Someone tell the President

Mmegi Editor | Thursday January 26, 2017 11:29

There is no doubt that domestically, Khama has plenty of matters to keep him busy in the New Year, from the wave of job losses, sustaining growth and many others. These challenges are not unique to Khama and indeed many of the Heads of State who will be in Addis Ababa have left even greater challenges waiting back home.

Khama’s cynicism of African leaders is defensible to a point. Certainly, our continent’s leaders have the unique inability to introspect or conduct peer review, leaving the endless summits as mere retreats and escapades for large entourages, which often include wives, children and other relatives.

The AU, like SADC, is set up specifically to discourage mavericks from effecting change from within, as it requires consensus for even the most menial of decisions. The AU has been chaired by various dictators across the continent, some of them fresh from losing elections and resisting the will of the people.

Khama will have his defenders, but being the Head of State requires making decisions and engaging with people and organisations you may personally find repugnant.  It’s about taking the country’s much-vaunted democratic values and history and raising the flag at the AU, even in fora where such action may be unpopular.

This particular Summit was critical for Khama to attend, as his Foreign Affairs minister, Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi makes a second bid for chairmanship of the AU, a highly political platform from where she can, to some extent, export the democratic values that have built Botswana, to the rest of Africa.

Many leaders are resisting Mma Moitoi’s candidature because of the continental unpopularity of Botswana’s foreign policy, where the country has been seen as swimming against the tide at nearly every turn. When others condemn the International Criminal Court, Botswana supports it. When others embrace Robert Mugabe’s continued stay in power, Botswana slams it.

Khama’s absence is yet another reason for African leaders to despise Botswana and Mma Moitoi, robbing her of an opportunity to redirect the agenda at the AU and robbing African citizens of the benefits of a reinvigorated AU.

He has his reasons, but someone tell the President he has got it wrong on this one.

Today’s thought

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” 

– Maya Angelou