By Assan Sallah, Dakar, Senegal
Gaye Sowe, executive Director of the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA) has said that politically, there is a serious lack of goodwill and good faith in a lot of African leaders. He added that the same leaders who came to office thanks to the waves of democracy are the ones now resisting the merits of democracy and constitutionalism, just in a bid to remain in office. This tendency, according to the IHRDA boss, has resulted in the most current and terrible threat to democracy and obvious leadership failure on the African continent; which is the manipulation of electoral laws and processes. He cited the very recent experiences in Burundi as an example.
Gaye Sowe made these remarks during his address at the opening of the first edition of the Summit of African Web Activists for Democracy on Monday, November 26th, 2015, at the Ndiambour Hotel in Dakar, Senegal.
Speaking on the theme; ‘Focusing the Challenges to Participatory Democracy and Human Rights in Africa’ Sowe described participatory democracy as a fundamental asset to development, saying that it ensures the rule of law, the protection of fundamental rights, peace and stability. He added that participatory democracy also ensures personal freedoms and equality, and allows people to take moral responsibility for their choices and decision about government policies.
He said although participatory democracy is endowed with such a wealth of values for the welfare of nations, there sadly still remain numerous challenges to its prevalence in Africa. These challenges, he went on, can be classified as political and socio-economic.
The IHDRA boss observed that many African countries that made a transition to democracy in the 20thcentury and early 21st century have still not been able to put in place credible democratic institutions.
He said: “To add, most of our leaders have still not come to terms with the fact that good governance entails embracing good ideas and contributions from all, irrespective of differences in political and social orientations. Our leaders are still reluctant to accommodate and cooperate with opposition candidates, media and civil society actors.
Former Head of State for Ghana, Jerry John Rawlings once decried the fact that it is still a serious challenge to ensure a democratic dividend for women, youth, the disabled and ethnic minorities in Africa, to mention but a few interest groups, for more than half a century after achieving political independence and after decades of having been acknowledged practicing democracy.”
According to him, African women still hang precariously on the lower rungs of the political ladder, in spite of many constitutions and United Nations resolutions urging all countries to pay attention to their status and roles. He added that the youth also continue to be largely illiterate, unemployed and disillusioned, and ethnic minorities continue to live in fear and obvious disadvantage.
Executive director Sowe further stated that hostility on the part of most governments towards actors who speak out and advocate for change is a serious challenge to the advancement of participatory democracy in Africa. He said although Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ratified by most of these States) provides for the right to information and freedom of expression, majority of African States still refuse to adopt access to information laws, making it easy for governments to blindside the people.
Concurrently, he added, the enlightened few who are brave enough to speak up about democratic issues that affect the masses mostly suffer the sledge-hammer of government forces.
From a socio-economic point of view, Executive Director Sowe said, due to endemic poverty ravaging Africans, especially the rural masses, the cause for participatory democracy is on the edge. He further observed that many people do not have enough resources to provide food, health-care, education and decent shelter for themselves and their families. Besides, he added, governments have not made sufficient infrastructural development to meet these basic needs of their people.