President Wade's Diplomatic Coup

The Independent 22.04.2002

Banjul

The signing of a landmark power-sharing peace deal, Thursday in Dakar, Senegal, between the two Malagasy feuding parties, is another milestone in Africa's efforts to peacefully resolve her numerous problems by calling forth the human resources within. The accord came following intense brokerage by Senegalese President, Abdoulaye Wade, under the auspices of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).

The fact that the country that brokered the peace deal occupies the western fringe of the continent, while the recipient, is an island off the eastern coast of the continent adds another dimension to African leaders' efforts to resolve the continent's numerous political problems.

Hitherto, diplomatic efforts to resolve such problems have always gravitated around the beleaguered nation. Thus, Sierra Leone, Liberia or Guinea-Bissau peace talks would either hold in Darker, Abuja or Banjul; while negotiations on DRC, Zimbabwe or Burundi would take place in Sun City, South Africa or Arusha in Tanzania. According to the agreement, signed after more than 24 hours of feverish but determined African mediation, a government of national reconciliation will be set up in Madagascar during a six-month democratic transition. The incumbent Didier Ratsiraka will remain president during that period, while his challenger, Marc Ravalomanana, will be his deputy. If neither man wins outright a recount of the disputed December presidential election vote, then after six months, a referendum will be held to select either Ratsiraka or Ravalomanana as the new leader of Madagascar. The deal has been aptly described in several quarters as a stunning diplomatic coup for the Senegalese leader, who stepped in, after mediation efforts by the OAU, had twice failed. Wade had invited the two Malagasy protagonists to talk peace in Dakar, where he said they would be on 'neutral ground' and more 'at ease'. It is also significant that the Madagascar Supreme Court annulled the official election result a day before the accord was signed, and ordered the authorities to review the process and organise a vote recount. It is however, not surprising that such an astute diplomatic negotiation was brokered by no less brain that Wade. In fact, since he occupied the Darker State House he has vigorously employed the his wealth of academic, professional and technocratic knowledge to bear not only in finding solutions to the problems of Senegal, but the continent at large. The Omega Plan, which was integrated with Mbeki and Obasanjo's African Renaissance, to produce NEPAD, in one such examples.

This piece is by no means a eulogy on President Wad, although doing so will not in any way be anachronous. Nevertheless, it is lucid that Africa's problems will be less when only leaders who have track records of intellectual, philosophic, professional and mental competence ascend the continent's State House. It is well known that an absolute majority of African leaders made it to State House by Machiavellian tactics, using election as a democratic façade. It is either they are intellectually incapacitated to lead or are demonised by the gods of tribalism and selfishness, hence it's only violence that can unseat most of them who will not even pass a common psychiatric test in the Western world not to mention making it to the presidency.

It is unfortunate that many of them have become opportunistic peace brokers, jumping from one capital to another across the continent to negotiate peace, whereas in their home states they are discreetly sowing and watering the seeds of violence with innocent bloods. Any wonder most of them are ineffectual peace brokers?