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EPRDF
Touts Phony Democracy in Africa
Wondirad Seifu , 14 May. 2015
Ethonlines: www.geocities.ws/ethonlines
What is the reality in Ethiopia? Or how do you define
the Ethiopian People Democratic Revolution Front ( EPDRF) government? And who will win the 5th
national election?
In doing so, one needs to distinguish between facts and
speculations, as well as extracts theories from propaganda.
Modern nation-states are classified as liberal
democratic and totalitarian, which further partitioned by shadow forms of
states, namely, autocratic and welfare states. The former is a half-clone
of totalitarian, while the latter is a hybrid of liberal democracy and a
totalitarian of the communism type.
Totalitarian states take various forms like Bonapartism in France,
Fascism in Italy, Nazism
in Germany and Communism
in Russia.
They gain their legitimacy by means of force and fraud (Carl J. Friedrich: Constitutional Government and Democracy).
Totalitarians shall not recognize individual rights, obsessed with
ideology, jealous of multi-party system, allergic to freedom of speech. Odd
enough, they whim to control what you think, what you do and what you pray.
Their ultimate objective is to mold you like a product of a certain
company.
Coming to the case in Ethiopia,
EPRDF government is swinging between autocratic and totalitarian form of
states while cruising with a host ideological vehicles ranging from China
Marxism to Stalin Socialism, from Albanian Communism to Revolutionary
Democracy to Developmental
State. It seems that
EPRDF is floating with no ideology. Judging from its action, it is
pragmatist, neutral to principle. It is an opportunist striving for mere
survival. This, somewhat
qualifies EPRDF government as an autocratic state as
characterized by the absence of ideology according to A.R. Ball, Modern Politics and Government.
In fact, it mainly used its ideological menu to
brain-wash its members who are bringing up in hostile barrack socialism.
Not least, to con the people it assumed that they are accepted it.
But if one delves into the situation, the very nature of
EPRDF is against democracy, shrouded in tribal politics. The Front/ EPDRF
is made up four parties organized under the umbrella of Semitic, Cushitic, Nylotic and Omotic languages
that cross-fertilized to over hundred dialects. Hence, the Front is simply
forged to serve as “divide and rule” strategy by Tigrian
People Liberation Front (TPLF).
Born in 1970s by a bunch of college dropouts, fueled by
tribal politics invented by Stalin, TPLF’s sole objectives was to secede
the northern part of Ethiopia
and to establish “ The Great Tigrian
Republic.” And it is quite shocking to note that a Front with a
“Liberation” motto is still ruling the sovereign nation state-Ethiopia,
whose nation building process was culminated several centuries ago, before
the advent of America
or most European nations.
Not needless to mention that, Ethiopia was known as an
Empire state some 1500 years ago engulfing Sudan, Kenya as far as Tanzania
, Djibouti, Egypt and Yemen within its Domain. But gradually it solidified as a nation
state, including Bahre
Negash,
the name of the present day Eritrea,
declared its independency in fake referendum orchestrated by TPLF. Sadly, Ethiopia’s
natural sea port, Asab, was looted in
collaboration with the United Nations at the same time. Now Ethiopia, being a land locked country with
its hundred million people, is obliged to pay over three million dollar a
day to use the nearest port in Djibouti.
In a recent development, EPRDF’s eggheads seem blessed
with revelation and designated their ideologies as foreign and local, in which
Revolutionary Democracy (RD) is for local use and Developmental State (DS)
is for outside world. Though coined with two contradictory words, RD was
known as a transition phase to socialism during the communist area. Along
this line, the destiny of EPRDF is, no doubt, to be a totalitarian state of
a communist brand. Surely, International Proletariatism
is replaced by International Tribalism. The other ideology which was
adopted by its late leader, Meles zenawi, dubbed Developmental State, has many features
like that of a “ Corporate State”
invented by Bento Mussolini of Italy, known as the father of Fascism.
Whether EPRDF government is pursuing the line of
communism or Fascism, it works incessantly to cultivate a feared society
using its tribally laced military and security forces, along with the
recently promulgated anti-terrorist law to legitimize its human right
abuse, sponsored by the United
States of America.
Individual rights are nominally and scarcely find place
in the constitution of the country, prepared by the EPRDF without participation
of the people when it assumed power in 1990. As individual you are nothing
in the constitution. As a citizen you are slave surrendered to crowd
mentality. Like it or not you must represent one of the linguistically
partitioned tribal compartment. And as a reward your tribal identity is
marked in your Identification Card (ID). Not needless to mention the
tragedy in Rwanda.
No excuse for tribal mix up by birth or accident. And so, among my few
personal possessions, my ID is the most hated item in my life, sparking
identity crisis. That is why I suspiciously and carefully watch the
political trend in my country- Ethiopia.
Evidently, the preamble of the constitution stipulates:
“We the nations, nationalities and people of Ethiopia……”, though no single
word is found in the constitution defining what it meant by “nations,
nationalities and people.” Practically, EPDRF’s cadres are excessively
obsessed with these words like that of the Australian domesticated parrot.
They toiled to exaggerate tribal differences to make sure that one is
trapped in a sieged mentality.
In this regard, EPRDF claimed that it has over six
million members, which are organized in several thousand cells whose main
purpose is to dissolve individualism and pave the way to a totalitarian
state; perhaps illusioned with the hope of seeing
stateless society as stipulated in the Communist Manifesto of the 1850s.
Amazingly, each party member is obliged to run its own trap dubbed “1 to 5”
by which he or she is supposed to control 5 non-members. This is a typical
legacy of communism. Thanks to God! Had it not for the collapse of
communism, we would have been toasted with Albanian communism.
Nevertheless, the toasting is continued and several
thousand activists, journalists and oppositions are held behind bars for
they are simply exercised their basic rights. No one deny that one of the
achievements of EPRDF since assuming power 24 years ago is the construction
of prison camps on unprecedented scale.
No need to gather testimonies from Amnesty International or Human
Right Organizations, because the people itself established the fact by
coining: “If you missed someone you know, go to Kality
or Klinto” (Kality and Klinto
are one of the newly built prison camps).
And so EPRDF continue to play with its dirty prison
politics to quench its greedy motives, as terrorists put innocents in
hostage for ransom. Inevitably, prison camps are emerged as an industry
sector in the country’s economy. It would be a lucrative business if the
private sector is allowed to manage it. But life sentence must be checked
as profit maximizes would abuse it.
In deed, the country’s economy itself is imprisoned by
party affiliated business corporations, and the private sector is dwindled
by day due to the absences of competitive environment. Even foreign direct
investment is allowed for EPRDF’s favorite investors like that of Sheikh
Mohammed Hussein Ali Al-Amuoudi , a mysterious Saudi born tycoon, who, by some regarded
as the new “Economic Ahmed Gragn.” (Ahmad Gragn had been devastating Ethiopia in the 16th
century with an aim to establish an Islamic state)
As far as the country’s recourse is concerned, there is
no separate book of accounts between EPRDF and the government. So
corruption reaches its highest stage. International watchdogs revealed that
over 10 billion dollar was smuggled out of the country- a sum doubling the
country’s annual budget. Or a sum that could build a 160 kilo meter light
railway. Please note that the light railway currently under construction in
Addis Ababa
demanded an inflated outlay of about half billion dollar for only 32 kilo
meter.
Well, the money is coming to the country through the
international credit machines, like World Bank and International Monetary
Fund, as well as Chinese banks. And so the country’s debt is closing its
GDP estimated at 50 billion dollar; perhaps not more than Al-Amudi’s annual revenue. And yet, EPRDF’s leaders are
bold enough to order Ethiopians residing locally and abroad for a bond
purchase to finance the construction of prestigious dams. But many regarded
the bond as a bomb.
Did our real problems are aired in the media? Not at
all! Because they are regarded as taboo by the government monopolized
media, and a legion of quasi- private FM radio stations who are allowed to
operate so long as they subscribed to revolutionary democracy and aired
love stories or football follies round the clock to dumbfounded the
hopeless youth.
In particular, the Ethiopian Broad cast corporation
loves to present heavy green pictures, even in dry seasons, though food
leftover market and garbage hunters are flourishing in the country on
unprecedented scale. Its talks is tuned to developmental journalism with
main focus on pavement stone production, the only job available for the unemployed
youth estimated to over 70 per cent of the total population. In deed, under
employment is also a chronic problem in the country where University
graduates are engaged in carving stones to win their bread. Otherwise, they
are eligible for seemingly state-sponsored migration to the outside world
through hostile journey and supposed to terminate at a terrible destiny.
Not to mention that the EPRDF government is enjoying remittance in excess
of the country’s export proceedings.
Of course, those who baptizesed
with revolutionary democracy are blessed to win top jobs in the
government’s offices. Worst, there is systematic marginalization of
non-party members. This also holds true in the business sector. No doubt
that educational quality and professionalism is cheaply trading with
loyalty to the party.
In general, the country’s economy is ill-designed to
yield a 10 per cent GDP growth, though the IMF litigated to 7 per cent.
However, the growth is devouring the poverty stricken mass estimated at
about 30 per cent of the population with an inflation galloping up to 40
per cent. And hence, United Nation Development Program accused of the
government for achieving non-inclusive growth, while ranking the country at
137, out of 187 countries in terms of Global Human Development Index.
The country is still dominated by agriculture of small
farmers who are politically penalized by land-tenure system. Still the
government reiterated that income inequality is smoothened out as measured
by Gin Coefficient estimated at 0.3 per cent, while locally produced Dry
Gin (Poor’s alcohol drink) is souring by over 500 per cent.
Besides, EPRDF’s projects are questionable as they are
weighed by political adventurism rather than opportunity cost. Take for
example, the “Dam of Discord” (Renaissance Dam) whose construction is
underway at the outskirt of Blue Nile.
Many doubts could be set forth in this regard: Does it worth unless it is
used for irrigation? Is it the time to build it? What about the
alternatives to the dam? Is it technically manageable? I wondered to learn
that its size is doubling the country’s largest lake, Tana.
The EPRDF government is devoid of check and balance. The
parliament, a virtually toothless body, is gathered to merely rubber-stump
the executive body’s increasingly oppressive decrees. The executive body,
run by a minority group, mainly composed of Tigrian’s
elites and their collaborators have totally monopolized power while ruling
by the Iron Law. Nepotism is rampant in line with the law of Darwinism. The
judicial body has left with only a symbolic role. Worst, the interpretation
of the constitution is left to a coalition of politicians or EPRDF’s cadres
gathered under the umbrella of the so called House of Federation.
As a matter of fact, the EPRDF government is emulating
an oligarchy state, a rule by a group of persons- the chosen few. And they
worth toying with quasi-democracy, identifiable with the rule of a single
dominant party or junta allowing oppositions to the extent of their
ineffective nature, J.C. Johari , Comparative
Politics. Experience showed that oligarchy developed not into a
democracy, but a military state, Anthony, The Nation State, An Essay.
Evidently, following the death of Prime Meles Zenawi , the war lords was attempting to improvise a silent
coup deta. These days no one knows who holds the
real rein of power. But from the action and reaction that are surfaced in
the political sphere one can guess that there is confrontation and duel
among invisible groups or inner circles. One thing is dead sure: our war
lords are busy in building their business empire.
Even the political system which is supposed to be
founded on ethnic federation is staggering as witnessed by a dozen of
liberation fronts who opt to cling their arms and
roving across the boarder of Ethiopia looking for
opportunity strike. While ethnic conflict is on the rise, article 39 of the
constitution stipulates: “Every Nations, Nationalities and People in Ethiopia has an
unconditional right to self-determination, including the right to secession.”
Nevertheless, EPRDF government proudly rates itself as
the best Democratic Party in the world and boasting that it won 99.6 per
cent of the parliamentary seats in the 4th National election.
But, it is to be recalled that EPRDF government had killed over 200
innocent people in day light in the 3rd National election where
it was totally defeated by oppositions. Irritated by the defeat, it put all
oppositions behind bars. Since then EPRDF is suffering from schizophrenic
or bi-polar disease.
Applauding EPRDF’s achievement, the MPs of Sudan came to
learn its democratic values in recent past. They did it! Omar al-Bashir wins 94 per cent. Al-Bashir,
the number one war criminal and wanted by ICC has ruled Sudan for about 25
years, almost the same years as that
of the late egghead of EPDRF, Melese Zenawi, ruled Ethiopia
with iron fist.
It is with this background that the poor lady of the
State Department of US, Wendy R. Sherman has spoiled her kind words by officially
recognized EPRDF government as a democratic government, perhaps
miss-informed by the American Embassy in Ethiopia whose staffs are
likely to subscribe to revolutionary democracy. Or do we suppose to swap
the old saying with “America
has no truth, only greedy motives!” May God forgive her!
Did I hear that she expects fair and free election in
the 5th national election taking place on May 22, 2015? With the absence of independent electoral
board, free media and independent observers, it does not take Einstein to
epistemologically categories the election as invalid- fake game. After all
EPRDF members are hovering to murder free election with their 1-5 machine
guns.
Under this circumstance that our poor opposition parties
are scrambling to take part in the election. They seem playing with a
deflated ball. Participation in the election may not worth more than
publicity or gaining sympathy from EPRDF.
But there is a rumor in the gossip corridor that EPRDF is whishing
to donate few parliamentary seats for oppositions to sustain its
quasi-democracy.
On my part I sustain to No-Vote!
In the mean time EPRDF may left
with two options: confronting with mass uprising and explosion within.
Until then it opt to dance at the edge of its grave yard. But what would be
the fate of Woyane/TPLF-the puppet master? Who
knows who will be the next generation terrorist?
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