Police brutality, vote rigging, insecurity, corruption or abuse of power by elites, despite the covid-19 pandemic, the intensity of global public protests has not abated, neither has the brutality of police in response. While the reasons vary, the results differ, political leaders are being put on notice the world over, Leaders! No more promises, it is time for results!
The #EndSARS movement which took Nigeria and the social media world by storm two weeks ago is capping an eventful year in ECOWAS. In Mali the M5-RFP movement mobilized hundreds of thousands of youth in the streets of Bamako, culminating into the fourth military coup of the nation’s history as protesters rejected eight years of bad governance, corruption scandals and bloodshed. Meanwhile Ivory Coast and Guinea, and before them Togo, are facing the all too familiar electoral tensions related to efforts by leaders overstaying their welcome at the helm of the countries’ destiny unlike in Ghana, Liberia and Niger.
These frustrations are opening the door for alternative voices to emerge. Most often in the form of leaderless youth movements, fueled by social media, the new platform for community engagement. Young people around the World are discovering an age-old truth: Power is in the hand of the masses when they are united! As this reality sets in in the streets of Hong Kong, Beirut, Bishkek , Khartoum, Lagos, Paris, Chicago, Santiago or Caracas, the question of what comes next becomes crucial If we are to make these moments true breaks in the cycle of inequality and exclusion politic.
It is time for us to stop complaining about the mismanagement of public resources, the blatant violation of electoral processes, tolerate the gross negligence of political leaders and to decisively influence who is put in charge and what they do with the power bestowed on them. If African politicians extend their stay, it is precisely because the role is too comfortable for them! Serving one’s country should be a sacrifice, not a ticket to the high life.
How do we nurture this newfound consciousness to transform our future?
• Let us realistic with our expectations. African nations need deep structural transformation. Tinkering at the edges simply will not cut it. Structural problems take time, patience and resilience to fix. Having a game plan with short term actions to create an environment of trust, of hope that solutions will be found to the most pressing issues is critical. One chance for many African nations is that access to basic descent services, greater transparency in the management of public funds would go a long way in building that trust and this is achievable as long as those in charge are conscious that they are here to Serve and NOT to Serve themselves.
• Power is taken, not given. The biggest lessons drawn from the Arab springs, the revolutions in Burkina, Sudan or Mali which have led to regime change is that political power vacuums never last long. Thus, as protests gather momentum, credible alternatives must organize, strategize to either capture the levers of power and public administration, or be prepared to sit down with those controlling them to ensure key demands are fulfilled.
• We must prepare. Changing a broken system entails, dismantling it, but also creating something else to replace it! In 1992 when Mali ushered its democratic dispensation, a group of teachers, community activists, syndicalists offered a dream of progress, justice and civil liberties most Malians had never experienced. Unfortunately, over the next thirty years they built a system that served a political class which enriched itself tremendously without being able to satisfy the basic needs of the majority. As we denounce WHAT we don’t like about today, we must answer the question of HOW do we change it in a thoughtful, credible and realistic manner.
Not everyone is destined be enter politics, but every citizen, especially those privileged to have had an education have a duty to call out our leaders when they fail to fulfill their obligations to provide citizens with acceptable basic public services, ensure our safety, a transparent and fair judicial system or the opportunity to create wealth for our families and our communities. We owe it to our children, we owe it to our Nations, and we owe it to ourselves.
Alassane Beye
Tutu Fellow
