Africans, not Obama, will liberate Africa

Africans, not Obama, will liberate Africa Dear Tingasiga: Speaking in Ghana a couple of weeks ago, US President Barack Obama emphasised the urgent need for Africans to hold their leaders accountable; to demand and promote democracy, opportunity, health care and peaceful conflict resolution.  His speech was received with joy and enthusiasm, especially by Africans on The Continent and in the Diaspora.  Yet there was nothing new in Obama's "new moment of promise."  He restated what has been the core message of a very long struggle by very many of us.    Furthermore, Obama is not the first American president to express passionate concern for Africa's freedom. Presidents William Jefferson Clinton and George W. Bush gave equally moving speeches on Africa during their tenure at the White House.   Yet Clinton repeatedly turned a blind eye to Africa's democratic and freedom deficits. He was a major backer of some of the most ruthless and corrupt regimes on the continent.  It was Clinton's administration that anointed some of Africa's "big men" as a "new breed of leaders," a list that included men like Uganda's Yoweri K. Museveni, Eritrea's Isaias Efewerki and Congo's Laurent Desire Kabila.   Seized by an acute case of hyperbole in 1997, Madeline Albright, Clinton's secretary of state, pronounced Museveni a "beacon of hope" for Africa, even as the Ugandan ruler, who had recently declared himself the Ssabagabe (King of Kings), was shedding all pretence of democracy and good governance. Likewise, Bush the Younger's promise of promoting democracy was empty rhetoric by a man who embraced dictators and anti-democrats in a misguided belief that the fight against terrorism did not allow for insistence on democracy and good governance. Nevertheless, Obama's words offer Africans some renewed hope that the American government may be open to a new approach to Africa. Coming from so great an orator, and so powerful and popular a man like Obama, the message may finally sink in.  And that message is that there is no short cut to gaining freedom and sustainable development.  Freedom and good governance, two of the indispensable ingredients of development, must be viewed as rights, not privileges. They must be demanded and, if need be, fought for, by the citizens of Africa.  Americans and other foreigners are not going to sacrifice themselves for Africans. They will only come in if their interests are at stake. The major political challenge that Africa faces today is not that of gaining good leaders or getting rid of the corrupt ones that run many countries.  The real challenge is for African citizens, especially the younger generations, to seize control of their destiny; to gain the courage to demand nothing less than the best from those who govern them; to abandon the passive or sycophantic approach to citizenship; and to seize control of the vital institutions of democracy. Does a ruler want to change the constitution to perpetuate himself in power?  Say no to him and do what it takes to stop him from accomplishing his selfish objectives.   Does Parliament function as a rubberstamp for the autocratic ruler instead of fearlessly serving the interests of the voters?  Throw the rascals out of power at the next elections.  Does the ruler speak a sweet language whose words do not match his actions or the people's daily realities?  Ignore the rhetoric and challenge him to explain where your money has gone. Does the ruler lecture you about corruption and nepotism and sectarianism and all the other ills that he "fought" against during his armed rebellion or political campaigns against his predecessor?  Expose his nakedness by loudly and fearlessly counting off the numbers of his family members and clansmen that are sucking the blood out of the nation's carcass.  Is the ruler selling off or literally giving away State assets, including national airports and forests, to foreigners or to his cronies and relatives?  Rise up as one, and reject the robbery of your children's inheritance, and bring the ruler's court to its knees. How do unarmed citizens do this, you ask?  To be sure, there is no need for violence.  Simply refuse to pay your taxes, and engage in other sustained mass actions such as workers' strikes and self-imposed sanctions against production and sale of food, other goods and services.  Whereas street demonstrations will be met with ruthless force by the militarised police and the other armed organisations, no physical harm will befall citizens who peacefully stay in their homes and refuse to provide the corrupt regime with the economic sustenance that derives from the sweat of the very people that the ruler despises and ill-serves.   One hopes, of course, that the patriotic members of the armed organisations will join the rest of the citizens in rejecting the rotten regimes that are steering Africa towards the abyss. One also hopes that the few ministers and parliamentarians who still have a conscience and intact personal integrity will have the courage to resign, an action that will have a greater impact on the struggle for freedom and good governance than will Obama's eloquent speech in Accra. Yes, President Obama spoke very well in Accra. But the words of an American president, even one who is genetically closer to Africa than any of his 43 predecessors, will not change the fate of the Africans. Indeed one notes with interest that some of the key people in charge of American foreign policy under Obama were key players in Clinton's administration.   Hillary Clinton, the former first lady, is now secretary of state. Susan Rice, a former staff member of Clinton's White House, and Assistant Secretary of State for Africa under Madeline Albright, is now US Ambassador to the UN.  Whether or not they share their president's views on democracy and governance in Africa remains to be seen. One hopes that Obama will continue to make a habit of challenging Africa and its rulers whenever he addresses the fate of his father's continent.  Better yet, one hopes that Obama will put a halt to the scandalous hypocrisy that has informed successive US administrations in dealing with African rulers in my lifetime. He must cut the lifeline that keeps the pseudo-democracies of Africa afloat. Yet when all is said done, Africa will be liberated by liberated by Africans, not by Obama.   mkmulera@aol.com http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/muniini/Africans_not_Obama_will_liberate_Africa_88717.shtml