Do we need an increase in years of terms of service for a transformative development?

 No!! Length of service is not the reason why some African rulers are underperforming. They simply are incapable and are unpatriotic. 

In fact, you could find fewer countries in Africa where long serving leaders have managed to transform the state. Since 1960 (post colonial rule for most Sub-Saharan Africa) Sub-Saharan Africa has in total got ten heads of states that have clinged unto power for over thirty years. 

2020 is a symbolic year to authoritarian rule in the subregion as it marks more than three decades since Rulers like Teodoro Obiang Ngua Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, Paul Biya of Cameroon, and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda assumed power in their respective countries (Felter C., 2020).

The following is a rundown of some of the longest serving (or those that served the longest) heads of state in the subregion (this doesn't feature royal leadership) as presented by Felter C. (2020):

1.Gabon's Omar Bongo (60 years)

2. Equatorial Guinea's Teodoro O. N. Gbasogo 40 years

3. Angola's Jose Ed. Santos (38 years)

4. Togo's Gnassingbe Eyadama  (37)

5. Cameroon's Paul Biya (37 years)

6. Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe (37 years)

7. Republic of  Congo's Denis S. Nguesso (36 years)

8. Ivory Coast's Felix Houphouet- Boigny (33)

9. Democratic Republic of Congo's  Mobutu S. Seko (31 years)

10. Malawi's Hastings K. Banda (29 years)

11. Sudan's Omar al-Bashir (29 years)

12. Eretrea's Isaias Afwerki (29 years); and

13. Benin's Mathieu Kerekou (28 years).

Note, this does not include those who served more than the original constitutional mandate of not more than 10 years (the likes of Siaka Stevens of Sierra Leone and Lansana Conteh of Guinea served more than 10 years).

Any Meaningful Impact?

Well, some of us are familiar with the economic and sociopolitical atmospheres in these countries. It's safe to say these countries  are a bunch of underperforming states grappling with economic downturn and political and social instability. Length of service has not in any way helped bring improvement in any of these nations. In fact, there is a greater tendency for countries  with such leadership style to perform poorly in key development indexes/measures, especially on governance, accountability, human rights, freedom of speech,  and economic equality. 

 

Even as the occurrences of military coups  has reportedly dropped, constitutional coups are becoming increasingly widespread in the Subregion. Recent cases of this include Guinea and Ivory Coast where incumbents have managed to amend the constitution to award themselves more time to rule even as oppositions object. The legislature and judiciary have in many instances helped in facilitate that. And the security sector have been key in consolidating their stay in power. Leaders have used force to silence opposition and dissent.

And yet still, AU and other regional intergovernmental agencies have been slow in addressing the issue of constitutional coups. The continent is gradually regressing under the watchful eyes of its hypocritical and self-centered leaders. 

We should be watchful and protect our democracy lest we retrogress without noticing. Constitutional coup is the new strategy.

Constitutional coup is just as worse as military coups. 

~Amadu Wurie Jalloh

Students Analysts and Writers Network

The Emmanuel Ivorgba Foundation