How military men are taking over Africa
When democracy seems to be deeply rooted in Africa, military men are gradually returning to power. It’s surprising that decades after most of the African countries gained or got independence from their European colonial masters, the continent is still grappling with military system of government.
The world woke up to the news that military men have ousted President Ali Bongo, who won his third term in office only on Saturday. His family has been in power for at least 5 decades. He took over from his father, Omar Bongo, who died in power in 2009.
It’s common in Africa for a family to perpetuate itself to power in the black continent. Military men often use that to take over power only to also glue to the office and continue the bad governance.
Since 2020, there have been 8 coups in Africa. They are mostly in west and central Africa. Chad witnessed a bloodless coup April, 2021 after the death of Idris Deby while fighting an insurgency. His son Mahamat Deby took over in a change of government that France approved. There was no uproar that time from the UK, US, Europe and neighborhoods (Cameroon and Nigeria).
Assimi Goita on May 28, 2021 was convinced that the Malian government couldn’t fight the islamists in the Sahel region. He led a coup to oust the president and dissolve the parliament. And so the military men took over Mali. The powerful economic bloc, ECOWAS ought to have taken some steps that time.
Mamady Doumbouya led some other military men to hijack power in yet another coup in Guinea, West Africa, a region which appeared to have embraced western democracy fully. He has even formed an alliance with the other military juntas in the subregion. He snatched power in October, 2021.
Military rule seems to be a pandemic in Africa now. In the northern Africa, a militia group, Rapid Response Council has staged a coup. Already the veteran leader Bashir Omar had been removed from power and subsequently imprisoned. Yet the impoverished country, Sudan, is yet to have a stable government.
Ibrahim Traore became head of state in October, 2022. It’s a countercoup because Paul-Henri Damiba came to power a month earlier when military men chased the democratically elected president out of power. Burkina Faso, which shares boundary with Mali has now come under the military rule.
The story of the interference of military men in African politics doesn’t end like that. ECOWAS is still threatening the junta led by Abdourahamne Tchiani in Niger Republic. He ousted President Bazoum in July, 2023.
Follow us on social media
