AU

Mugabe: När firandet kan vara fel

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

Mugabe: När firandet kan vara fel (Previously posted in English language)

20171114_1316191957743002.jpg

av Adeola Aderounmu

Många observatörer både inom och utanför Afrika tycks ha firat störtandet av Mugabe som Zimbabwes president efter nära fyra årtionden vid makten. En sådan uppfattning är en skarp motsägelse till vad som erhölls på 1970 och 1980 talet då Mugabe agerade som hjälte för Zimbabwes självständighet.

Jag minns min reaktion när Mugabe röstades till makten för den sjätte gången år 2008. Då var han 84 år gammal och jag trodde hans pensionering var väntad, för honom att kunna vila upp sig och njuta av återstoden av sitt liv. Vid det tillfället drog jag slutsatsen att dåliga ledare, oavsett hur bra deras avsikter kan tyckas, är de som vägrar att träna eller handleda sina anhängare att ta sedan över efter dem.

Enligt min mening är Mugabes största misstag att inte ha värnat om ett fåtal unga män och kvinnor som kunde fört Zimbabwe framåt. Han var beredd att styra Zimbabwe fram till sin död, det är den enda förklaringen jag finner för en man som är 93 år gammal och inte pensionerad från offentlig service.

Det råder ingen tvekan om att Mugabe stannade för länge vid makten. Han blandade troligen ihop demokrati med monarki. I en demokrati är överföringen av makt oundviklig. De som kämpade vid sidan av Mugabe för ett självständigt Zimbabwe hade anledning att känna sig förolämpade när det blev uppenbart att Mugabe planerade överföringen av makt till sin fru. Några av dessa personer är nu politiker, om än gamla politiker, och vissa förblev i militären. De har nu säkerställt att makten togs över med våld från Mugabe, i hans gamla och hjälplösa ålder.

När den nuvarande maktstriden är avgjord, har Zimbabwes handläggare en del saker att klargöra och rätta till. Ett exempel är lagen som ger Mugabe makt att avskeda landets vice ordförande som bör återkallas genom lagstiftaren. Andra repressiva lagar i konstitutionen som är kapabla att omvandla revolutionerande, demokratiska ledare till tyranner bör avskaffas.

Zimbabwe och förvisso många andra länder i Afrika behöver granska sina politikers ämbetstider. Zimbabwe till exempel skulle troligen vuxit demokratiskt om det fanns en begränsning på antalet gånger en president kan väljas om. I länder där makten över ämbetstiden gör det till en nästan omöjlig uppgift att ändra makten genom trovärdiga val, blir begränsade mandatperioder ett motgift.

Det finns en allvarlig fara i om den använda metoden att driva bort Mugabe är firad. Användningen av militären för att korrigera politisk anomali borde inte firas eller hyllas någonstans i världen. Det förblir ett recept på våld och inbördeskrig. Det var fel att det militära alternativet var vad som togs till för att köra bort Mugabe och stoppa hans fru från att ta över makten. Valmöjligheten, som använder sig av trovärdiga omröstningar och godtagbara resultat, är alltid den bästa metoden.

Därför måste globala media presentera en balanserad rapport om situationen, oberoende av dess predisposition (kärlek eller hat) mot Mugabe. Det som hänt i Zimbabwe handlar inte bara om personen Mugabe eller hans hunger efter makt utan även om välfärden och välbefinnandet hos folket i Zimbabwe, hemma och utomlands.

Lärdomarna från Zimbabwe borde återigen öppna våra ögon om demokratins brister i vissa delar av världen och dessa lärdomar borde vara behjälpliga för diverse institutioner som främjar av inte bara demokrati men även medborgerliga rättigheter för alla människor globalt.

aderounmu@gmail.com

Footnote:

Mugabe resigned today 21st of November 2017 after 37 years in power.

Mugabe: A Wrong Type Of Celebration

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

There is grave danger if the method used to oust Mugabe is celebrated. The use of the military to correct political anomaly should not be celebrated or hailed anywhere in the world.

Mugabe: A Wrong Type Of Celebration

By Adeola Aderounmu

 

20171114_1316191957743002.jpg

Adeola Aderounmu

Many observers within and outside Africa seem to have celebrated the overthrown of Mugabe as the president of Zimbabwe after nearly 4 decades in power. Such a perception is a sharp contradiction to what obtained in the 1970s and 1980s when Mugabe was a hero of Zimbabwean independence.

I remember my reaction when Mugabe was voted to power for the 6th time in 2008. Then, he was 84 years and l thought he should be due for retirement so that he could rest and enjoy the rest of his days. At that moment l concluded that bad leaders, no matter how good their intentions may seem, are those who refused to train or mentor followers to take over from them.

In my opinion, Mugabe’s greatest mistake was not nurturing a few young men and women who could move Zimbabwe forward. He was prepared to rule Zimbabwe until his death and that is the only explanation l found for a man who is 93 years and not retired from public service.

No doubt about it, Mugabe overstayed in power. He probably mistook democracy for monarchy. In a democracy, the transfer of power is inevitable. Those who fought alongside Mugabe for the independence of Zimbabwe have reasons to feel insulted when it became apparent that Mugabe was planning to transfer power to his wife.

Some of these people are now politicians albeit old politicians and some remained in the military. They have now ensured that power was taken by force from Mugabe in his old, helpless ag.

When the current power tussle is settled, the handlers of Zimbabwe have a few things to clarify and rectify. For example, the law that gives  Mugabe the power to sack the Vice President of the country should be revoked through the legislature. Other repressive laws in the constitution that are capable of converting revolutionary, democratic leaders to tyrants should be abolished.

Zimbabwe and indeed many other countries in Africa need to review the tenures of their politicians. Zimbabwe for example, would probably have grown democratically if there was limitation on the number of times a president can seek for re-election. In countries where the power of incumbency makes it an almost impossible task to change power through credible elections, limited terms of office will be an antidote.

There is grave danger if the method used to oust Mugabe is celebrated. The use of the military to correct political anomaly should not be celebrated or hailed anywhere in the world. It remains a recipe for violence and civil war. It was wrong that the military option was what it took to oust Mugabe or stop his wife from taking over power. The electoral option, that which makes use of credible ballot votes and acceptable results, is always the best method.

The global media therefore need to present a balance report of the situations regardless of  its predisposition (love or hate) towards Mugabe. What has happened in Zimbabwe is not just about the person of Mugabe and his hunger for power but also about the welfare and the well-being of the people of Zimbabwe at home and abroad.

The lessons of Zimbabwe should once again opened our eyes to the inadequacies of democracy in certain parts of the world and these lessons should be instrumental to various institutions saddled with the promotion of not just democracy but civil rights of all people globally.

aderounmu@gmail.com

Disgraceful and Shallow Campaigns (Part 2)

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

This season the Nigerian media houses blew away the chances of healthy political debates. For Nigeria, the road to freedom is under construction but the good people and the institutions are asleep.

Disgraceful and Shallow Campaigns

By Adeola Aaderounmu

20150202_073112

Prior to the cancellation of the February 14 elections l’d written a long essay, probably more than 10 pages, on what l missed watching and listening to some of the live campaigns of both the APC and the PDP.

Indeed some of these issues that l missed have been incorporated into posters or advertised campaigns. However these types of campaigns are made by professional marketing companies and they do not reflect what one can get directly from the candidates of the political parties during campaigns or debates.

As I was fine tuning the second part of the said article, Mr. Jonathan, the lazy and corrupt ruler of Nigeria fulfilled a year long expectation when he postponed the elections. In actual fact it was a cancellation made possible by a bloodless coup by some lazy, potbellied soldiers.

Here l will try to highlight the rest of the issues that ought to have shapen the 2015 presidential elections campaigns but which did not.

Nigeria has a population that is growing fast and which is estimated to be between 150 to 200 million. There has not been any debate how to confirm or check this population growth.

Nigeria needs good politics and appropriate policies in keeping the population at a level that is manageable. Nigeria has no functional social or welfare system. How will families be educated so that they procreate according to their financial capabilities and prospects of a good, qualitative life?

Another issue that I missed is immigration. Nigeria government does not take immigration issues seriously. So the people don’t get to hear what the government is doing on border control and how to prevent the growth and spread of terrorism through regulated migration.

The PDP led government of Jonathan can claim it inherited a lot of problems but what has been done in the last 4-6 years on the issue of immigration, population growth and social welfare?

What does the political program of the APC tells us on immigration? Have these questions been raised at any political rally or debate? What about the need for appropriate census and state of the art demographic of the population?

Apart from the free food that APC promised school children, there has not been any serious public discussion on how the glory of the education sector will be regained and sustained.

Public education in Nigeria today is a source of embarrassment to the people and the government. What will be done to revive the lost glory of education both in the short and long terms?

In line with improving the public education policy, there should be a perpendicular goal to bring back the glories of Nigeria in medicine and technology. In terms of research and development the political parties need to discuss plans on how they intend to reverse the brain drain syndrome.

This sad phenomenon, now several decades old, has left many Nigerians trapped abroad and many wasting away even in irrelevant branches. Also, the misplacement of priorities and the glorification of criminalities in Nigeria have left many graduates redundant and in the wrong fields.

I have missed the plan for the development of other infrastructure the way they should be. Many federal and state roads in Nigeria remain eye sores. Rail systems remain largely underdeveloped and water transport remains a mirage or a heavy risk to life and property where it is carried out.

I’ll try to summarize the other issues that l thought ought to have made the headlines.

How will corruption be tackled considering that the 2 major political parties continue to parade cross-carpeting members who are looters and lazy politicians?

It remains a useless expectation that a person as corrupt as Jonathan will do something to halt corruption. He was already a looter from Bayelsa State and he will never understand that stealing is corruption because he was not imprisoned for stealing in Bayelsa State. He was elevated by people like Obasanjo and the PDP in general!

If APC wins in the presidential election, it would be interesting to see how it intends to fight corruption considering all the corrupt people in its ranks and files too. They should stop repeating that nonsense that Buhari was never corrupt or infallible. Out of the several examples, the one where he defended and supported Abacha was the most disgusting.

Will the useless immunity clause be removed in the coming dispensation? Is there a debate about this question?

While Nigerians wait for a permanent political solution, the debate on promoting merit above the useless federal character is missing. Federal character will continue to bring nonentities to important political positions. Through federal character system, evil has subdued good and foolishness has overtaken intellectual capacity.

One of the most obvious missing parts of Nigeria’s political campaign remains the team behind the campaigns. Who is the person answering the questions for energy/power for the APC or the PDP? Who is responsible for the education portfolio of the APC campaign group? l do not think there are answers to these simple questions because there are no teams of experts pursuing research, development or political questions in the political parties.

Political appointments are never reserved for the skilled or informed in Nigeria. They remain rewards for thugs, any fool, militants, potential terrorists and persons connected to godfathers and sponsors.

Rarely when good people are appointed in Nigeria, they soon become evil after one night in office. Something fundamental is wrong with Nigeria and Nigerian politicians.

It is pertinent that the absence of follow up and the negligence of track records are some of the reasons why a lazy, incompetent, corrupt and weak ruler like Jonathan emerged as the ruler of the Africa’s most populated country.

The disgraceful outcome of this tragedy is hard to bear. But if they seek change, Nigerians must learn to do things the right way. Sadly, Jonathan is a living tragedy and a sad phenomenon that may repeat itself.

Who will stop the pension fraud madness? What does the political agenda of the APC and PDP say on retirement matters? How will pensioners get their gratuity and pensions without having to provide the proof of life after 35 years in service?

For 16 years now we know that PDP encourages pension scams just the same way they enjoyed the oil subsidy scams. PDP is built on scams. Even Jonathan and Abba Moro scammed unsuspecting unemployed people in the failed immigration employment program. There were no consequences for Jonathan and Moro despite all the dead bodies that littered the country.

What change will the APC be?

On the campaign trail so far we have no heard how APC will deal with judicial processes involving pension frauds, subsidy scams, employment scams and oil theft. It would have been nice to know the change they are talking about and how they will be achieved.

Religion has failed Nigeria. Under Jonathan, religion became a total instrument of governance whereas Nigeria is a secular country. Churches and mosques built as outlets to government houses should be pulled down. Let everyman worship in his house and keep his/her religion a private activity.

Unfortunately, in 2015 religion will play a very dangerous role in who becomes the ruler of Nigeria. This is the same country regarded as one of the most corrupt in the world.

This means with Nigeria as a classical example, the more people go to churches and mosques, the more they are likely to be criminally minded and avoid the simple social responsibilities of nation building.

The way to freedom for the regions trapped in Nigeria is long. The rapid visual assessment and evaluation of the views and opinions of Nigerians both online and in reality leaves a lot to desire.

The winner takes all mentality after the elections rather than a system that heals after bitter electoral processes has left deeper wounds in the soul of the country. They may never heal under the persisting unitary form of government.

Since 1966, Nigeria remains in an endless transition.

The political solution is urgent so that the institutions can be brought back to life.

Separation of powers and respect for the principles of real democracy must be integrated in the expected political solution.

Nigerians remain easy to rule but difficult to lead, which is why they have always ended up with the wrong people leading the affairs of the country.

Nigeria as a country or as an aggregate of regions must work hard to get to that point where criminals and looters like the ones we have seen before and since 1999 are arrested and made to face judicial proceedings according to the law.

Based on the past and even the present, both Jonathan and Buhari are not the best of materials from intellectually saturated Nigeria. But it is sad that the good people are caged as the politics of money and do or die remains prevalent.

Change may come to Nigeria but with a lot of economic uncertainties and unseen social and political consequences.

The debate on the future of Nigeria which is missing in the campaigns ought to have been brought to life and taken at several sub-levels.

What will it take for Nigeria to revert to a system of government where power is not concentrated in the hands of one dictator at the center? Such a system where money is gathered in Abuja and redistributed to beggar states will not take Nigeria to the promise land. In fact it may tear the country apart soon.

What are the plans of all the political parties to restructure Nigeria so that the regions can stand on their feet and develop competitively like it was before the useless coups of 1966?

The real change that Nigerians want is yet to come. Making sure that people answer for crimes against humanity, for negligence of duties and for corruption must be part of the real change that they seek.

Most of the Nigerian public and private media houses should also be ashamed of their leadership styles and profiles. They have taken sides and will never be trusted in promoting fairness. This season they blew the chances of healthy political debates.

The media houses including both the visual and the printing press should bury their ugly heads in shame. They never put their spotlights on real issues and on the people who can emancipate Nigeria and help build her institutions.

For Nigeria, the road to freedom is under construction but the good people and the institutions are asleep.

(Concluded).

aderounmu@gmail.com

2015 Most Wanted Report

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

 If the calls for the trial and imprisonment of George Bush Jr. for example cannot be found in the report for 2014, maybe a call for pardon or amnesty (and not a justification) for Charles Taylor will not be out of place as well.

All men are equal and what is good for the goose ought to be good for the gander.

2015 Most Wanted Report

By Adeola Aderounmu

Adeola_2013

The Human Right Watch Report for 2015 is one of the most anticipated world reports of the year. It will read 2015: The events of 2014.

What keen observers will be hoping to read will not only be the events of 2014 but more accurately the revelations of 2014. This means that known but hidden/classified reports covering the human rights violations of the United States and her allies during recent wars and occupations of other countries will be expected to make the reports.

In 2014 the United States, was described as having medium risk of human rights offenses and she ranked 139th among the 197 countries. The ten worst countries were

10. Nigeria

Yemen

Myanmar

Iraq

Afghanistan

Somalia

Pakistan

The Democratic Republic of Congo

Sudan and

1. Syria

The conditions that made these ten countries the worst places in 2013 were largely unchanged in 2014.

For example the Syrian civil war with the rise of ISIS in the Middle East still places Syria and Iraq amongst the worst places to be born in 2014. Religion despite all its rites of morality unfortunately also remains the most dangerous tool when brothers set out to kills their own kinds.

Boko Haram kept its hold on North Eastern parts of Nigeria and continues to control many local government areas in Borno and neighboring states. The terror group remains specialists in abducting and raping young girls. With Boko Haram, slave trade and human trafficking are kept alive in the Sahara.

The rise and successes of Boko Haram may stall the February elections in certain places in Nigeria. This may be so significant that it may result in the postponement of the elections with expected mayhem and escalation of the drums of war.

In Southern Nigeria it appears Mr. Jonathan has equipped his local militants with weapons from Norway, South Africa and Pakistan in readiness for war. The Nigerian military on the other hands is ill-equipped and had forfeited many grounds and weapons to Boko Haram.

In the 2015 Human Right Watch Report, Nigeria will be presented not only as an extremely corrupt country but a geographical region where human rights violations are rife and face escalation.

The rest of the world will not be disappointed with the established activities of the Taliban. Their yearlong crimes in 2014 culminated in massacre of 132 school children in Peshawar.

But back in the United States, there were more provocative revelations about the roles of the United States military in Iraq and Guantanamo. The revelations have heightened the call for the trial of George Bush a former president of the United States and some of his military chiefs.

Apart from the war crimes there were serious internal challenges in 2014 that rightly positioned the US as a serious contender as one of the countries with the worst human right violations in 2014.

The extra judicial killings that have been watered down for several decades reared their ugly heads and took on a non-suppressive dimension in 2014. It will be unfair to blame this awareness on media hype. I do not agree that the media blew the unfortunate events out of proportion. It is just the right thing to do rather than remaining silent when a persistent evil repeats itself with clear precisions.

Human Right Index 2013-2014

Human Right Index 2014

No amount of media hype will be excessive to seek justice and redress for the killings of Eric Gardner, Michael Brown, Kajieme Powell, Vonderrit Myers Jr and Antonio Martin just to mention a few that got our attention in recent months. Who knows exactly how many John, Jane and Baby Does went down in the US in 2014?

There are quite a handful of images and videos emanating from the US and going viral on the social network that depict in extreme situations daylight executions of colored people by white cops.

The 2015 Human Right reports will be of interest, a waiting thriller perhaps.

The place of the killer drones is hard to define but it has come to represent a form of repressive, excessive force, large unaccounted for. The American killer drones under Mr. Obama widen the stretch of international war crimes.

The world is waiting. Where will the US be? Based on current knowledge and events, will the authors miss the position of the US among or near the ten worst countries? Shall we be distracted to Russia, Ukraine and North Korea as a reprieve?

More so the double standard of rating human right abuses is condemnable.

What makes Charles Taylor suitable for prosecution / jail term based on human right abuses in Liberia and Sierra Leone but the presidents of the United States and the Prime Ministers in Britain unsuitable for prosecutions despite all the war crimes committed on their behalf around the world?

Charles Taylor is serving a 50 year jail term for aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sierra Leone and Liberia. His arrest, detention and trial brought about a weird diplomatic drama among many countries including Nigeria, Liberia, the US, Britain and the Netherland.

Charles Taylor spoke of injustice early in his trial because he pointed out that George Bush and Dick Cheney are guilty of the same crimes he was accused of. All his other lines of defense also fell flat.

The world is watching closely again. The United States is expected to be among the worst countries in the world where human rights violations became an issue. This view is shared by several independent human right observers.

It is expected that Human Right Report will be clear on highlighting how different forms of torture were used in Abu Dhabi, Guantanamo and so on.

The world is waiting to read the report about the innocent American citizens who fall to police bullets everyday on home soil without recourse to justice.

So many things are unclear. For example, there are more colored people in jails for crimes related to drug possessions but the white population has the larger percentage of drug users. The tilted nature of criminal prosecutions in America does not favor the African-Americans.

The Human Right Watch report for events of 2014 is under a special watch light.

The reports of the watch dog will be closely monitored. If the calls for the trial and imprisonment of George Bush Jr. for example cannot be found in the human right report for 2014/2015, maybe a call for pardon or amnesty (and not a justification) for Charles Taylor will not be out of place as well.

All men are equal and what is good for the goose ought to be good for the gander.

aderounmu@gmail.com

13 Years A Prisoner

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

I cannot actually overemphasize that the case of Isaak Dawit is an embarrassment to the human race. Isaias Afewerki cannot be above all of humanity unless we have all gone crazy.

13 Years A Prisoner

Isaak Dawit

Isaak Dawit

By Adeola Aderounmu

Isaak Dawit has been in jail in Eritrea since September 23 2001. He was born in the same country on the 27th of October 1964. He is now 50 years old, with one-fourth of his life spent in jail.

Isaak Dawit fled the war in Eritrea in 1987 and lived in Sweden. He became a Swedish citizen in 1992 but he also held on to his Eritrean citizenship.

When Eritrea became independent Isaak Dawit returned to Eritrea to work as a journalist.

He may have written stories or articles that the dictator Isaias Afewerki found threatening to his one-party state. He may have associated with groups seeking to ensure that the rights of the people are respected and sustained in a new emerging country.

But he was on the other side of the court as Mr. Afewerki, so he was arrested and imprisoned.

Isaak Dawit has not been brought to a court of law. No charges have been brought against him. It is not on any record that Isaak has been sentenced to life imprisonment.

Why is he sitting in prison for more than 13 years?

The worst tragedies in the world are not only hideous; they have also proven to be mostly unspoken of.

How can the rest of humanity look away when a man is locked up for 13 years? Have we no compassion for his family and children?

Since independence in 1993, Eritrea has been held in captive and extreme bondage by one man, a dictator called Isaias Afewerki.

In plain terms Mr. Isaias Afewerki told the world to go to “hell”, that he would do whatever he likes with Isaak. The question is, in the absence of a proof of life, “what has he actually done with Isaak Dawit?

Few years ago, Isaak went missing from his cell prompting fears about his whereabouts and an unconfirmed story that he was dead.

Many of the people arrested alongside with Isaak Dawit are dead or have been killed. The fears are genuine but lack of official comment keeps the hope of Dawit’s existence burning till today.

One of Isak’s daughters Ms. Bethlehem spoke recently and expresses optimism that her father is alive. It is this optimism and hope that should be given impetus now.

The Swedish government adopted the so-called silent diplomacy in the case of Isaak Dawit and it has been a total catastrophe so far. It remains futile.

Individuals, groups and organizations have demonstrated and lent their voices to the campaign to free Isaak. All have proven to be ineffective.

What has been done outside of Eritrea is probably not reaching Eritreans at home in terms of awareness.

Sadly too the chant to free Isaak Dawit will not be echoed in Eritrea.

The country is locked down by one man. Eritrea is closed to the rest of the world because there are no independent news media in the country.

Eritreans are not free. They need help!

While I do not support interference with the sovereignty of any nation, the case of Isaak Dawit brings me to a point of compromise. The utterances of Isaias Afewerki even on Swedish television left no one in doubt that there is a lunatic in power in Eritrea.

The campaign for the freedom of Isaak Dawit must take up a new dimension outside of Eritrea. The pressure should then be taken inside to free the people of Eritrea.

Every country deserves independent press and the people deserve freedom of speech and association.

The table needs to be turn around. The campaign slogans should move from free Dawit to:

“Free Eritreans”

“Arrest And Prosecute Isaias Afewerki Now”

Eritreans abroad must come together on this one. This is their fight.

They need to bring the rest of the world to the awareness of the sufferings and demeaning of their lives within and outside the boundary of Eritrea by Isaias Afewerki.

There should be no limit to the amount of pressure that should be applied on this wicked and heartless dictator.

After putting away a journalist for 13 years without trial, the world should NEVER let Isaias Afewerki have a moment of rest. This much Eritreans owe Isaak Dawit.

Isaias Afewerki holds all of Eritrea in bondage in a one-party state. He has no regards for the people of Eritrea.

Who does he think he is?

If he has killed Isaak Dawit, the people should rise and sack him by force. They also need to demand his arrest and prosecution.

If Isaak Dawit is alive, he should be released without further delay.

Isaias Afewerki cannot be above all of humanity unless we have all gone crazy.

What is the priority of the Swedish government in foreign diplomacy?

What is wrong with Sweden?

Only foolish people repeat stupid history. Raoul Wallenberg never returned to Sweden, he was never found. Now it is Isaak Dawit. Does this story line sound too familiar?

If finding Isaak Dawit means bringing down the Eritrean dictatorship so be it.

Isaak’s mother died in 2010 asking the question: why did they take my son away from me?

His children are grown, still growing, denied of the company of their loving father because of one stupid dictator in the horn of Africa.

In the end this is a shame not only to Sweden, but also to Europe and the world as a whole. We all stood by and watch like spectators and let one lunatic send another man to jail for 13 years without trial.

I cannot actually overemphasize that the case of Isaak Dawit is an embarrassment to the human race.

With all our claim of civility, social justice and freedom, we let one man (and definitely many other men and women) rot in prison for several years without trials and we look the other way.

aderounmu@gmail.com