Ethiopian opposition leader Merera Gudina says despite the democratic opening ushered following Abiy Ahmed’s appointment as the country’s Prime Minister nine months ago, lack of cohesion and division in leadership of the ruling party is undermining the efficacy of reform and the political process in the country.
In a televised interview on December 30 with the Mekele-based Dimtsi Weyane, Merera, the chairman of the opposition Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC), said that leaders of the ruling coalition, the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) “should come out of the tug-of-war contest of pulling the rope to on their sides, rather play their roles in leading the reform that requires effective and speedy implementation.”
Merera’s assessment came as rift and confrontation grow between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the other three ethnically based parties that make up the coalition and he warned that if they fail to do that, the possibility of the country slipping into irreversible and violent civil strife, such as that we have witnessed in Rwanda or Somalia is not closed. “Probably hoping for the return of the past power monopoly, if political forces indulge in any vain dream, create violent disruptions, I think we could be overtaken by the night,” he said. “They should be prudent about not impairing the potential for political development and stable democracy. Otherwise, it would be too late for the country, I am referring to all groups, those who are saying are at the forefront of the reform process and those who are pulling and trying to block it. I can’t say who would lose most but it would make all of us pay dearly.”
Merera who has been elected as president of the Ethiopian Federal Democratic Unity Forum (Medrek), a coalition of four parties last week, stressed any attempt to repeal the reform would make the country worse off and could take the country in a disastrous slide. “One problem is the reform is not going fast enough. The people’s overall economic condition is not improving. That has generated a sense of foreboding danger and fear on how things would go.”
“The only way of out this impasse is to continue on the reform path.“
The only way of out this impasse, he says, is to continue on the reform path, making it binding and credible and one that leads to building national consensus. “Moving towards the task of drafting a common and inclusive agenda, that can generate more agreement among the people of Ethiopia and could open door for people to focus on peace and development and feel they are part of the change is compulsory.”
Though once-potent political powers from their base in Mekele have been raising the heat in their rhetoric against Prime Minister Abiy, but Merera said the criticism is actually inflaming a pro-Abiy backlash. “I think if TPLF leaders inside their own bubbles continue to accuse Abiy for violating the constitution and for being susceptible to foreign influence, this could work only in his favour. People would say it is because they lost what they had. But there may be opportunities to reframe the rhetoric and engage in positive and receptive dialogue,” he added.
On claims of foreign interference
Asked if alleged foreign interference is causing rift between member parties of the coalition, Merera responded by saying that he has not seen the said outside influence in any noticeable way. “The way I see it, the biggest problem is not foreign interference or intervention. Yes, there are many ferenjis coming to the country in an unprecedented manner these days. For example, this meeting that we are attending was sponsored by foreigners. That is not a problem for us. We even encourage them to help us with that. I don’t mean to say we should allow them to impose their agendas and policies. But the truth of the matter is the problem is our own making. It is up to us to put our house in order. If we don’t not agree with each other, it is ridiculous to complain about foreign interference in our politics. We could shut every opening for foreign actors to intervene if we get our acts together. We should rather seek the right solution to the problem, not to satisfy this group or that group but to address the concern of the Ethiopian people,” he said.
When the journalist raised the concern that the current leadership might resort to authoritarian means, Merera said it should not be forgotten the fact that the leadership is the mould of the core EPRDF forces. “I don’t think that they are completely free from the character and the characteristics of EPRDF’s practices. The struggle should be to make them break the mould.”
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