Are Africa’s Democracies Backsliding?

In 2019, long-serving Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir was removed from power following months of protests. Neither democratic nor elected, al-Bashir had taken the presidency in 1993 following a coup, and after his ouster, the military resumed control of the government.

If deposing al-Bashir seemed to be the answer to the problem of poor governance for the people of Sudan, the military’s ascendance has ripped up the answer sheet and prepared new exam questions.

In 2021, Chad’s president, Idriss Déby, died after clashes with rebels—just one day after provisional election results projected he would win a sixth term in office. Déby and his insurgent group, Patriotic Salvation Movement, had previously taken power from Hissène Habré, a former warlord-turned-president. Through a special charter and supposedly free elections, Déby had served as Chad’s president for over 30 years.

The Chadian people, meanwhile, had gone through several stages in their relationship with Déby. At first, they welcomed his ascendance. Soon after, his military was accused of authoritarianism, and Déby of ruling with an iron fist. Toward the end of his life, he enjoyed some renewed support thanks to his handling of the Boko Haram crisis. Following his death, Déby’s son, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, took power through a military council. He promised an 18-month transitional period, which would be followed by free elections sometime in 2022.

This year in Burkina Faso, President Roch Kaboré was removed from power by the military after months of anti-government protests. This move has been generally welcomed in this West African nation where, nearly three decades ago, Kaboré made promises of better governance on which he failed to deliver.

As reported by Reuters, the coup was the work of a new entity called the Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration. The upshot? The military now holds the reins of government.

In 2021, Rwandan businessman and millionaire Revocant Karemangingo was killed in Maputo, Mozambique. Karemangingo had been a vocal critic of Rwandan president Paul Kagame, and was expelled from his Rwandan home in 1994. While the government denied wrongdoing, Karemangingo is one of a list of Rwandans who opposed the government and ended up arrested or dead.

Thanks to the disappearance or death of Kagame’s opposition, the muzzling of the press and organizations promoting civil rights or free speech, Kagame has achieved improbable landslide election wins. His 2017 victory, in which he supposedly garnered 98.8% of the vote, followed a 2015 referendum that allowed the president to seek a third term.

While the U.S. State Department cited “irregularities” during voting, the European Union released a statement supporting the peaceful elections. Indeed, Rwanda’s economic development has made Kagame a darling of the West. Policy experts on the continent suspect Western leaders are not so interested in genuine democracy but are more inclined to support regional stability, whether democratically driven or otherwise.

In 1982, a failed coup attempt by the Kenyan Air Force against then-president Daniel Toroitich arap Moi led to a tightening of the military’s power and influence on civilian life. However, fast forward to the present and President Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta has turned to the military to run Nairobi County, which includes the capital city; this has given military leaders renewed political prominence. President Kenyatta has also ordered the Kenya Defence Forces to run the Kenya Meat Commission.

Other military appointments include retired Maj. Gen. Philip Kameru to the role of National Intelligence Service Director, retired Col. Cyrus Oguna to serve as government spokesperson, and Col. Alice Mate to head the Asset Recovery Agency. These appointments come a year before elections, when Kenyatta is scheduled to relinquish power after two terms.

For the people, there is cause for worry, as the military has spread its tentacles across parastatal organizations and embedded itself deeper in civilian life. Kenya has been one of the few East African countries to steer clear of military interference in its politics. But across the continent, history has shown that once soldiers are released from the barracks, containing them can be a deadly challenge.

The Carlos Watson Show, season 4!

Following nationwide protests over police brutality in 2020, Nigerian officials met with China’s internet regulatory agency to discuss an internet firewall. Nigeria has since banned, and then unbanned, Twitter.

Now, with the 2023 elections in sight, several members of Nigeria’s government are pursuing higher office. The country’s attorney general is seeking governorship, while the governor of the Central Bank is flirting with a run for presidency. This exposes dangerous conflicts of interest. With so many members of the current government seeking top office and promising better governance, the people may be wondering why the government isn’t working right now.

Despite doing away with military rule in 1999 to usher in democracy, Nigeria has—at best—enjoyed democracy lite. The military is unofficially in power, and the military presence in the Eastern region of the country, which sought independence in the ‘70s, exacerbates tensions. Insurgency, militancy and an uncurbed police force remain fixtures of daily life. Journalists are routinely arrested on trumped-up charges, and political opponents or activists agitating for breakaway states may find themselves jailed.

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