiring her into cabinet while in Congo first lady yields power more than cabinet ministers. People elect Presidents and not their wives!
As people of Tunisia won their revolution, African dictators are shaking and shaking as Egyptians take to the streets. The truth is that it will trigger a third wave of revolution Africa has never seen before.
The first was the fight for independence, then we fought dictators, it is time Africa will be governed by the youthful, intellect and mostly people centred Presidents who will not leave hospitals, fuel pumps and even electricity dry and proclaim themselves as saviours.
It is time for any serious African leader to start reviewing his or her own character towards his or her own people, fellow politicians in Government and oppostion and accept that public criticism helps him to perfect himself in service deliverly.
The curse that Africa had in having mediocre leadership is about to be removed. If you are a President, its time to wake up and recognise that power comes from the people.
Someone somehwere said long time ago. THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE IS THE VOICE OF GOD!
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