Photo: Statue of Kwame Nkrumah, Accra, Ghana
What a week! Two genuinely democratic elections in Africa. A seismic collapse of a decades’ old family dictatorship in the Middle East. Truth be told, the democratic events a source of immense pleasure for me. The third event a source of mixed emotions. All three events loaded with lessons for those with eyes to see and ears to hear.
Let us dispose of the spectacular collapse of Syria’s House of Assad. Good riddance to this self-anointed royal family where father and son have held Syrians hostage, tortured them, impoverished them, exploited them, and killed them for 54 years. Will the new rulers of Syria do better than the self-styled liberators elsewhere who turned out to be as ruthless as the dictators they removed? Time will tell.
What are the lessons from Syria? Guns do not guarantee permanent subjugation of people. The loyalty of the most devoted soldiers has an expiry date. Democracy, practiced with a liberal serving of justice, transparency, and humility trumps brute force and Pyrrhic victories. That is what young countries like Botswana, Ghana, Namibia, and Senegal have wisely chosen.
Namibia held presidential and parliamentary elections that affirmed its commitment to democratization. Ms. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, the president-elect, scored a first by becoming Namibia’s first female president. She will be her country’s fifth president in 34 years. Her ruling South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) held on to its majority in parliament. Notwithstanding the numerous electronic technical glitches and shortages of ballots that forced an extension of the voting period to three days, it appears that the failures were not part of a scheme to sabotage Namibians’ right to choose their leaders and representatives.
While some of the opposition leaders have rightly challenged the legality of the election, given the negligence by the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN), there have been no reported allegations of deliberate attempts to rig the process. We take it as a given that the ECN will do a thorough audit and develop foolproof measures that will deliver a squeaky-clean election in 2029.
As we were still celebrating the good news from Namibia, our joy was enhanced by the announcement in Accra, Ghana, that the ruling party’s presidential candidate had graciously conceded defeat by former President John Dramani Mahama in what was reported to have been a free and fair election on December 7. Even before official results were announced by the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Mahamudu Bawumia, the current Vice President of Ghana, delivered his concession speech less than twenty-four hours after the polls closed.
Dr. Bawumia’s speech was a classy display of grace, statesmanship, solid faith in democracy, and the genuine patriotism of a Ghanaian leader. Among the statements he made, some deserve to be engraved on copper plates for the daily devotions of Africa’s rulers, especially those that insist on stealing elections or consider themselves to be indispensable.
“Let me say that the data from our internally collated results indicates that former President John Dramani Mahama has won the presidential elections decisively,” Dr. Bawumia said. “I have just called His Excellency John Dramani Mahama to congratulate him as President-elect of the Republic of Ghana. I said during the peace pact that I was sure of two things: Ghana will win, and peace will reign.” Dr. Bawumia added: “The people of Ghana have spoken. The people have voted for change at this time, and we respect that decision with all humility. Ghana is more important than our individual political ambitions, and we must always put Ghana first.”
First, Botswana. Now Ghana. A great harvest this is. Africa’s stars shining bright in the south and west of our great continent. An antidote to the messy post-election period in Mozambique, and the wobbly affairs in so much of the continent. Ruling party candidates gracefully yielding to the people and doing so with grace and humility that one associates with the likes of Jimmy Carter, and George Herbert Walker Bush, two of America’s presidents who accepted defeat without drama.
Sweeter still considering that Donald J. Trump, the former president of the United States, caused mayhem after his defeat in 2020 and was threatening worse things were he to lose the election in November. Now as president-elect, Trump has quickly abandoned all claims of fraudulent American elections. However, he threatens to punish some of his political opponents.
Like Trump, Ghana’s president-elect is a former president who was democratically defeated in 2016. Unlike Trump, he conceded defeat and reorganised his party. His acceptance speech this past weekend was full of grace, delivered with humility of one who recognised his place in Ghana. Not a ruler, but a leader. Not owed by Ghana but indebted to his country. “Thank you, Ghana,” the president-elect tweeted on X. Sweet! We need more of this from Africa’s capitals.
The news from Ghana induces elation because of that country’s history. From high hopes at independence in 1957, to the bloody military coup that overthrew President Kwame Nkrumah in 1966. From the brief restoration of civilian rule in in 1969 to the military coup that overthrew Prime Minister Kofi Abrefa Busia in 1972. From the rivers of blood that characterized ruthless military rule for the next 20 years to the wobbly return to democratic government in 1992. Ghana endured a dark path that it shared with many other African countries.
However, once the Ghanaians tasted democracy, they latched onto it like a malnourished child with a bottle of milk. They took it seriously, created an engaged and strong civil society, strong institutions of governance, a vibrant and independent news media, a professional army, and an independent electoral commission. They continue to forge ahead, with admirable determination. The nightmare recedes.
Dr. Mahama will be sworn in as Ghana’s sixth democratically elected president in 32 years. Peaceful leadership transitions are steadily becoming their tradition. Adherence to presidential term limits has become the norm, without attempts at meddling with the constitution. While it is still too early to take things for granted, Ghana is maintaining the correct course.
The winds of change that blew from Kwame Nkrumah's Ghana in 1957 galvanized Africans to seek independence from Europe. One prays for a second wind from Ghana, laden with genuine democracy, taking a south-easterly shortcut down the Atlantic, and heading directly east, straight towards Mount Kilimanjaro.
©Muniini K. Mulera