To: H.E. Professor Alpha Oumar Konare, Chairperson of The Commission of the African Union

We write as representatives of African Civil Society to draw your attention to our serious concerns about the exclusion of organised and independent civil society organisations from last two Summit meetings of the African Union, and the non-organisation of the AU pre-summit CSO meetings. Like the 2005 Tripoli Summit before it, the last Khartoum Summit of the African Union in January 2006 excluded organised civil society presence and involvement.

We are dismayed at these developments, which appear to contradict the lofty promise of the preamble to the AU’s Constitutive Act in which the Heads of State of Africa professed a “common vision of a united and strong Africa energised by partnership between governments and all segments of civil society…”.

Towards seeking clarifications, redressing this and avoiding similar exclusions at the next and future summits, we humbly request for urgent consultations with the AU under your leadership. We shall be delighted if you are able to expedite consideration of our request and ensure that this situation is redressed before the forthcoming June-July 2006 Summit of the AU in The Gambia, in order to ensure CSO involvement the next and future summits.

We appreciate that The Commission, other structures of the AU and their officials maintain largely good relations with civil society, and that some member states are more welcoming than others. However, as independent and cohesive civil society we believe we must speak up on these developments as further exclusions by any future summit host countries will not only contradict Article 3g of the AU’s stated objective, in its Constitutive Acts to “promote democratic principles and institutions, popular participation and good governance”, it could also shatter any hopes of ever realising the common vision of government-civil society partnership promised by the AU.

In addition to our concern that many civil society advocates were not able to secure entry clearance to Tripoli and Khartoum, and that the AU pre-summit CSO meetings did not hold, we are even more deeply concerned about the hostility displayed towards even minimum civil society presence.

On 21 January, just as the meeting of the Executive (Ministerial) Council of the AU was drawing to an end, security operatives of Sudan’s government arrested en masse, 35 representatives of African and international civil society and media organisations who had lawfully entered Khartoum while in a meeting to discuss mechanisms of effective partnership with the African Union. Also “arrested” were all lap top computers, note pads, papers and all instruments of record keeping in the possession of the civil society advocates. The arresting operatives reportedly assaulted some of the participants. Several hours later, the government of Sudan released their human prisoners. Till date, however, it retains indefinite custody of the computers and records.

This is all the more shocking because we believe that the establishment of the Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOC) of the AU as one of the organisation’s principal organs nearly two years ago was supposed to end this kind of drama and, place civil society’s partnership with the African Union and African governments on a sound and secure footing.

AU Summits are the major venue for regional policy making. Representatives of international and multi-lateral actors are always to be found at these Summits. The exclusion of, or harassment of African civil society at Summits could be seen as reverse discrimination against African voices in our own continent at a time when the continent deserves to enlist all the support it can muster from Africans and people of goodwill around the world.

We therefore fear that continuing exclusions of African CSO’s will worsen rather than accelerate the resolution of Africa’s numerous development problems.

To avert such a scenario, we propose that the AU should:

(a) Affirm the entitlement of African civil society to attend, hold meetings and participate in the coming summit to be hosted by Gambia, and future AU Summits; other AU meetings/events; or otherwise engage the AU as partners with our governments in the important and urgent task of ensuring the full social and economic development of Africa.

(b) Institute transparent standards and access requirements to be met by all subsequent hosts of its Summits; and liaise with host countries to ensure that CSO delegates do not suffer harassment. (c) Ensure adequate consultation with a view to urgent completion of the pending review of the 1993 rules on civil society consultation with the AU; and (d) Encourage the speedy establishment of independent structures for AU’s ECOSOC.

We reaffirm our believe that the development challenges facing our continent especially around key issues such as: Democracy and Good Governance; Human Rights; Gender Equality and Women’s Rights; Academic and Intellectual freedom; Economic and Social rights; Freedom of Expression and the Media; Human Security, Peace and Conflict issues; Food security; Health and in particular HIV/AIDS and other Public Health issues; Education, Science and Technology and ICT; Historical and Cultural Rights, Youth Development and many more cannot be resolved without the involvement of civil society.

We place ourselves at the disposal of the Commission of the AU for the purpose of clarifying and resolving the above concerns.

Signed by 56 Organisations (for full text and details of signatories, see link below)

FEATURED: Are you part of the problem or part of the solution? Asks Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem
COMMENT AND ANALYSIS:
- African CSOs petition African Union over exclusion from AU Summits
- Youth meets wisdom: Amy Niang visits Joseph Ki-Zerbo
- Ndungu Wainaina reflects on the challenges to democracy in Kenya
LETTERS: on presidential term limits
PAN-AFRICAN POSTCARD: Netfa Freeman says African Liberation Day is a time to recommit to Africa
BLOGGING AFRICA: Sokari Ekine rounds up the African blogosphere
BOOKS AND ART: Shailja Patel discusses plagiarism and African arts
AFRICAN UNION MONITOR: Africa group exercises power at the UN
CONFLICT AND EMERGENCIES: Arrests in DRC coup plot; Critical time for Sudan peace
HUMAN RIGHTS: World’s poor pay price of terror war
WOMEN AND GENDER: Gender activist laments “feminisation” of poverty
REFUGEES AND FORCED MIGRATION: UK government accused on treatment of asylum seekers
ELECTIONS AND GOVERNANCE: Crackdown on opposition in Zimbabwe
DEVELOPMENT: Taking the IMF off life support
CORRUPTION: Kenya’s Anglo-Leasing probe in trouble
HEALTH AND HIV/AIDS: US policies betray Africa HIV fight
LAND AND LAND RIGHTS: ‘Titling’ land leads to weakening of rights in Africa
MEDIA AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION: Ethiopia cracks down on blogs
NEWS FROM THE DIASPORA: The first 100 days in Haiti
PLUS: Advocacy and Campaigns; Internet and Technology; e-Newsletters; Courses; Jobs.

**************************************************************************
LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD - COMMENT ON PAMBAZUKA NEWS ARTICLES

Pambazuka News has launched a new comment function on its website,

Readers of articles in the sections Features, Comment and Analysis, Letters, Books and Arts, and Pan-African Postcard can now click on a link at the end of each article and submit their comments via an online form. Submissions will be published under the relevant article.

**************************************************************************

* French speaking? French friends?

Read the Pambazuka News French edition by visiting http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/ Subscribe online at http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/subscribe.php or send an email to [email][email protected] with 'subscribe French edition' in the subject line. Please forward widely!

*************************************************************************

Ndungu Wainaina reflects on the succession politics presently waging in Kenya. He argues that the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) rose to power owing to the public desire for broad constitutional reforms in the sphere of governance to guarantee among others, human rights. Sadly, the coalition is now disintegrated and concludes that the task of completing the constitutional review and democratic transition in the country remains with all Kenyans.

The Kenyan state is in transition. The upcoming general elections in 2007 and the impending Kibaki succession are wrecking havoc on the political scene. But the agenda for this election is not clear. As of now the country stands between the possibility for progress into reforms and the rebirth of a new nation built on the firm tenets of democratic government and the respect for and promotion of human rights, or regression into the abyss of authoritarianism and bad governance. The 2002 general elections that saw the exit of the Kenya African National Union from state power for the first time in independent Kenya was primarily driven by the general public desire for reforms in governance, constitutional review and human rights spheres. The quest for a new democratic constitutional order was so central that all the political parties consistently promised to deliver a new democratic constitutional dispensation once they ascended into power.

The now disintegrated National Rainbow Coalition (NARC), won the elections on the promise of establishing a new constitutional dispensation within 100 days of getting into office. NARC won the elections, but failed to facilitate the making of the new constitution. This has resulted in a credibility deficit for the new government. Following the removal from government of the Liberal Democratic Party, a key partner in the Coalition, courtesy of the reconstituted cabinet in December 2005, the National Rainbow Coalition seems to have been dissolved. This has had a tremendous effect on the conduct of coalition politics in the country and the growth of constitutional democracy.

Four years after it was elected on the platform of reforms the NARC Coalition has failed to spearhead any of the key reforms that Kenyans wanted. The government failed to manage and facilitate the constitutional review process. Courtesy of its policy of non-negotiation, the government has engendered polarization of the country. Constitutional reform is the greatest casualty of this failure in leadership by the current government. Ending official corruption, impunity, institutional transformation and restoring the rule of law has fallen flat. Instituting a legitimate and radical transitional justice process in order to offer a firm socio-political and cultural framework to advance democratization and human development has been deferred. Continued reference to corruption cases in court is irrelevant as long as no tangible results are evident.

The reform of institutions has been slow, superficial, and misdirected. The conception and institution of the Governance, Justice, Law and Order Sector (GJLOS) reform has presented a situation where the path and direction of reforms has been reduced into a patching up process. Even though the president has insisted that his government is committed to socio-economic reforms to respond to the massive inequalities and poverty, results are mixed. The reported economic growth rate is lopsided in favour of the few big mainstream businesses while disinheriting the largest chunk of the population.

The country, now faced with the upcoming general election, is preoccupied with the intertwined political questions of undertaking a successful constitutional review and governance reforms and the Kibaki succession. Politically, Kenya is only democratic to the extent of regular elections; the government’s responsiveness to the will and the wishes of the people remains very limited. The progress towards democratic governance in Kenya depends more on the capacity of the citizenry to demand and protect their space and not magnanimity of the state.

The task of completing the constitutional review and democratic transition in the country remains with all Kenyans. There is urgent need to establish, focus and strengthen the citizenry into a critical mass that will provide the philosophical, institutional and logistical support to the various initiatives of the citizenry to develop a popular coalition to force and enhance the national drive towards completing the constitutional review and institutionalizing just and democratic governance in Kenya.

The experience of NARC has shown that regime change is not sufficient to facilitate democratic change. It is only right that the general Kenyan populace should in addition to being informed and made aware, be fully included in the quest for a new constitution and democratic order. For this to happen there is great need to consolidate and promote the emergence of a strong constituency of grassroots’ constitutional and democracy crusaders. The population has increasingly lost faith in the capacity of the government and commitment of the politicians to review the constitution and entrench democratic governance. More and more Kenyans are getting despondent. There is evidence that this development is neither entirely innocent nor accidental, but rather a consequence of political elite rigged democratic development.

The country requires the commitment of a core of champions around a common new vision for Kenya. This would guarantee democratic governance and social development. The sole objective of this core would be to drive and establish a new leadership to ensure the enjoyment of democratic governance by all. A large constituency of disinherited and excluded people is not only a great threat to the nation’s stability, harmony and continued existence as a going concern but also potentially the breeding ground for rebellion. The new leadership would usher a unique situation and opportunity of not only establishing a new constitutional order but also putting in place social democracy practitioners as the leaders and governance implementers of long desired changes in Kenya.

This transformative change calls for a core of leaders and citizens who are driven by higher values and aspirations than just material accumulation and professional excellence. It calls for an efficient economy with a human face; a strong political edifice with a human heart. If Kenya is to start dealing with her unhappy past comprehensively and decisively and to build a brighter future for all, then it will require people with a passion to serve and to change things; in the public, private and voluntary sector. It will require men and women with a dream great enough to die for and a vision big enough for everyone to have a part in it. It is time for converting the citizenry from casual observers to major stakeholders in this country. This will not threaten any one but rather secure the interests of even those who have done much to hurt the interest of the citizens and the country at large.

* Ndungu Wainaina is a Programme Officer, NCEC and Director, International Center for Policy and Conflict. P.O.Box 11996-00400 Nairobi. Tel: 4445974, 4446313; email: [email][email protected]

* Please send comments to [email protected] or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

Graduate student Amy Niang meets well known history professor Joseph Ki-Zerbo at his home in Burkina Faso.

There is an incommensurable gap between the old and younger generation of Africans. We - African youth - have grown up, been made to believe that anything ‘traditional’ or ‘old’ is necessarily retrograde, often ‘unreliable.’

Young Africans, especially children of the Diaspora, do not have the advantage of communicating with their past, a handicap that inhibits a corrective study of African history and deepens their incapacity to take their destiny in hand. According to an African proverb, “he who is lost doesn’t know where he comes from.”

I had the immense honor to meet the first African to qualify as professor of history, Joseph Ki-Zerbo, at his house in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (West Africa). At 84 today, weakened by age and sickness, Ki-Zerbo still draws amazing strength and vitality from his deeply-rooted convictions. He may have been preaching in the desert for decades but men like him live by their principles and his writings find resonance. African and world scholars have understood his message.

Ki-Zerbo deplores the increasing extinction of African identity. According to him, the curse of Africa is not the chronic poverty of its countries but the ignorance of its children of the true history and the true values of the continent. Unless Africans start learning about their own continent, their own thought system and the essence of its traditions, they will remain locked into the stranglehold of cultural identity.

It’s high time Africans liberate themselves from cultural asphyxiation, high time they went in search of what it is to be African, to draw the necessary lessons from their own traditional history in order to apprehend the future with confidence. The approach will consist, for Africa, in re-conquering its confiscated identity for, according to Ki-Zerbo, “without identity, we are just a mere object of history, a prop in the play of globalization, an instrument used by the others. A utensil.”

Ki-Zerbo narrates African past not in the way of a nostalgic chronicler who wallows in past glory or dwells into an imaginary fantasyland of pre-colonial Africa. He uncovers the history he was not taught at La Sorbonne University in France.

According to Ki-Zerbo, throughout history strong beliefs in simple principles such as the importance of family over the individual, the respect of elders, the spirit of sharing and good neighborliness, human communion in joy and sadness, etc, have been the bedrock of existence for Africans. Unfortunately, the degradation of these principles has blighted prospects for Pan-Africanism and development. But Ki-Zerbo warns us that “liberation for Africa will be Pan-African or will not be.”

Today, the debate over Africa is enmeshed in endless and ineffectual squabbling over the legitimacy of pseudo-democracies and misleading conflicts. But Ki-Zerbo argues that “the conception of power as well as its management in today’s Africa has nothing African to it.” In fact, political formations in pre-colonial Africa are rich with institutions based on a division of power with the greater possible number of people.

Africans, he says, “believe that power should be divided among its incumbents. They also believe that stability could be preserved in the multiplication of power.” He debunks misconceptions about African history and dominant theories that deliberately confine the history of the continent to the slave trade and the colonial experience. He adds that historical knowledge is a condition to collective liberation as the linkage between historical knowledge and self-worth is undeniable. In Africa, the lack of this knowledge has greatly contributed to underachievement and ‘mental underdevelopment.’

Ki-Zerbo is a man of vision and a soothsayer but he does not read Africa’s future in the sand of its drying soil; he uses the dialectical process of history as an investigative method to uncover the true past of the continent in order to understand the underpinnings of Africa’s value systems. He then tells us what a de-structured society can expect to see: the import and application of values that do not fit its peoples, which eventually will lead to the destruction of cultural identity.

His unsparing analysis and sharp, perceptive, riveting, pertinent, careful and thorough study of Africa’s history as well as its relations with the West has yielded a great number of articles and monographs, among which have been the comprehensive “History of Black Africa” (1972) that laid the foundation of a lifetime of scholarship and commitment to restoring the history of Africa by Africans. He also supervised the publication of two of the monumental eight-volume “General History of Africa” (Méthodologie et Préhistoire Africaine, 1981) as a member of the Scientific Committee for UNESCO.

He explores Africa’s past, drawing from oral tradition that is, in essence, the source of history and traditions for many African writers such as Mali’s late Amadou Hampaté-Bâ, who once said: “When an old man dies in Africa, it is like a whole library burning down.”

Ki-Zerbo’s life struggle and relentless social and political activism are not just a message of hope for Africa. It is the deep conviction of a man who knows that African development cannot be elusive forever and that it will be ‘African’ in conception and application or will not be. This knowledge is what he wishes young Africans to oppose against heavy odds and unacceptable immobilization, against institutionalized ignorance and empty rhetoric.

* Amy Niang is a Senegalese graduate student at the University of Tsukuba in Japan. E-mail her at [email][email protected]

* Please send comments to [email protected] or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

Does the industrial action by security workers currently taking place in South Africa work to liberate or further entrench capitalism? asks this article from the website of the Centre for Civil Society at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. "The sad part in this whole scene is that black workers who are exposed to terrible working conditions are haunted by the phenomena of being treated as cheap and (having) nothing to offer except selling their labour power."

Walden Bello and Soren Ambrose write on that its time to take the IMF off life support. “For over 25 years the world has had one answer for countries that find themselves in a financial crisis: take the IMF policy medicine and get on the debt treadmill that comes with IMF and World Bank loans. This path has worked very well – for big corporations in wealthy countries which walk into countries through the doors opened by the IMF’s policies and walk out with massive profits.”

Zimbabwean police on Friday (19 May) cracked down on opposition by-election campaigning in the capital, Harare, arresting the leader of a faction of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and 60 of his supporters. Arthur Mutambara, head of the MDC's pro-Senate faction, was campaigning in Harare's high-density Budiriro suburb, where this weekend's by-election will be fought. He was detained along with the faction's deputy secretary-general, Pricilla Misihairambwi-Mushonga, and spokesperson Gabriel Chaibva, the by-election candidate.

This medium-sized settlement, just west of Lusaka, looks like a standard African market town as you approach it on the road. It all looks ordinary and typically African - until you look into the distance and realise that at the end of the main street is an enormous modern building that completely dominates the vista. It is a South African-owned supermarket. It is an indication of how deep the influence of liberalisation has reached in Zambia.

A team of foreign financial experts flown in to Liberia to help the new government combat corruption is finally in place. Under a far-reaching scheme backed by Liberia’s partners and donors, known as the Governance Economic Management Assistance Programme (GEMAP), international experts are being placed in key positions to help ring-fence revenue and spending over the next three years.

Government forces in Côte d’Ivoire, their allied militias and New Forces rebels alike are committing serious abuses against civilians with impunity, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today (23 May). These abuses and the impunity that fuels them raise serious concerns about the potential for violence in the run-up to the October elections.

Sudanese authorities are failing to uphold many of the commitments made last year under an accord to end a decades-old civil war, according to a United Nations human rights report issued today (23 May). In a review of the situation in Sudan from December 2005 to April of this year, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), in cooperation with the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS), lists among major shortcomings the ill-treatment, detention and harassment of people who voice their concerns about human rights throughout Sudan, failure to reform National Security and laws guarding State officials from criminal prosecution and the obstruction of the work of UNMIS human rights workers.

The main story this week has been the alleged blocking of blogs by the Ethiopian government. Several Ethiopian bloggers have reported that they have not been able to access Blogspot blogs (blogger.com) from within and outside the country.

Ethiopian Life, Politics, Culture and Arts (http://seminawork.blogspot.com/2006/05/shutting-down-olfs-website-tplfs…) reports that the Ethiopian government shut down the website of the Oromo Liberation Front following an “alliance for democracy” formed by five opposition groups. He comments:

“Now that the government has discovered how to block websites, it is adding more and more to its blockage business. Yesterday, Ethiomedia Forum was shut down. Then OLF…Too late for stifling free speech on the net!”

Ethiopundit (http://ethiopundit.blogspot.com/2006/05/sign-of-desperation.html) reports that over a two day period all blogspot blogs were blocked in Ethiopia and suggests ways in which Ethiopians in Ethiopia can circumvent the blockages so as to access pro democracy blogs in the Ethiopian Diaspora:

“Those who seek political quips from weichegud or intelligent analysis form other bloggers can't access the sites via the telecom servers. In addition, the government has blocked Ethiopian Review, Cyber Ethiopia, Quatero and Free our Leaders websites…My sources told me this is done with the advise and help of the Chinese. This blog can't be accessed in Ethiopia so the following advise may not reach its intended readers. Other websites like Ethiomedia who hasn't yet been blocked should carry the message to Ethiopian readers.”

Weichegud! ET Politics (http://weichegud.blogspot.com/2006/05/how-do-you-compete-with-this.html) one of Ethiopia's most prolific writers and critics o the Zenawi regime comments on the government's general reaction to the media and free press including the blogging community:

"Has the fact that the Ethiopian government, ranked fourth in countries jailing journalists, petitioning for the censure of American and German journalists, struck anyone in the EPRDF as, mmm, ironic, for example? And just when we all thought the EPRDF could not possibly hand us another gift, it slaps a pretty bow on the biggest one yet…Seminnawerq reported all 'blogspot.com' pages have been blocked in Ethiopia. Let's see. What makes bloggers, a temperamental bunch, from all over the world go into collective convulsions? The stench of a government with close ties to China, a so called 'ally in the war against terrorism', pawing at the Fifth Estate that is the Blogosphere. And whose duty is it to tell all these bloggers what's going on?"

The China link is an interesting one. In addition to their huge investment and purchase of African resources, will they also be providing lessons on how to repress the blogosphere and arrest and detain bloggers?

Grandiose Parlor, writing from the Nigerian Diaspora, (http://grandioseparlor.blogspot.com/2006/05/nigerian-electric-power-sec…) comments on the $9 billion mess that is the Nigerian Electricity sector:

“I read with dismay that after spending about 1.3 trillion Naira (about 9 billion US dollars) on power generation between 1999 and 2005 Nigerians will not enjoy a stable supply of the commodity until 50 years from now! Yes, Nigerians should expect stable electricity by year 2056 if investment in the power sector grows at the same rate as the economy, according to the Nigerian minister for power and steel.”

It is not just a question of a stable supply - huge regions still do not have any electricity supply whatsoever. The latest excuse is that it is the “insurgency in the Niger Delta” that is responsible when in truth electricity provision has never been stable - in fact in Port Harcourt you could go for weeks without any power supply - and that was 20 years ago - and still no changes have taken place.

Gambian blog, Home of the Mandinmories (http://gambian.blogspot.com/2006/05/michigambiapress-offensive.html) comments on an organisation called the Michgambia (The Gambia Association of Michigan) which has collected medical supplies and equipment to send to Gambia.

“These medical supplies and equipment are intended to benefit hospitals in The Gambia including Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital in Banjul, Sulayman Junkung General Hospital in Bwiam, Western Division, AFPRC Hospital in Farafenni, North Bank Division and Bansang Hospital in Central River Division.”

However, Mandinmories points out that the press release credits the Gambian Embassy with the project and he questions why this is so and why it is not Michgambia that has the credit.

The Moor Next Door (http://wahdah.blogspot.com/2006/05/on-arab-americans-and-darfur.html) comments on the Arab-American website and the fact that they recently spoke on Darfur. He questions why Arab-American condemnation was ignored whereas Jewish and African American voices were publicised.

“I think the fact that one of the major leaders in the Arab-American community came out and spoke against it is something worth mentioning. Isn't it Arabs that are in Sudan doing the bulk of the killing and 'ethnic cleansing?' I'm always hearing Americans (whites, blacks, Jews, etc.) telling me that Arabs should look at their history and world objectively (something I totally agree with, as you can see here and elsewhere), yet when Arabs actually do this, these same people are indignant, un-informed, or don't pay attention. Checking out the AAI website once in a while would do these sorts of people some good.”

He goes on to say that it is important for Arab Americans to make their voices heard when it comes to issues such as Darfur and other humanitarian crises in Africa and elsewhere. He is quite critical of Arabs and their leaders need to answer the question “where were the Arabs”.

“But I think this is a valid question on the matter of Darfur. I don't believe in making collective apologies for the actions of others who behave like uncivilized miscreants, and I am not going to advocate doing so here or ever. But Arabs have made their entire region, people and culture look like the scum at the bottom of a coffee pot by ignoring the plight of the people in Darfur - not just the non-Arabs there but also of the Arab civilians killed by non-Arab militias.”

Black Looks (http://www.blacklooks.org/2006/05/ask_no_questions_-_tell_no_lies.html) comments on China's $1billion investment in Nigeria's railway network - not the only transport network it is involved with on the continent along with arms supply and oil.

“China is rapidly consolidating it's hold on Africa's resources through similar deals as the Nigerian one. Angola's railway system is also being rebuilt. Algeria is receiving help with building a highway; military equipment is being sold to Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Sudan so their leaders Mugabe, Obasanjo and Omar Hassan El-Bashir, can use their newly acquired arms against their own citizens.”

In another post (http://www.blacklooks.org/2006/05/lessons_on_censorship.html) she wonders whether lessons in censoring the blogosphere will be included in China's deals with Africa.

“The question is given China's policy on censorship of the blogosphere and it's record of detaining bloggers (Free Hao Wu for example) without charges - will they be including lessons on internet censorship as part of their buy up Africa project? It could be that African governments are only just waking up to the blogosphere as the number of blogs and readers increase exponentially - who will be next on the list?”

* Sokari Ekine produces the blog Black Looks,

* Please send comments to [email protected] or comment online at www.pambazuka.org

Police on the trail of millions of pounds in government funds allegedly stolen by a former Zambian president raided a solicitors' office in North London. The raids in Edgware were part of a corruption case being brought against Frederick Chiluba. Zambian anti-corruption investigators accuse Mr Chiluba of transferring public funds to an account in the Zambian National Commercial Bank in London. They have filed a civil claim against him and 17 former officials over the alleged theft of £13 million.

Suspects in the Anglo Leasing scandals are unlikely to appear in court soon because the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission is frustrated in its bid to quickly conclude investigations, it was revealed on Thursday. The KACC deputy director, Ms Fatuma Sichale, said investigations into the Sh7 billion Anglo Leasing scandals were being hampered by factors beyond the commission’s control.

The issue of presidential term limits has always bucked my mind as I try to comprehend various constitutional trajectories across the globe and Africa in particularly. A cursory review of the polity in Gabon, Chad, Burkina Faso and Uganda etc will reveal something in common; poor institutional governance and near economic collapse. Can this hypothesis be explained by the fact that the presidents of these countries have been in power for more than two decades? Why do we need presidential limits? Do we necessarily need them in societies where there are institutional restrain on executive excesses grounded in accountability, representation and accountability?

Since the dawn of the third wave of democratisation in Africa, constitutional limits on presidential terms have somehow found themselves within the constitutions of some African countries. Presidential term limits were grounded in the rational that some of Africa’s political and economic ills are due to extended terms. While constitutional limits might be germane in themselves have they really achieved their desired effect?

My argument here is that, rather than focusing too much on presidential limits, we should first and foremost focus on strengthening institutional governance and the capacity of Africa states. Presidential term limits to my mind are the least of efforts to check executive excesses. For example, we need to create an environment and institutions which are responsive to executive prerogative. This entails widening the electoral base of a country, educating the electorate and enhancing courts. Within this context, presidential term limits will not just be a matter of constitutional provision but rather a matter of delivery.

Where presidential term limits operate within weak institutional frameworks, they are always easy to trample on. There is no doubt democracy and governance in some Africa countries is cosmetic and illusionary. Consequently, presidential term limits operating in a polity grounded in patrimonialism and rent-seeking, against a backdrop of weak and poor institutions, is always going to fail in achieving the “desired” effects.

Even when a president thus decides to step down, in a context of poor and weak institutions, presidential term limits do not preclude him from negotiating a reliable lapdog in the name of a successor to preserve elite interest, nor does this restrain him of hatching a deal to escape prosecution while he enjoys his bounty.

If we put too much energy into talking about presidential term limits, we might lose sight of the bigger picture, which is the institutional framework within which these presidents operate.

Pambazuka News is an encyclopedia of facts and news reports of great value to humanity. Well done and God bless.

Africa Day exemplifies the achievements made by the various leaders on the continent with regard to the founding of the new African Union (AU), in establishing NEPAD and other continental developments, to address the challenges and ensure that the 21st Century truly becomes an African Century.

East Africa's generally strong economic performance is failing to produce significant progress toward anti-poverty goals, according to the latest African Economic Outlook report by the Paris-based Organisation for Co-operation and Development (OECD). The finding suggests that in Tanzania and Uganda, which had two of the highest growth rates in East Africa, economic improvements are largely confined to better-off segments of society and are not filtering down to the poorest citizens.

On 18 May 2006, the self-declared Republic of Somaliland marked fifteen years since it proclaimed independence from Somalia. Although its sovereignty is still unrecognised by any country, the fact that it is a functioning constitutional democracy distinguishes it from the majority of entities with secessionist claims, and a small but growing number of governments in Africa and the West have shown sympathy for its cause.

An international conference on financing development in Africa has opened in the Nigerian capital, Abuja. It is looking at ways of implementing the Millennium Development Goals without damaging local economies.