Uhuru? Not yet. Not, yet.

The mother continent is kicking off September with a cracker!  Chief Justice  David Maraga, of the Republic of Kenya has ruled in favor of Kenya's opposition, nullifying the Presidential elections.  The Supreme Court has requested the IEBC (the Independent Electoral  and Boundaries Commission) to hold a re-run in the next  sixty days. Kenyans on Twitter (KOT) and indeed the whole world has been tweeting away, mostly heaping praises on Maraga for a decision that is termed "courageous".

So is it just about courage? Is it only courage? Is courage the only principle here?  I dare say no.  I would want to take a look at a few other principles. 

The technology

The elections were electronically empowered. These days, they mostly are. Voter authentication was machine-based. The famous 34A  and 34B forms that contained results were scanned and uploaded to databases. Once data from these forms  were captured  and centralised and submitted, they could be accessed by anyone who had the authorisation.  The confrontation of these  forms against the final tabulation  and the irregularities therein were key in  the decision of the Supreme Court.  

Open proceedings in court
I must salute the Court for allowing live transmissions of the proceedings. Nobody will say that the judges did this in a closed chamber. Chief Justice Maraga, and his fellow Supreme Court judges listened to both the accusers and defenders in this case. I recall reading the analysis of a lawyer friend on the "dazzling" performances of certain lawyers.  Transmissions were livestreamed over the world wide web by media houses.  Anybody who cared about the proceedings could follow online. I followed online.

The citizens' engagement
I cannot say if it was:

•  the experience of the last election that ushered Uhuru Kenyatta  into the State House,
•  the bravery of the Kenyan people,  
• the fear of civil war, instability or social crises
• the "Magical Spirit" 
• the media engagement at national and international level

But whatever it was, there was real follow-up by Kenyans. Voting was one thing, but protecting their voices was an entirely different thing. Through it all, I salute the people of Kenya.. Thank you for not just voting and going to sleep. 

There are certainly other principles that came to play here. I am not able to capture them all.  I am still reading, following .. learning.  Earlier today, I tweeted my thoughts.  Basically this:

- It is not yet  freedom (uhuru) in Kenya. Things may still turn out badly.  The crisis is not averted.
- It is not yet, Uhuru (the President).  Sir, the re-election needs to be confirmed. The judgement was not on your person, but on the work done by the IEBC.

- It is not, yet uhuru. This September may not be the freedom for Kenya, but it is freedom all the same.  Raila Odinga, Opposition Chief, says it is a "historic day for Kenya and for Africa".

I have eyes on Kenya.. I am not alone. All of Africa have eyes on Kenya. The world has eyes on Kenya. Chief Justice Maraga seems to have passed his  test. I cannot say to what level his courage (and his Seventh-Day Adventist Faith) came to play here.  But the courage, the technology, the open proceedings and the citizen engagement  are needed  now.. more than before.

Abidjan - Dar es Salaam - Brazzaville: Of elections and national conscience

I woke up in Abidjan this morning. A few hours before the voting for the first round of presidential elections in Côte d'Ivoire opens. At this time, polls should be underway in Tanzania, since there is a three-hour difference. In Brazzaville, and across Congo, the population has been convened  to a referendum, whose results will determine whether Sassou Nguesso will continue to be President of the country or not.

While we do not know if Alassane Ouattara of Côte d'Ivoire will win the elections in the first round or after the run off, we are even more unsure if the ruling party in Tanzania will be returned to power. For Congo Brazzaville, like the blogger Anna Guèye said in response to a tweet of mine "I would not call it a vote".

Whether we are voting in Côte d'Ivoire, in Tanzania, in Congo or in any other part of the world today, election times are times of building a collective national conscience. And that explains why I am passionate about them, tracking them from Cape to Cairo, Dakar to Djibouti via Nairobi and Lagos... in this beautiful mother continent of Africa.

What I am passionate about is not necessarily who wins or who loses. Here are the 5 things I track:

The social audit
Election times are times for social audits. Political formations in and out of power take time to evaluate themselves. Citizens also evaluate leadership. It's the time for the big question "what has been done for the past xyz years?" The Nigerian election was one that got straight at me. The "Report Card" of Goodluck Jonathan was the topic in homes in Nigeria, in Nigerian homes in the Diaspora and even in many other spaces that are remotely Nigerian. By the time the election date itself drew near, the incumbent was desperate in trying to "make up" for mistakes made during his tenure. In Côte d'Ivoire, the government has gone ahead and published its own Report Card in a bid to prove to citizens that it did, indeed  move the country forward.

The mass education
Elections happen after every four or five years on the general.  At every election period, a new wave of voter is added. In most countries, 18 is the voting age.  For the new voters, it is  a rite of passage, a realisation of their political importance, and for some, a time to "test the political waters". What interests me the most is how the new voters are inducted into the system. Do they engage in a civil manner? Are they given all the information? Are they channeled into a one-party-system?  Whichever way, the need for education on electoral issues goes beyond the new voters.  In many countries the electoral agency begins an entirely new work of step-by-step education, sensitization and grooming of the citizens. Who can vote? Who can run for office? How and where to register to vote? When to pick up your voter cards. How to vote. How not to vote. How best to vote. Decorum for the period..

The citizen engagement
 Offline and online, this is the time that politically minded or interested people are obliged to listen to citizens, or at least, pretend to listen.  In many places, town hall-like meetings are held. During these meetings, candidates respond to questions from citizens. In some spaces, the national TV joins the game, creating "situation rooms", inviting  candidates, organizing live debates, taking  questions and generally dancing to the tune of the citizens. For those of us who "come from the Internet", the social media landscape is getting to be "the place" to be at these moments. It is a time for content creation, for analysis, for jokes and for serious engagement. Candidates are "tracked" and their speeches, dressing, governance plans and whole lives are meticulously dissected.  But beyond the candidates, voters also engage other voters, either as volunteers for one camp or another, or just as opinion bearers.

The Human Rights narratives
 The respect of fundamental human rights during elections periods is the yardstick with which I personally measure the process. Do opposition parties get air time? Does the ruling party bulldoze its way? Is the Election Agency autonomous? Are rallies free and fair? Are minorities allowed to show their support even when they are in the "stronghold" of their adversaries. How long is the campaign time?  How free is the media to do their work? Are citizens free and able to say exactly what they think of the power in place?   For me, once the human rights bases are covered, I am fine. Otherwise, frustrations are created, disenfranchisement follows and in many cases, the elections do not go down well.

The "Shift" after the polls

I still recall the major shift in Senegal when Abdoulaye Wade lost his third term bid, after all the "constitutional gerrymandering". The most recently is the ousting of PDP of Nigeria with Buhari's win. In Burundi, things have yet to go down as the killings are continuing. In the last edition of  Côte d'Ivoire's polls, it turned out into a full-scale civil war. 

Whether we look at elections from the political,  the engagement, the human rights or even the economics perspective, it is a time when a lot happens.  Except for the few African countries like Gambia, Eritrea, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea where authorities are doing all they can to suppress a national civic engagement while upholding the President as a demi-god,  this continent is gently changing, molting into a space of more regular social audits, massive increase in citizen education, web empowered engagement, and for a broader discourse on the rule of law. Elections are processes in national conscience building. It is  not so much about who wins  or loses at the polls, but whether the nation is more consolidated.

It is about moving forward or backward.

Easter 2015 - Resurrection Nigeria

Two nights in a row  I kept vigil in  Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  My mind was on Nigeria and Nigeria was on my mind; - the election results of the Presidential race.  I was not the only one whose heart was beating a tad faster.  Last night I finally slept. And a sweet one, it was.    Here are my 5 "take-aways" from the presidential elections.

Professor Jega, and the role of the academia

In as much as we decry the fallen standards in Nigerian universities, bemoaning the citizens' disappointment by the system, something good was found in that milieu.  Professor Attahiru Jega decided that all Returning Officers for all 36 States and the FCT - Federal Capital Territory, be drawn from the numerous Vice-Chancellors of the Nigerian Universities. They may not be the best academics the world has known, they may neither master stage track nor even read well  at night (especially without glasses) but they all accepted the challenge.  The Nigerian Youth Service Corps (NYSC) also did their part. In principle, NYSC is an old-age institution that spreads Nigerians across the federation, making sure that people go to the parts of the country where they do not come from.  "Corpers" on mission learn the "other" cultures and people of Nigeria. This, till date, is the most important unity and integration institution that Nigeria has.  My first take away is that if Nigerian education, universities and academia are equipped enough, this country can lead in almost anything. Intellectual probity is the greatest arm against the unbridled  greed of  politicians, as seen in the epic "Orubebe-Jega Drama"

Citizen engagement powered by technology

This time around, Nigerians were decided that it will not be "business as usual" as it  has always been. The population decided to massively engage.  I really loved the R-egister, S-elect, V-ote, P-rotect (RSVP) campaign as well as the #NigeriaDecides tag on Twitter.  At the end of February, the election fever in Nigeria was higher in °Celcius than Ebola.  Almost all discussions were centered on GEJ and GMB, the abbreviated names of the key runners.  I saw volunteers who went from house to house to talk to people about one candidate or another trying to "deliver" locations.  The extent to which social media played a role in the Nigerian presidential elections cannot be under-estimated. My second take-away is this: Technology is power. Power belongs to the people. When both team up.. they become indomitable, any time, any where.

Real-time transparency
The Independent National Electoral Commission has pulled off the biggest democratic presidential elections in Africa.  The independence of the Jega-led institution  is being hailed by all and sundry.  INEC has social media outlets that were manned, 24/7. They have hotlines and were taking real-time interactive feedback from voters and the public in general. By the time the number of registered voters and the effective number of PVC (Permanent Voters' Card)  that have been collected was known, one knew the maximum number of voters to expect. So far, except for a few rare places, over-voting in any polling unit has had an automatic cancellation of all votes. But beyond these, the declaration of results in "the face" of all media, traditional and new, social and  copyright, at the same time... that was THE one that did it.  Across the country, and in most parts of the world, calculators came in handy, pen and paper too. Some were using spreadsheets, someone started a Google Document and made it open. Every Dick, Tom and Harry who cared about the Nigerian Presidential elections could track and add up the figures and do so in the same minute as they were being announced. My third take away is that the transparent, real-time, offline and Online, all-media announcement of the results proved to be the biggest challenge and deterrent to intending troublemakers. Real-time transparency is the greatest arm against "backdoor, shadowy and secret" election malpractice.

Global media with "nothing to chew"

First there were allegations from certain media when visas were refused to some journalists. Then came a 6-week postponement.  The phobia was palpable as the days approached. There was mass "exiting" of persons, in families, who were expecting Nigeria to tip over.  The rush to buy food and store.. in expectation of the violence that will follow.. all of that came to nothing. In the early hours of Saturday the 28, the first reports were that "Nigerian elections are marred by violence" though the images were missing. Millions were sure they will come. The normal "African elections" followed by killings, burnings, and destruction. This time, things are different. My sweet take-away here: prophets of doom can pack up and go home. There wont be any violence-tourism following the Presidential elections in Nigeria. You are free to report or not, but  right now, Nigerians have the means to tell their own story. 

Jonathan extends Goodluck to Buhari

When it was clear that the game was over, even before the final tallying of all results, President Goodluck Jonathan  gave the famous and proverbial phone call to the winner.  That  call, made to the right person, at the right time, will remain "golden" in the memories of most peace-loving Nigerians. After the call, he also published a message, and later on, gave the speech.  Here is my take-home from here: Jonathan may not have been a great leader, he may not have scored well in many a score sheet,  but he has refused to lead the country into war, silencing all "demons of destruction" that were secretly preparing for bloodbath.  In so doing, he sent the strongest message to all other "losers-to-be", which, for me, is also a great gift.

As Easter rolls in this weekend,  Nigerians will be celebrating  the death of bloodbath'ed  presidential elections and the rising of a new order.  The resurrection of a  new hope, expectancies of better governance, and the satisfaction that comes with a victory won for the people by the people.

Happy Easter Nigeria!

God bless Nigeria!
Viva Africa!

#CIV2010 – Hash tag or Hate tag?

The tag was kicked off on Twitter around October 2010. The idea was to get citizens interested in the upcoming elections to use it. So we used it as a monitoring tag for the campaigns and all the surrounding issues of the first presidential elections in the Ivory Coast. Having been there from the beginning, I must say, I enjoyed the early days of #civ2010.

In the first round of the presidential elections, there were 14 candidates, 11 of them came to accompany 3. Over 2 weeks, each one was given 90 minutes to face the nation. We chronicled all of those appearances and analysed each of the 13. Yes, only 13 came, Henri Konan Bedié boycotted! Those were the good old days!

The climax was the Thursday of the face to face debate of the 2 candidates of the run off. Allasane Dramane Ouattara, ADO for short and Laurent Koudou Gbagbo, LKG for short. I do recall tweeting the whole of the debate, directly from the French that came out of their mouth into English, the whole 3hours 13 minutes that it lasted! I also recall Twitter had to quarantine some of the heavy tweeple of #civ2010. My Twitter embargo was lifted after 10 hours!

Then the run off on November 28.. and the “the walls came tumbling down”. What a great transformation of the tag. It has gone from citizen watch and reporting space to a kind of association of folks who have something in common: someone or something they hate! Granted, the war is raging on the streets of Abidjan, but the war on Twitter is equally  viral..

The Gbagbo haters.

This group wakes up and their first tweet is an insult on Gbagbo. And their last tweet does not differ. They believe he is THE problem. Everyday they call for his death and do not fail to celebrate any information that hints to that!

The Simone (Gbagbo's wife) haters

I used to think they were one and the same with the first group, but no. I have actually noticed this is an independent group. This group includes fashion oriented tweeps, men who think the woman is the one manipulating the man. They are convinced that she is THE problem

The Ouattara haters

This group firmly believes that Ivory Coast will know no peace until Ouattara leaves it alone. They claim he is a foreigner used by foreign nations. They have vowed he will not be president. Their “patriotic” spirit is huge.

The France and/or Sarkozy haters

These ones have been there from day 1. Their argument has been consistent. This is France and/or Sarkozy bringing war to Ivory Coast. They have no doubts about it. They believe that France and/or Sarkozy is the one marshalling the international community to destroy the country. As far as they are concerned France and/or Sarkozy is THE problem

The Human rights violaters' haters

This is one other group whose job on the tag is to pick out every single hate word, speech, act. This group is very powerful with media skills. They have the links, the videos, the photos. They have schooled us on what is needed to take X, Y or Z to the International War Crimes Tribunal. They have taken the liberty to book one-way tickets to the Hague for some actors of the Ivorian crisis.

The Blé Goudé haters

This group appeared around the time Blé Goudé was named Minister. Mostly young and educated, they bemoan the “fact” that someone who stole his certificate and has never held an employment should be named Minister for employment. They track him and report his every move. They have informed us that even “Blé Goudé” is not his real name.

The foreigner haters

This group is very strategic. Their aim is to fish out all non-Ivoirians using the hash tag and remind them that it is not their business. They reveal you real name, your real nationality, your political bearings and your physical location. They can read you mind and tweet your motives.

The RTI haters

The national broadcasting service is right in the middle of the crisis. Having grown from a national beacon on the “epic debate” to a target because it chose Gbagbo's side, RTI has earned itself so many haters. Its CEO has been penned down by this group as a candidate for the Hague. They use “Télé Mille Collines” for it, in reference to the Rwanda media. Everyday, people in this group call for a complete bombing of the installations.

What's next?

Nobody can say for sure how long the war in Abidjan will last. Neither can we say for sure who will come out having lost the least (since I personally dont believe that anyone will come out a winner). The greater question that is looming larger by the day is: what do you with all these negative sentiments? How do you rebuild trust, acceptance and love? Is it possible? How long will it take? When will it begin..?

The next African leaders to quit power

It is the beginning of February 2011.

Tunisia has kicked off the year in grand style. Now the Egyptians are also protesting, asking that their President Hosni Mubarak leave power. Despite all that he has ceded and agreed to cede, the people still want him to leave.

And the question that has been making the rounds is: who next? Where next? How?

The rumblings seem to be shaking up places. Algeria, Jordan, Sudan and Yemen have felt tremors.. Even Gabon.

On what grounds can we, as Africans, support a popular call from citizens for their leader to step down? Here are a few reasons, that we believe should qualify the ousting of a president by the people.

If you have been in power for over 10 years or spent two terms

Then it is time for you to leave. A decade is enough time for you to achieve any initial goals you set for yourself, your party or your country. It is also enough time for you to lose contact with the real people, build a pseudo kingdom made up of your advisers, and live that unreal live in which these advisers only give you positive report, only show you where the country is doing great and hide anything that is to the contrary.

If you are 80 years of age

Honestly, that is way past retirement! Does your hearing still function 100%. How about your sight? How physically fit are you? Can you still do marathon work hours? Being a President is a heavy job, being an African president is doubly heavy! But an African President at 80? You may want to see the country as one where the population are your children. And you call everybody "my son" and "my daughter". No, that is not what we want in our President. Your grandchildren need you. Your family needs you. There are quite a number of non-presidential things you can accomplish at this age with a lot of dignity. Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu are still alive, happily alive.

You may be afraid of the International War Crime Tribunal of the Hague, but that is only when you refuse to leave. When you leave willingly, every other thing can be negotiated.

If you did not win the elections

There is no point hanging on, trying to oppress the real winner. We win some, we lose some. The line that it is the "international community" or country x or y that is "against us" is as fake as the line that county A or B, that is a world power is behind you. It is not about who is against you or for you on the international arena, it is about the people who voted. Power belongs to the people not "the diabolical colonial masters" or the "strong global partners". If you did not win, quit power.


If you dont have a university degree

In the Independence years, there were not many educated Africans. But that has changed. To be frank, it is an insult in today's world to have you be at the head of a nation when you dont have a formal university degree. What you learn in University is constructive thinking, reasoning, scientific analysis of society issues, global issues and human relations. University education allows you to come out of your tribe, ethnic group, religion, region. You face the world, you make mistakes and you learn from them. You learn to sit and listen to others criticize your work, tear it down.. University education lets you understand not only how your own system works, but how others' systems also work. In 2011, if you dont have a world view, you should not be the President. Step down and go to school.

If your father was the past president

There is a problem here. How many people live in the country? How many families have raised their children to be leaders? How many families have had the honour of leading the nation since its creation? Why do you think that one family should have two successive presidents? Dont you think your family's quota is already used up? Others deserve a chance. Step aside!

People's Democratic Party - PDP (Nigeria) Presidential Primaries.

Here are the figures captured on Thursday's primaries at the Eagle Square Abuja as teh state delegates votes were being counted. The third Candidate, Mrs Sarah Jubril only had her own vote. So please start the count with Sarah Jubril 1 vote in Kwara State.

State	Goodluck Jonathan	Atiku Abubakar
FCT	24	3
Abia	80	1
Adamawa	76	31
Akwa Ibom	141	0
Anambra	47	8
Bauchi	46	44
Bayelsa	67	0
Benue	72	15
Borno	33	26
Cross River	105	0
Delta	114	7
Ebonyi	82	2
Edo	60	0
Ekiti	76	1
Enugu	89	9
Gombe	55	18
Imo	125	3
Jigawa	100	17
Kaduna	82	41
Kano	21	98
Katsina	147	11
Kebbi	44	33
Kogi	84	24
Kwara	61	26
Lagos	52	3
Nasarawa	53	8
Niger	16	94
Ogun	80	3
Ondo	69	6
Osun	99	1
Oyo	107	10
Plateau	70	5
Rivers	128	2
Sokoto	32	84
Taraba	62	16
Yobe	29	20
Zamfara	7	70
TOTAL	2635	740

The final official results were:

Goodluck Ebele Jonathan: 2736
Atiku Abubakar: 805
Sarah Jubril: 1

Endangered democracy. Video from Egypt

The Ivorian presidential elections. Complete analysis of Diaspora votes

	Laurent Gbagbo		Allasane Ouattara		Bedié
Country	1st Round	2nd Round	1st Round	2nd Round	1st Round
South Africa	165	173	107	142	36
Burkina Faso	330	305	433	592	109
Canada	335	404	279	366	117
Danemark	92	101	22	32	8
England	635	726	497	603	183
France	0	0	0	0	0
Germany	89	111	83	93	17
Ghana	264	298	162	235	89
Gabon	101	108	642	676	50
Guinea	233	219	254	287	43
Italy	456		1052		236
Mali	213	238	636	736	88
Morocco	129	164	187	201	50
Senegal	442		462		137
Spain	57	76	195	187	30
Switzerland	153	175	76	117	74
Tunisia	134	157	123	197	83
USA	645	728	1513	1630	312

The United Nations: still relevant in Africa?

This morning I listened to a political big-wig of the Republic of Guinea. He wants the United Nations to come and head the CENI - the national Independent Electoral Committee!

I'm like okay. So what exactly is this guy asking for? What exactly is it?

I see several things:

The first is that the politicians do not trust their own. The first President of the CENI was given so much trouble that the poor man had a heart failure, was taken to hospital in Europe and died there. The second one was from within the same CENI, not from outside. And now one party thinks 'he appears to be running for our opponents'. The new man has come out openly to pledge allegiance to the country but he is still not trusted. I have me two questions, which educated person, capable of heading the CENI will not have a political preference? Where can such a person exist?

The second thing here is that the presidential candidates are actually saying they believe the results of the elections NO LONGER LIE within the ballot boxes but within the CENI! This is outrageous! It is the people that votes. The job of the CENI is to report what the people have said!

Ah! And now I remember. Guinea has never really had a presidential election! After 53 years of Independence, the country is now holding its first ever democratic elections. Mhmm. I see why everybody is freaking out! Like when you went for your first job interview..

One other thing though, The African Union has spent a lot of time and energy mediating through the tens of disputes in Guinea. So Guinean politicians do not only distrust their own, they also do not trust the African Union to oversee a free and fair run-off of presidential elections!

So someone thinks the United Nations is the best option!

I am sitting here and I am trying to recall the last time I saw a UN person working in an African country as a Peace Keeper! When last did you see one? The ones I saw are generally the blue helmets! Next question, what did he look like?

Here is my point. The UN person that will be willing to be assigned to Guinea to do elections oversight will either be:
A. From India, Bangladesh, or Pakistan. He is the blue helmet
B. From South Korea, the Philippines or one other Asian country

He is not going to be European, North American, not even South American. Those guys dont come this way! He is not going to be an Arab from the Mediterranean, those guys wont give their folks in a country like Guinea! The lowest they have gone is RCD!

So what it the Guinean politician asking for? Who is he expecting? French? American? or maybe Central European?

Here! He does not know what he is asking for. He is only expressing his incapacity to trust what he has and build it up. This trait of character that I find in many places in Africa! 'Whatever comes from outside the country is certainly better than what I have here'. Like when Ivorian women beg for Nigerian lace and Nigerian women beg for Woodin! When Ghanaian women come to Abidjan to buy shoes that were brought in from Ghana! When people in West Africa use olive oil for prayer purposes because it is holy, and people in the Northern part swear that palm oil is the richest oil on planet earth!

Otherwise, why will someone from Pakistan, who speaks Urdu and a little English be a heaven-sent to head the CENI in Guinea, where people speak French, Sosso and Madinka?

Je suis vraiment désolée. It is a big pity!