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1178 issue: week ending 3 September 2020
Another Wasted Year Ahead
With MondAfrique
The island nation of Comoros on the Indian ocean is the first African nation to inaugurate the election season on the African continent. And if the Comoros island is an example of what’s to come, Africa’s elections are going to count for nothing, with a few notable exceptions.
In the Comoros, the incumbent President Azali Assoumani was declared on the 16 January 2024, the winner of rigged elections that triggered riots. As of January 18, Comoros witnessed a second day of turmoil resulting in one fatality and at least six injuries. Opposition parties contested the election results, alleging fraud and bias in favor of Assoumani, who, having changed the constitution in 2018 to bypass term limits, secured a fourth term with 62.97% of the vote. Accusations of dissent crackdown and protest bans were leveled against Assoumani, who also chairs the African Union.
President Assoumani and the Comoros are a template of what African politics looks like. African leaders have no interest in quitting their presidential seats without upheaval. Aside from some exceptions, there is no such thing as smooth presidential transition. Assoumani of the Comores has been in power since 1999.
So 2024 should be a record election year for Africa. Twenty countries, accounting for 346 million voters will be called to participate to elections that will mostly be rigged and decided in advance.
However, for those of you who live un western nations and where elections are the backbone of governance, it is worth noting that Africa has long been looking to distance itself from western-style democracy. Our colleagues from MondAfrique noted, rightly so, the for the most part, the forthcoming African elections have no democratic content and standards in them, citing the fact that different factors and actors have a more direct impact on the political systems in those countries. Among the factors cited by MondAfrique is the predominant role of the military in several countries like Mali, Niger and Guinea, the strength of traditional tribal structures, the rise of Islamic values favoring tradition over the law or finally the positive image of Vladimir Putin among many of African heads of state, factors that naturally clash with Western democratic values.
So of course, Africa does not have to mimic the west. It can create its own political model. But should we be pleased that a handful of ruthless rulers and their backers will win elections in advance? Not at all. Here is a snapshot of what to expect this year as African experience another election cycle.
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Mali: Reshuffle in Mali’s defense and security establishment
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Mali: Ousted president Keita suffers mini-stroke, admitted in hospital
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Nigeria: How corruption is ruining Nigeria and its people
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Tunisia: Despite an economy in tatters, Tunisia shows promising political outlook
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Niger to drive UN talks on post Covid-19
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Egypt’s Al-Azhar slams Charlie Hebdo for Mohammed cartoons reprint
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Mali: Civilian killed by French forces near Gao
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Mali protest movement proposes 2-year transition to civilian rule
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Sahel: Communal clashes claim several lives in southern Chad
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Egypt: Violent military operation in North Sinai with army saying it killed 73 insurgents
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Turkey accuses Greece of stirring trouble by arming island off Turkish coast
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Libya: Covid-19 kills Moustafa Karwad, mayor of Misrata
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Turkey launches military maneuvers as tensions remain high in East Med
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Libya’s GNA fires Interior and Defense Ministers after violence against protesters
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The Algerian regime now sends poets to prison
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Egypt: Police arrest suspected rapist as #MeToo movement reignites
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Niger: Death toll in Niamey’s floods reaches 45
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Mali crisis not getting better: ECOWAS wants return to civilian rule, junta wants to stay
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Mali: Four soldiers killed near Mopti
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