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Pan-Africanism: Whose Africa, where?
Author: Joseph Ochieno.
What you need to know:
- Not only is the parliament merely ‘consultative and advisory’ but, according to the Mail and Guardian of South Africa, the organisation is about lots of luxury, little or no accountability, no responsibility and yet with total impunity.
The spirit, concept and mission of pan-Africanism was put into its most critical test early last week when the scuffles, fights, abuses and even death threats in the continental assembly at its Midrand base in Azania (South Africa) became the news when instead, the real news was, ‘Africa (liberation) week’!
The Pan-African Parliament (PAP), founded in 2004 as the legislative wing of the African Union, has since been – seemingly – nothing else but an assembly for trips, allowances, sexual advances and abuse, typical (sadly) nepotism, cronyism, regional domination and, of course, that African curse, attention for the few-within and love for luxury at the expense of the many.
Not only is the parliament merely ‘consultative and advisory’ but, according to the Mail and Guardian of South Africa, the organisation is about lots of luxury, little or no accountability, no responsibility and yet with total impunity.
It is reported that the should-be outgoing president Roger Nkodo Dang refused a Mercedes-Benz E-Class for something ‘better’, spent ages in a nine-bed-room hotel accommodation before moving into a $6,000 (Shs21m) a month house backed by two personal chefs (as-if-a-deputy Pope), two cleaners and more, my mind’s assumption imagining how Marcus Garvey and Kwame Nkrumah must be feeling – in heaven – but, Africa.
Yet, like the way Rebecca Kadaga and Jacob Oulanyah battled for Speaker exposed the institutional froth and power dynamics in NRA/M, the scramble for who takes over from Dang pitted Southern Africa countries (backed by the North) who are seeking that the position be regionally rotational versus West Africa (supported by East and Central; both homes to long term dictators) who insist the position be directly elected by the members all of whom are appointees (not elected) by their respective countries. Arguably, under these circumstances, I prefer the former.
Considering the issues raised and those that have since emerged, one wonders, what the relevance of this body is and what has been its impact since it came into being in 2004.
As a global pan-Africanist, except for one former member being a friend, it is not clear how many Ugandans from Tororo (let alone Nagongera) know of the existence of this parliament and worse, its role. And it’s no joke, how many of the incoming 500 legislators in Uganda would tell of its relevance?
But away from home, the situation is not particularly different. Take South Africa itself, the country temporarily hosting the body; there is no evidence that the outcomes would be any better except, just a little.
That is the country the liberation (against apartheid) of which saw much of Mother Africa rally around and, global (Diaspora) Africa do equally much yet, it has experienced more xenophobic and racial tension, abuse and even killings in the last 10 years than any other.
But to their credit, under (more credits: Thabo Mbeki), when Haitian president Jean-Batiste Aristide was deposed, they hosted him for seven years. Not many people understood why nor, appreciate the fact the Haiti is the oldest African republic although somehow (poor Africa), it is the least developed and, remains the most unstable country in those regions.
My attempt to ensure one of my closest friends, a beautiful Haitian American visits Uganda has repeatedly hit a snag in part due to time and circumstances yet, I hope this happens and, quickly. We are the earliest humans and civilisation but remain the most disunited, scattered and identically most contradictory.
On a visit to The Bahamas, I was received at Nassau airport by a beautiful immigration officer. It was almost certainly the first time the young sister was hearing about Uganda and, holding my passport, she needed a senior colleague’s help to confirm that I required no visa. Beautiful place though, a must visit – that Africa extension – but sadly, they seem to be lost as much as we are.
The writer is a pan-Afrikanist and former columnist with New African Magazine [email protected]
