Africa: Local and global politics

African Union (AU)
African Union (AU)

By Samuel Oluwole Ogundele

 

Africa has every good reason to be united in fine-grained opposition to the predatory West and recently, parts of Asia like China and Japan.

But this requires a commitment of time, energy, discipline and uncommon patriotism. Africa is a vibrant component of the international community.

Therefore, the continent cannot afford to deny itself of certain healthy gains of modern globalization. In this connection, critical, active participation has to occupy centre stage in the scheme of things.

Africa’s entanglements with Europe particularly from the 19th century, were a curse as opposed to a blessing. As far as Europe was concerned, the continent was/is a huge cake to be shared by its members.

Africa has at least 40 percent of global natural resources located within its vast landmass. But painfully enough, Africa is still unable to liberate itself from the shackles of neo-colonialism/economic imperialism decades after attaining political independence.

Indeed, it (Africa) remains a victim of transoceanic capitalism. This is the basis of the continent’s shared heritage of oppression/dehumanization and marginalization. Consequently, Pan-Africanism is most desirable in order to be truly independent.

Following from the above, the meeting of the First Congress of Independent African States under the auspices of the government of Ghana led by Kwame Nkrumah was held in Accra between the 15th and 22nd of April, 1958.

This Congress metamorphosed into the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in May 1963, in Addis Ababa, with 32 independent countries.

Additional 21 countries later joined this organization. The central goal of this body was the promotion of unity and solidarity of African countries.

This was critical to socio-economic growth and development. Unfortunately, ideological differences among the leaders wreaked havoc on OAU and by extension, Africa.

The Casablanca Group made up of countries such as Ghana, Guinea, Egypt and Morocco was led by Nkrumah, an unrepentant advocate for anti-European hegemony.

The second category known as the Monrovia Group had Nigeria, Ethiopia, Togo and Libya among others as members.

This second group was pro-West in its orientation. As a result of this, the leaders could not reconcile with each other.

In fact, most African leaders saw Nkrumah as an over-ambitious, violent person who wanted to turn every independent country into a vassal.

The idea of African Continental Government with Nkrumah as president was an irritant to most African leaders. This lack of integration continues up to now.

Thus, for example, Nigerians are being harassed intermittently in South Africa, Kenya and Ghana among other African countries.

The absence of continental and even sub-regional integration remains a blessing to the West. Individual African countries can never successfully confront the West and parts of Asia.

Given this scenario, Africa remains a puppet with strings to be pulled by the bullies, to the detriment of the former. It is most worrying that the African Union (AU) that was founded in 2002 to replace OAU has not fared better in a number of ways.

Although internal conflicts have been drastically reduced, more and more Africans are becoming economic refugees in the US, Europe and parts of Asia.

Child trafficking and prostitution among other crimes have now reached deep crisis proportions. Poverty in Africa is largely traceable to corruption.

No industrialization as we continue with the colonial-era economy involving the hewing of wood and fetching of water for the bullies.

It is most worrying that Africa’s nominal quota in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was about 11,500 while the US alone has slightly above 37,000.

This was followed by the European Union (EU) with approximately 70,500 while Asia has 25,000. The scenario connotes Africa’s voiceless-ness in the international community.

The inclusion of a few African intelligentsia in the ‘management’ of some of these global bodies like the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and World Bank is basically political or cosmetic in several senses.

This epitomizes the subtle deception that characterizes international politics/relations.

AU has to be imposing sanctions against corrupt leaders because financial and economic infractions are the major cause of the unwarranted material poverty and miseries of hopelessness ravaging Africa.

The popular Abacha loot simply boggles the mind. In fact, this year alone, the Buhari administration has received $311 million from the US as part General Abacha’s loot.

Abacha was not alone in trying to rock the boat in terms of our national economy. Most political leaders also looted the national treasury at different times in the past.

Corruption goes on unabated up to now. It has become a fashionable way of life in Nigeria, a microcosm of Africa.

According to Transparency International’s Corruption Index in 2018, Nigeria ranked 144th out of the 180 countries. Nigeria has lost over $400 billion to corrupt leaders since its independence in 1960.

The immediate past president of the Gambia, Yahya Jammeh was alleged to have stolen more than $100 million. With over 110 assets including numerous luxury cars and 80 bank accounts, Jammeh succeeded in seriously impoverishing most Gambians.

He ruled the Gambia for 22 years until his deposition in 2017. The IMF claimed that the Gambia’s debt stock rose to 130 percent at the end of 2017.

The list of Africa’s corrupt leaders is long. Corruption underscores the reason why African leaders (with a few exceptions) are always eager to sign bilateral and multilateral agreements with Europe, North America, China, Japan and Singapore. Most of these agreements are poisonous to the heart and soul of mother Africa.

Grants and/or aid are/is not value-free. There are always conditionalities which further impoverish the borrowers or receivers.

Such loans or grants are hardly tied to specific projects and there is no monitoring. Consequently, they enter the pockets of the political class and its business associates.

In Nigeria, each former governor (with a few exceptions) takes between five and N10 million as a monthly retirement pension.

This also applies to the deputy governors among others. There are other mouthwatering goodies for these retired politicians.

These unwarranted benefits are the epitome of monumental godlessness, given the rampant material poverty and miseries in the land.

To these contemporary politicians, Tafawa Balewa (the first and only prime minister of Nigeria to date, 1963 to 1966), Kenneth Kaunda, Zambian president between 1964 and 1991 and Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, president of Tanzania, 1965 to 1985, were not smart for demonstrating exemplary leadership character.

They never amassed a fortune from politics. Sir Balewa was always vacationing in his village where he enjoyed chewing sugar cane among other things.

What is the AU doing practically to restore sanity to this troubled continent plagued by corruption including hedonism and political recklessness?

The union is known for unprofitable annual jamboree without sufficient progressive actions capable of taking Africa out of the woods or deprivation trap.

How can such a body curb the excesses of the Western world and China who are deadly parasites on African society? It seems to me, that the AU is full of sham and unbridled hypocrisy or outright ineptitude. Is mother Africa under a curse?

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