Please read this article first published on The Spirit of uMunthu........

''Surely there is something about African presidential seat that only people like Museveni, Muluzi, Wade and Obasanjo can explain. However, it has nothing to do with experience or development, as Museveni and Muluzi, respectively, want the world to believe. It has everything to do with self-serving politics of the continent.

While in the West politicians are not corrupt-free, UK’s MPs expenses scandal is the best example. Yet if people in the West want to get filthy rich they get into banking, stock trading, hedge funds etc., in Africa you join politics. This is what incentivise African politicians, particularly presidents to cling on to power.

Yes, experience is desirable in many aspects of our lives and activities but not with governance. Unless if we decide to ignore traditional forms of democratic governance, and adopt chief executive style of leadership – with one man calling the shots. Presidents come to power without experience of that position anyway, unless it is a comeback, which is unlikely in places where term limits apply.

To have good governance and functioning governments you need a vibrant and independent civil service and civil society, independent police, in the service of the people not the state, separation of powers between the arms of government and respect for the rule of law. It’s presidents like Museveni who have convinced themselves of their expertise that compromise good governance because they do not listen to anyone and this underestimate the rule of law."

 http://jimmykainja.co.uk/no-mr-president-you-dont-need-26-years-in-power-to-become-an-expert-governance/

"The problem of Africa in general and Uganda in particular is not the people but leaders who want to overstay in power"

In my opinion, African leaders have put on a mask with a mind that leadership is all about non quid proquo. Such acqua caimeres should be erased from the mind of these cocooned leaders. 

What Africans need is; fresh minds, new ideas and elevate the economic conditions that Africa faces at large. This will enhance broad competition for the top position, i.e, leadership..

"The old think the young mind is old". It's a vague idea; In this case they term leadership as security to groom and protect for the future generation, usually, some old generation! This is an old and backward barbaric way of leadership

Leadership is not all about delivering but promotion of  peace at large.

In summary leadership change with new ideas  but not old mind.is about changing the social,economical and political well-being of the people.Change the mind,renew it  and develop it, is equal to success.                                                                                                                                               

Lack of Constitutional Change!!

There are various reasons why African big men decide to hold on to power instead of serving their respected terms and leaving office. One of the main causes of this is due to the lack of constitutional change. It is important to note that most African leaders are also independence leaders who came into power immediately after independence. As a result, they adopted constitutions that allowed them to take up power with no envisioned term limits. Once they were firmly in power, they have entrenched themselves and their cronies into the system to a level which allows them to influence government policy as well as public opinion to the point where the idea of a constitutional referendum is not welcome. However, in the last decade or so, many countries have been able to form and mobilize strong oppositions that have successful agitated for constitutional change coupled with term limits. This has been the case in Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, and many other countries. The opposition in Zimbabwe has also been pushing hard for term limits in an effort to ouster President Robert Mugabe who has been in power since 1980. In Uganda however, President Yoweri Museveni has been rather successful at ensuring that term limits stay out of the constitution by brutally suppressing the opposition. He is rumored to be grooming his older son to take over from him, much to the opposition of everyone including major figures in the military.

YOWERI KAGUTA MUSEVENI

YOWERI KAGUTA MUSEVENI

 

   When Idi Amin came to power in Uganda in 1971, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni founded the Front for National Salvation, which helped overthrow Amin in 1979. After he lost an election to be widely considered rigged, in January 1986, Museveni declared himself president of Uganda. He was elected to the post in 1996, 2001 and 2006, making notable economic and social improvements to Uganda along the way.   Yoweri Museveni has ruled the East African nation for 26 years, more than half of its post-colonial history. A charismatic former rebel commander, Museveni seized power in 1986, decrying other African leaders who overstayed their welcome. Museveni points to many achievements in a country with a troubled past. But today, more and more Ugandans say their president has grown heavy-handed as he clings to power. Despite this criticism, Museveni has dug in his heels. Just before he won a fourth five-year term last year, Museveni changed the constitution to loosen term limits. In an interview with Al-Jazeera at the time, Museveni was characteristically defiant, deflecting arguments that he had been in power too long.   Museveni sees himself as an aging revolutionary, a historic figure who fought in the bush and overthrew dark forces, and whose mission to transform Uganda is not finished, despite the fact he's been around for a quarter-century and is pushing 70. No one denies Museveni's accomplishments. Under his long rule, security has improved, the army is more disciplined, and the economy has gained traction. Today, more children go to school, the fight against HIV/AIDS has made progress, and Washington considers him a key regional partner in fighting terrorists in Somalia. "Uganda has made great strides," says Ugandan political scientist Frederick Golooba. "But, having said that, I think that we have reached a point where Uganda no longer needs Museveni. Most people would say that."  Some of the reasons I propose that cause him to stay in power for long are similar to many other African leaders.The sacrifice that he made to gain power are great and to me it seems that Museveni feels like Uganda owes him a debt of sorts,for all that he has done for the country hence his extended reign in power.

 REASONS WHY THEY OVERSTAY IN POWER


Most African leaders having seen failure under their watch, in many occasions opt to take up projects that will leave them as the biggest beneficiaries from public resources. Following which, protecting these unlawful acts and retaining the power over the public resources becomes their main agenda.
In light of such scenarios, Africa has seen most of its leaders remaining in power for the longest times, undeterred. In addition, some openly fronting their immediate family members or within their circles of the elite to take over the leadership positions hence gaining support from their family members which contributes to their overstay in power.

has democratic governance been sidekicked?

Despite the reign of democratic governance in Africa,some leaders have clutched onto political power for decades,using state  instruments to prolong their regimes against constitutional provisions.\

The common strategies used by these leaders to hold on to power has in most cases been through;

1. Imposing  restrictions on political competition
2. The use of force and
3. Manipulating the constitution such as amending term limit.

They are however advised that clinging onto power is no longer wise  hence they should announce their intentions to step down before they are forced out of leadership by their very own citizens.Likewise,treating leadership as a 'right' or as family property is no longer a viable strategy.This will no longer be entertained by the African people.

For many decades,African leaders have manipulated and abused their positions to stay in power.unfortunately,they still find support from western governments even through democratic governance is supposed to be the core of their engagement with African nations.This is not only hypocritical but it also sends the wrong signal to the Africans across the region.This poses the question 'are the western governments overlooking the demands and procedures associated with democracy'?

Muammar Gaddafi's 4 centuries leadership of the Libyan Arab Republic!

Gaddafi in London_1966

A personality & leadership that has been and will be deliberated on for centuries to come. The personality framed above needs no introduction even to the un-advanced populations of the world, or so I think, especially after what I will chose to refer to as the American's eradication of a powerful African legend or not....
Before you interpret/ mis-interpret my taking in to the leader in perspective, let's shortly delve into his life.
As sources will have it, the late Gaddafi may have been born in the year 1942/3. Reason of the estimation owed to a fact that he was born in a rural area in the Western part of Libya, where most of the people were very illiterate and therefore no records were kept, including birth certificates!!!! His tribal group, Gadhadhfa was considered unimportant at the time.

Growing up, he witnessed conflicts between Italian and British troops who occupied Libya and this made him as a very young child to register the involvement of European colonialists in his home country.
Libya gained independence in 1951, under the intervention of the United Nations.

The Coup d'etat,
On 1 September 1969, while the sitting King Idris travelled to Turkey and Greece, Gaddafi took the chance to orchestrate a coup, calling it 'Operation Jerusalem'. There was no much resistance and it was therefore named the "White revolution" by many. The late Gaddafi believed that this was indeed a representation of the start of a widespread change in the socio-economic and political nature of Libyan society. He would proclaim that the revolution meant "freedom, socialism, and unity" for Libya, and over the coming years would implement measures to achieve this. The Libyan Arab republic was born........   

Flag_of_Libya_(1969–1972)

Gaddafi was a controversial and highly divisive world figure. Supporters lauded his anti-imperialist stance and work in unifying Africa and the Arab world, and he was decorated with various awards. Conversely, he was internationally condemned as a dictator and autocrat whose authoritarian administration violated the human rights of Libyan citizens and supported international terrorism. Nevertheless, he managed to rule Libya since 1969 to 2011, when he was killed by the NATO Intervened Militia, operating under the National Transitional Council. A 42 year reign!

At the time of the late Gaddafi's reign, 

> Positives as perceived by the Libyan people;

1)  Improved trade and control over the oil sector, leading to increasing returns from $3.8 billion in 1969, to  $13.7 billion in 1974 and an even higher return of $24.5 billion in 1979. The countries average per capita income was greater than in most industrialized countries such as Italy and the U.K.

2) The improved economy bettered the lives of the Libyan population as seen in the below professed recognition by a Libyan scholar;  

"If socialism is defined as a redistribution of wealth and resource, a socialist revolution clearly occurred in Libya after 1969 and most especially in the second half of the 1970s. The management of the economy was increasingly socialist in intent and effect with wealth in housing, capital and land significantly redistributed or in the process of redistribution. Private enterprise was virtually eliminated, largely replaced by a centrally controlled economy." 

— Libyan Studies scholar Ronald St Bruce

 > Some negative aspects of his leadership include ;

1) Expelled some Jews from the country and is claimed to have referred to the bible as a "fiction".

2) Claims by the Libyan population of deaths actualized from Gaddafi's leadership were an answer to the International community that he was indeed a dictator. This caused several uprisings in 2011.

3) Attempted creation of nuclear weapons, though unsuccessful.

**  Part of the interesting detail that shows even he was aware of his over stretched rule is that, one of his doctors claimed to have done a plastic surgery on his request so that Libyans would not think he was too old!!

*** Muammar Gaddafi_1969 to 2011.

'S.K'

Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea

When one is asked to name Africa's longest sitting presidents, they automatically say Robert Mugabe, Hosni Mubarak, Muammar Gaddafi, and Yoweri Museveni. But since the removal of Hosni Mubarak from the presidential office and the unexpected death of Muammar Gaddafi, there are new faces who top the list. In first position is the man in the photo provided. He is His Excellency Mr. Teodoro Obiang Nguema of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.

This man has now been in power for nearly 34 years. He had led a coup d'etat against his tyrant uncle, Francisco Marcias Nguema, who was the sitting president at that time. Marcias Nguema was deposed on August 3 1979 but was later captured and put to trial on September 24 that same year. Five days later, he executed by a firing squad of Moroccan soldiers since the country's own soldiers were superstitiously scared of doing it. Two weeks after his execution, Teodoro Obiang Nguema took over as president of an economically crippled state, no thanks at all to his dead uncle.

Since taking over though, Teodoro hasn't been any different than his predecessor. He still is quite a dictator, instilling fear in his people and literally crushing the opposition before elections hence why he wins by a landslide of 90% and above. But unlike his uncle, Teodoro is trying to rebuild the country's economy even though his family uses the nation's treasury like it's their personal bank account.

http://www.allgov.com/news/us-and-the-world/dictator-of-the-month-teodoro-obiang-nguema-of-equatorial-guinea?news=843015

http://mycontinent.co/Ditactors.php

ROBERT GABRIEL MUGABE


Born on 21st February 1924. He is the current President of Zimbabwe and he has been power for over 30years.

Mugabe was one of the leaders of the Guerila movement which was against the white minority.

He was elected in power in 1980 as the Prime Minister to 1987. Mugabe was the first Executive head of state since 1987.

In 1987, the position of the Prime Minister was abolished and Mugabe assumed office of the Executive President of Zimbabwe, gainning additional powers in process.

In 1990, 1996, and 2002, he was re-elected as amied claims of widespread vote-rigging and intimidation. Mugabe's term ended in 2008 in another election marred by allegations of election fraud and intimadation.

Mugabe did not want any association with the Western powers.

It cannot be for the British, it cannot be for the Americans. If you want to be friends with us, fine. You stand there and i stand here,we shake hands, but remember, the Gold in my country is mine. Mugabe told the Press of The Independent Magazine 14th December 2012.

 

  

Why do leaders overstay in power, especially in Africa?

Why do leaders overstay in power, especially in Africa?: Introduction....: Africa has since independence faced a lot of setbacks in rebuilding its structures after colonization. Certain attributes have after several...

Introduction....

Africa has since independence faced a lot of setbacks in rebuilding its structures after colonization. Certain attributes have after several years been gaping for attention from the standing and wanting leaderships. Africa has faced challenges in among other highlights; Food security, Capacity building, Debilitating indebtedness, Ineffective trade investments, regional & sub regional economic integration, Tribal conflicts.....
It has been viewed that leaders in Africa were by far unprepared to take on the new roles for these and various other arguable reasons. This has in many occasions brought impunity and contempt in dealing with matters of public interest. The leaders having seen failure under their watch, in many occasions opt to take up projects that will leave them as the biggest beneficiaries from public resources. Following which, protecting these unlawful acts and retaining the power over the public resources becomes their main agenda.
In light of such scenarios, Africa has seen most of its leaders remaining in power for the longest times, undeterred. In addition, some openly fronting their immediate family members or within their circles of the elite to take over the leadership positions...

In this forum, let us discuss over the various reasons and issues that have come about from this 'stay' of African leaders in power. As well, sight any benefits that may have arisen from these leaderships!

Your views please.......