Invest in credible elections, Raila tells African leaders

Invest in credible elections, Raila tells African leaders

Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) leader Raila Odinga has asked Africa’s leaders to fight corruption, invest in credible elections and complete the transition to democracy to ensure continued economic growth.

Mr Odinga said the continent’s social and economic future rests with embracing democracy and fighting corruption “openly and honestly.”

“It is not a matter of creating new anti-corruption institutions or revamping the existing ones. The key is a president or a prime minister who is genuinely committed to eradicating corruption, commands the trust and confidence of the people and is prepared to lead from the top,” Mr Odinga said this during a lecture at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Nigeria on Wednesday.

He said the wind of change that removed Africa from single party regimes to competitive politics proved that democracy ensures that public goods and resources are put to better use by the government.

The ODM leader noted that credible elections require the establishment of electoral institutions, which all competitors can believe in.

Speaking on the subject of The Crisis of Nation State in Africa at the university, named after Nigeria’s founding President Nnamdi Azikiwe, Mr Odinga said reversals of the momentum towards democracy are fueling new corruption and killing hopes across the continent.

Citing a study just published by the Pew Research Center, Mr Odinga said that economic sentiments have turned sharply negative in South Africa and Nigeria since 2015.

“Around seven in 10 South Africans and Nigerians now say their economies are in bad shape while in Kenya, just over half say the same,” he said, citing the Pew Research Centre.

“The Pew Research Center survey indicates many in these three countries believe the political and economic system is stacked against them. Majorities in all the three countries name government corruption as a very big problem. Most South Africans, Kenyans and Nigerians believe that government is run for the benefit of only a few groups of people in society,” he said.

Odinga noted that only around a third of South Africans and Kenyans say government corruption will be better in their countries when today’s children grow up.

“Nigerians are more optimistic that there will be less corruption in the future, with 60 per cent expecting things to improve, an indication that some work is at long last being done about the scourge of corruption in Nigeria,” he said.

He made reference to Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania and Ivory Coast, as the only countries in Africa where leaders who come to power through credible elections feel secure enough to tackle corruption.

The ODM leader appealed to leaders to establish independent and respected Judiciary whose rulings everyone, including presidents, has to adhere to.

Mr Odinga appealed to leaders to minimize inequalities between ethnic, racial, religious or regional groups, with particular focus on those that have been marginalized, especially in access to education, health care, water and electricity.

He also appealed for fair sharing of proceeds from natural resources, including land, water, forests and oil to ensure stability.

“That was also the argument soon after independence that led to single party dictatorships.  Now as then, the “development” proponents see themselves as rulers with messianic missions for their countries and who must not be subjected to term limits and competitive, credible elections,” Odinga said.

Mr Odinga, who also took time to visit Enugu and Anambra states, will visit Abuja Thursday before returning to Nairobi on the weekend.

 

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CORD raila odinga Nigeria odm

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