Move Away From ‘Tribalism’ Ethiopia

Now is the time for a certain African country to forget about ‘Tribalism’ and embrace the process of Unification, which entails putting your country first, not the tribe.

Ethiopia could become a world power by 2040 if the major ethnic groups would solidify instead of promoting regional power through tribal affiliations. You have a country that is constantly in conflict, Amharic versus Tigray, Oromo at war with Somalis and Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region; Gambella and Benishangul-Gumuz regions are fighting whomever gets in their way. If I continued with tribal conflicts in Ethiopia this story would never be completed.

Maybe we have a savior in the new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed who came in promising reform and so far he is sticking to his guns, by ended the decades long tussle with Eritrea, which was nothing but a waste of time and lives brought on by Tigray region feuds.

What I like most about Ahmed is his drive to eliminate corruption and human rights abuses in which I Pray for the capture of General Getachew Assefa, National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) whose name is synonymous with everything bad about Ethiopia. And that includes torture, rape and forced confessions of activists. He may have been involved in the plot to murder the new Prime Minister earlier this year, along with scamming the military run industrial conglomerate METAC.

Ahmed also replaced General Samora Yenus, head of the National Defense Forces, along with more than 60 high ranking security officials that were charged with corruption and human rights abuses. Many of those replaced are Tigray, and other regions are elated with the changes.

They are saying Tigray leaders controlled the military and the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front(EPRDF) are mainly responsible for the corruption and repression that exist today.

The violence must cease

Mind you not instantly but by 2040 as infrastructure develops, unemployment recedes and income rises due in part to agricultural and technological advancements Ethiopia could become more than just a regional power. It looks good on paper but will the tribes unite, avoiding an all out war that would set this nation back several decades like the Eritrea-Ethiopia fiasco that lasted twenty years, before reconciling this year with the appointment of Ahmed.

Meles Zenawi is an important player in the rise of the Tigray Region to dominate Ethiopian politics. He was prime minister of Ethiopia from 1995 till his death in 2012. Zenawi was chairman of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front beginning in 1989 and headed the EPRDF since its inception in 1991 until his death.

He is the man responsible for Tigray Domination of Government and repression of the opposition. With about 6% of the population Zenawi and his tribe intimidated and brutalized the other ethnic groups into submission. And if they didn’t submit to his pronouncements they lingered in grimy prisons and torture centers across Addis Ababa, or they simply disappeared.

With all of his authoritarianism Zenawi was not all bad.

No matter how harsh was Zenawi he kept the country moving forward with strong Leadership. He wasn’t perfect by a long shot. Others have said, he was a gang leader who put his gang (Tigray) at the top of the money chain, and much of the population is upset with that. How can a small tribe be so resourceful and powerful compared to the rest of the population. He achieved a lot with the help of a strong army and EPRDF, as new roads and schools were built at an alarming rate. He kept the banks, telecommunications and airlines closed to foreign investments and was dead set on building the largest dam in Africa, as hydropower was the best way to electrify the country by kick starting the GERD DAM.

He pushed for the Addis Ababa Light Rail System and the Addis Ababa Djibouti Railway line. Both of these are operational and leading the country to development. Hopefully soon the DAM will supply the country with badly needed electricity.

Now it is up to Dr. Abiy Ahmed from the Oromo Ethnic group, the largest tribe in Ethiopia, and he is promising democratic reforms with free and fair elections.

So far he is off to a good start.

Hubie Jones