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05/13/2008: "Mbeki clings on"

Thabo Mbeki has just survived an attempt to sack him as president of South Africa. This occurred at last weekend's summit of the tripartite alliance - the ANC, the Communist Party (SACP) and the biggest trade union group, Cosatu, where the motion for Mbeki to go was put by the SACP. At the end of the summit the leaders of the three organisations appeared together to insist that Mbeki would in fact be staying on but the fact that his dismissal could be openly discussed and debated shows how completely his presidency has collapsed.

ANC and alliance leaders have many grievances against Mbeki - his policies over Zimbabwe and Aids have brought nothing but disaster and lack of international credibility; the onset of regular power cuts has ruined hopes of high economic growth and put many jobs at risk; unemployment and inequality remain stubbornly high; the government's failure to stem the crime wave is complete and Mbeki is now revealed as having tried unconstitutionally to prevent the public prosecutor from bringing proceedings against the police chief, Jackie Selebi, Mbeki's crony - a matter about which Mbeki had very publicly lied.

[ We are yet to see a modern African leader who is not corrupt and can rule effectively. Not that such leaders are in abundance anywhere in the world. Africa's "big man" culture, of respecting brutality and ostentatious wealth, doesn't help. ]

http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/rw_johnson/2008/05/mbeki_clings_on.html