New brand of leadership in Africa ?

Tedla Asfaw

Dear host of Straight Talk Africa Shaqa,

I would like to focus on East Africa here to discuss "new brand of leadership" you are discussing today. This term" new breed of leaders in Africa" was coined  during the first term of Clinton administration to welcome the newly armed rebels turn leaders. Leaders  of Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda and they were praised on their "new vision" for Africa and they are still on power, some of them breaking records for staying in power than the one they chased out.

After two decades all the leaders of these countries failed miserably in bringing the rule of law or fair and free election on their countries. Here I rather take Isaias as honest for not seen as someone who is in office by the will of the people. He said he will be on power as long as he breaths that means only natural death will bring a change of government in Eritrea. Kenya who many believed as the hope of East Africa shows its tribal face in the last December election and the thousands displaced are still in the refugee camps somewhere even if there is a deal between the two groups fought deadly after the election and now both enjoyed power at this time.

Raila Odinga's visit to USA is a follow up of that crisis and until there is a reconciliation in the communities and the return of the displaced we can not talk about new leadership here. The same can be said in the rest of the Horn countries and in fact our region will be better of with the current dictators  replaced by new accountable leaders and start reconciliation at local and regional level.

Kenya as a center of business for foreign countries got timely help from West and the crisis seems contained for now. However, we are not sure what to come in the future and the instability in Ethiopia, Somalia has great impact in addition to their own tribal enmity and I hope the future leaders of East Africa think in a regional level by also addressing their own internal problems fairly and equitably..

                                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

A call to forge unity

Tedla Asfaw

Dr. Ojulu, an Ethiopian from the Gambella area on Finote Radio short interview (June13) described the areas that are handed to Sudan. He said that  roads are being paved to connect lands Sudan got from Ethiopia with other Sudan villages and to finalize the take over and secure them possibly for a showdown with the resistant movement on the area. To facilitate the take over, TPLF has promised to electrify these areas for Sudan and increase its barrel of oil receiving bonus from Sudan on top of large sum of money to be deposited on the foreign account of Melese and the other thieves.  Ojulu when asked what the opposition should do his answer was simple and unambiguous, just fight. Stop accusing Ethiopian opposition as secessionist, I have no doubt in my mind he means OLF and ONLF and forge alliance to challenge TPLF by force of arm and stop the bleeding of Ethiopia. Ojulu brought the known donkey saying, "Ene Kemotku Serdo Ayebkele" a country which is not led by me/TPLF is condemned and should perish. Ojulu said the current rush to give land to Sudan  shows that TPLF is close to its death and forging alliance today will facilitate their burial ceremony.

Fwd: Remove TPLF by joint force of arm!!

Tedla Asfaw An  elderly Ethiopian man who participated on the first secret demarcation chaired by Mesfiin Seyume, Addissu Legesse (VOA June 12 Amharic) clip posted on www.abbaymedia.com, said  that the secret deal started a year before the 2005 Ethiopian election in Sudan. However, it was stopped  following the election crisis and now is in full gear to hand over Ethiopian land by displacing more than one hundred thousands of farmers in Gonder area. The Sudan presidential adviser told us also on VOA Straight Talk Africa last Wednesday  similar taking of what he called , "Historically Ethiopian Administered" lands in Gambela, www.abbaymedia.com, that belonged to Sudan. What is happening in North of Ethiopia is repeated in South Ethiopia while the country's famine is taking the lives of our children and many Ethiopians go to bed without food. USA and UK are encouraging the regime to increase its military budget to fight wars in all fronts while they take care of the food crisis to stop popular uprising which might topple the regime. similar  to that of the  February Ethiopian Revolution in early 70s. The secret deal of Beshir and Melese is now on implementation level believing Ethiopians and the world community will be destructed by hunger, war in Ogaden and Somalia. Melese and Beshir know very well this window of opportunity should not be missed that is why Seyume Mesfin is shuttling to  Sudan officially and secretly and was also seen in Gambella with South Sudanese officials in the so called "Cooperation with South Sudan". Currently Sudan is subsidizing Ethiopia's huge  oil demand and this was one of the revealing disclosure of yesterday's VOA interview. "If Ethiopian elders sign this deal to give Ethiopian lands to Sudan, Ethiopia will get oil from our friendly Sudan" however, these brave men rejected the land for oil deal, Seyume and Addissu have to bring their own people to sign a paper. This brave man also confirmed to us the armed resistance to eject the Sudan militias is underway in North and I have no doubt down in South on our western front the armed resistance will continue too. The question now is who is standing for Ethiopia on our Western front? Those who are accusing ONLF as separatist should not expect them to fight on the Western front far from their area of operation. However, OLF should help the people in this war to eject the Sudan militia in south of Ethiopia  and the denouncing of Sudan's invasion by OLF spoke man recently is a good sign and it is time for OLF to join hands with other Ethiopian forces. The armed resistance in Gonder area whatever name we gave it is  fighting with the people to defend our land from Sudan militias and TPLF forces and this was  revealed also on this interesting interview. Who is who in this struggle is clear here. Simply put it, Ethiopian nationalist forces against Sudan and TPLF.. Ethiopia is squeezed from its western front by Sudan by Melese's secret deal and to reverse this deal armed uprising is a must. On the eastern front and south we should give support for OLF and ONLF on their military operation to liberate Ethiopian land from TPLF killing machine. It is only when we remove Melese's TPLF we will talk about our problem in Oromia and Ogaden  or Sudan's "land claim".

Development and Demarcation Party of Ethiopia

Tedla Asfaw

Meleskatchew Amha of VOA Amharic(June 10) went to Southern Ethiopia Oromia region where he witnessed the suffering of children in the  middle of  vast area of corn ready to harvest. The feeding center currently helps those children who came to the center with the help of their parents by traveling long distance sometimes taking month.

The humanitarian center saved  lot of lives and at the same time unknown number of children died. Those children who got the clearance will go back to their home with no guarantee of food and the case of one mother story seems what most families are expected to face. This mother is thankful that her child who came close to death now is going home. But she has a large family of thirteen and they do not have any income to support their families or food aid  and that is scary.

There is no guarantee that this child or other member of the family like many in that community will have food or water. I heard on the radio also they have to pay for clean water never heard of such thing in the rural part of Ethiopia I know. Who is profiting from sale of water and where are the so called government representatives of the region?

Is this what President Girma's self administration of all regions he boasted  with plenty of food, water and electricity few weeks ago in VOA Amharic? Can the president himself come down and see on his own eye the self administration he was talking about which is none existent and the region cadres failed the people miserably and expose to whole wold that Ethiopians are left to die quietly in Oromia and Ogaden region.

The World Food Program(WFP) estimate of the hungry is now doubled from its first estimate and 4.5 millions Ethiopians need emergency food aid and it is now expected to bring in tons of food to Ethiopia before the crisis goes out of control  this July. USA and UK the sponsor of the current regime are forced to give more money because the world community start seeing dying children in their mother chest and it ashamed them.

This is not new to Ethiopia. What  new now is the West try to downplay this hunger by connecting it to international food shortage and price hike. I remember the early 1970s drought in north Ethiopia and we have plenty of food in other parts and we all got angry and sad why the Imperial regime failed to deliver food to those areas. This time however in all regions of Ethiopia the majority of them went to bed empty stomach and for  this Somalia and Ethiopia are holding the record even beating Eritrea.

Why we do not see starving and dying Eritrean children ? maybe because they have no "democracy" like that of Ethiopia. The reason is Eritrea is run by one man and many yes men who know their job very well among which is to feed their people. However, Ethiopia is run by an actor/supporting actors  performing on a parliament floor and they forget the masses with their misery believing that if the worst comes the international community which is subscribing to their performance will bring in emergency aid.

They are right, food shipment is on the way and the drama will continue. TPLF which is proudly calling itself a "development party" or can call it too a "demarcation party" though failed miserably with Eritrea is working hard to succeed in our western front using the current starvation as diversionary tactics.

If we have a free press we could have exposed the food crisis way before it took the lives of many of our children and we should not have waited until it is too late to be told by VOA Amharic. If we live in democracy we should have called the regime to resign and the only choice we have is to help those charities who are saving many lives and at the same time  not to repeat such cycle of famine we have to unite to establish a country run by elected and accountable representatives of the people not self made actor or actors.