President Robert Mugabe
By Mobhare Matinyi, Washington DC. The Citizen, Tanzania. Posted Friday, May 10 2013 at 12:17
Swahili elders have a saying, “Uzee dawa”, which literally translates as “Old age is medicine,” and precisely that is what Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe demonstrated on Sunday in Harare when he told the intelligence chiefs of African countries, that, it’s time to take aim at those who intend to rob the continent’s wealth.
Mugabe, at 89 years of age the eldest statesman on the continent, and the third longest-serving leader in Africa after 33 years in power, did a big service to Africa by providing such counsel. Did his experience help? Definitely! The most hated African leader by the Western powers was opening the tenth annual convention of the 49-nation Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa (CISSA), which brought together the continent’s intelligence and security chiefs. The four-day meeting ended on Wednesday.
Bearing in mind that the convention’s theme was, “The Nexus Between Africa’s Natural Resources, Development and Security,” this was the best opportunity for such a message, and no doubt Mugabe delivered it. For strategic reasons, CISSA invited the spy chiefs of China and Italy.
“Our erstwhile colonisers continue to manipulate international institutions and conventions to justify unilateral military interventions in African states with the objectives of extracting and unfairly exploiting our resources,” Mugabe said. As reported by the South African Press Association (SAPA), Mugabe noted that Africa’s vast reserves of untapped resources and world-wide recession have triggered a new scramble for control of its “raw wealth”.
Mugabe urged the intelligence and security chiefs to confront increasing human and drug trafficking, money laundering and cyber-terrorism. The freedom fighter could have added more issues such as the emergence of religious radicalism, international terrorism, spread of small arms, and chronic insurgency.
Mugabe expounded that armed conflicts are what expose the continent to the global powers under the pretext of interventions, while on the sidelines, another freedom fighter, South African President Jacob Zuma, told the press that the conflict in the Central African Republic was a foreign ploy aiming at taking over that country, and then proceeding to Chad and the Democratic Republic of the Congo for the same mission.
These leaders were not exaggerating anything as this has been the case since time immemorial if one looks at the continent’s history. In fact, CISSA was created to prevent the overthrow of African governments by foreign agents.
It was in March 2001 when Zimbabwean authorities apprehended a plane full of mercenaries on their way to depose the government of Equatorial Guinea, currently the world’s thirty-second richest nation based on per capita income criterion.
After some consultations and meetings, CISSA was officially launched in August 2004 in Abuja, Nigeria. Thereafter, the African Union summit granted it full recognition in January 2005. No other continent has achieved this!
But the new task given to intelligence gurus may be easier said than done as African politicians can be a stumbling block especially when money is involved. As known, foreign looters always carry bags of monies with their governments backing them fully - Westerners, Chinese, Brazilians, Russians and the Indians as well, all don’t harbour concern about poor Africans.
The point is: Africa needs to benefit as well in this crazy business, and not to be turned into a huge Congo, a war-ravaged country that sits on about $24 trillion worth of minerals, 150 percent of America’s economy. Africa is losing a lot because its insatiable politicians, either corruptly or out of ignorance, signed awful deals.
Thus, intelligence chiefs have to start the battle at home, and that can be an uphill task because politicians, presidents in particular, are the ones that appoint them. Now, how do you reprimand your boss? It’s not possible even in America; may be resigning but is that feasible?
This could be the reason why intelligence chiefs are confined to security matters of protecting the governments of the day against real enemies like coup plotters as well as imaginary ones like any opponent or a challenger, leaving aside economic intelligence. Truly, in an increasingly globalised world, no country can thrive without robust economic intelligence.
The complexity of governance and democracy building in Africa, when mixed with politics and security issues, leaves the continent widely exposed to what Mugabe is urging the secret agents to fight against. But are African politicians prepared to listen to their secret advisors when an investor is knocking at the door with a bag of money and a powerful foreign leader is on the phone threatening to freeze aid?
I think Mugabe’s call needs serious attention if Africa is to protect what is its. Without the synergy between politicians and intelligence chiefs nothing can be accomplished in this area.
Modern colonisers are shrewd; they don’t have to come with guns if money can talk, and with greedy leaders Africans are bound to lose big time!
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