Following the seeming threat to democracy in Africa, especially with the recent coup de’tat in Mali, an eminent Ghanaian Charismatic preacher has proposed a startling political model to replace all the Western models that have proved incapable of solving Africa’s socio-political challenges.
In a discussion on future of African politics and West Africa in particular, the presiding Archbishop and General Overseer of the Action Chapel International (ACI) ministry with headquarters in Accra, Ghana, Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams advocated an end to party politics and in its place a coalition of all political associations that will rotate political offices without elections.
He said greed that has led to unbelievable corruption and immaturity on the side of African politicians informed his advocacy. He emphasised on Ghana and other West African countries. “Let’s have a national agenda as a people and let’s agree that in the next 25 years there would be no elections every four years. Instead, let’s get traditional rulers, religious leaders, Labour, business community, the youths and the security agencies. Bring them all together, let’s have a national agenda of what we want in this country.
For example, in Rwanda it is a law that nobody sleeps in mud houses. You don’t build a mud house, they will pull it down,” he said. Archbishop Duncan-Williams who is also the founder and president of Prayer Summit International (PSI) and in 2017 named by the New African Magazine as one of “The 100 Most Influential Africans” believes that one of the things that will help the nations of Africa is “for us to have national coalitions from all political parties.”
Strange and unorthodox his recommendations might sound, the first non-American to lead the prayer at the inauguration of American President and Vice President, maintained that African nations should jettison elections which are almost always acrimonious and characterized by corruption and violence and jointly adopt leaders that will actualise the national vision.
According to him, “every five years, we should appoint a president from among the people that form a nation coalition. This year it is your party and the next five years it is our party. There will be no election, no party politicking, no rallies and our agenda is to follow, prosecute, perform the national agenda for the sake of the next generation.
He said the pull-down syndrome of the African politician was so prominent that it has affected true democracy and growth badly. He maintained that the selfish interests of politicians have destroyed the sanctity of elections which have not endangered growth. Rather, he said politicians work for the failure of government in power just for them to win elections and that the cycle was not promoting development.
“What we are doing right now, we are not going anywhere,” he said, arguing that what is currently happening is “if I am in the opposition and you are in the office, I hold your leg down or do something to sabotage you until you leave office. And when I also come, you will do the same thing to me.” He explained.
With particular reference to Nigeria and Congo DRC which he said are rich nations but their citizens are living in abject poverty because the nations are bleeding and there is no continuity because “when you come everything that I have done, you will condemn and let the people know that I was a failure, a disappointment and you have come to fix it.
“Then, when you assume office and faced with the reality of what is on the ground, you realize that it is not easy to fix these things. And then, I am also going to expose you and let people know that you circumvented me to come, so you must not succeed. I will make sure you fail. The vindictiveness, hatred, bitterness continue and we are dividing the people on ethnic and religious lines.
“Look at Nigeria with all the resources that they have. Congo DRC with all the wealth in that country and looking at the poverty level of that country, it breaks your heart. You go in there and start asking yourself, what is going on here.
“It is the way our party politics is structured. This winner-takes-all syndrome has to stop….the habit of once I am in office, I am coming after you and your people to call them to accountability.”
The Archbishop further warned that if Africa, especially the West African sub-region, does not do something fundamental to change now, there might be a wind coming that politicians may not be able to contain.
“Jesus said any kingdom or house divided against itself cannot stand and the depth of division in this continent with the hatred that goes with it and the level of bitterness and anger, because of party affiliations, I am telling you that we are sitting on a time bomb and I am speaking as a spiritual man and as a watchman upon the walls of this country that we are sitting on a time bomb and it would not be long we will face situations and there is nothing national security organisations can do about it,” he warned.
“Something similar to the Arab uprising is coming not just to West Africa, but all over if we don‘t do something. Look at a lot of these youths who graduated from schools and are home, no jobs. Some of them are involved in car washing. You see about 10 young graduates washing one car and they will have to wait for some hours before another car comes.
“Some of them live in kiosk estates, which are situated right opposite the wealthy areas and they know some of the people in these communities, they went to school with some of their kids, some of them know their families. Some of them go into politics and they have everything.
“They drive the best cars, their children go abroad for everything. And these youths are sitting there and marveled. After a while, if we do not give them hope and a sense of direction…the most dangerous thing in life is to fight somebody who has nothing to lose and nothing to live for and who do not mind dying,” he warned, stressing that what he sees in Africa especially West Africa was both scary and worrisome.(Vanguard)