Commentary
By Binneh S. Minteh, USA.
Robustly positioning himself as the new authority after the death of Guinea’s late President Lasana Conte, the leader of Guinea’s new military National Transitional Consultative Council, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara(photo) made a well calculated and timely move to be an agent of ’change’ for a poor country said to be one of Africa’s mineral resource rich nations.
The echoed sentiments of his newly formed National Transitional Consultative Council over state radio must have also caught several ears. Thousands of Guinean citizens took to the streets in welcoming the continent’s newest young military leaders. During the opening remarks of a statement read over state radio, the young captain said:
"At the time of celebrating the 50th anniversary of its independence on 2 October, Guinea was ranked as one of the poorest countries in the world despite its abundant natural resources. Guinea could have been more prosperous. Unfortunately, history and men have decided otherwise".
Such an eloquent introductory statement must have been the catalyst for national support across the Guinean political spectrum. According to analysts and pundits, the young captain had his facts right because over 70% of Guinea’s population lives below the international poverty line of less than $2 a day. This reality could be found in the United Nations Human Development Index report on Guinea.
Widely condemned by the international community as unconstitutional, Guinea’s military junta, unlike the previous ones in Africa, played their cards well. However, the uniqueness in Guinea’s case is the endorsement by both some regional and national players. For example, the ousted regime’s deposed prime minister and most of his ministers paid allegiance and openly manifested support for Captain Camara and his National Transitional Consultative Council.
President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal, a prominent regional player also endorsed the new military junta during a visit to Paris, France. He described Captain Camara as an honest young man and urged the international community not to throw stones at them, according to the BBC.
During a meeting with the country’s opposition and other members of civil society, the young captain vowed to review contracts of the mining sector, suspended extraction of gold, warned of corruption and emphasized political and economic reforms as the driving force of his National Transitional Consultative Council. He also vowed to organize elections with no intentions of contesting the presidency.
Could Captain Moussa Camara’s National Transitional Consultative Council therefore set Guinea on the path to political, social and economic reforms? This is a very good question that many continue to grapple with.
An understanding of strategies employed by previous military juntas in the sub-region is what many are contending to be the same old rhetoric in the most recent resurgence of Captain Camara’s National Transitional Consultative Council in Guinean politics. However, taking into consideration the timing of the coup, Conte’s 24 year autocratic misrule, and endorsements by both a prominent regional player, President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal and constituents across the Guinean political landscape, it is imperative to give the situation the benefit of the doubt.
That may be possible only by supporting the young military leaders to ensure that Guinea does away with its authoritarian past through reformations across Guinean communities.
In a region that is already ravaged by bloody civil wars in Liberia, Sierra-Leone, Ivory Coast, low level insurgencies in the southern Senegalese region of Cassamance and northern Mali, isolating the military junta and suspension of aid could have an adverse impact on the sub-region. Guinea continues to be home to thousands of refugees from neighboring Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau.
Ethnic division has also made the political situation of the West African nation a volatile one. An escalation of tension along ethnic lines could spread to neighboring Liberia, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau, Senegal and Mali. This is due to the cultural, economic and historical ties that still exist between the people of these countries.
The African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the European Union (EU), the United States and the United Nations must therefore engage the junta and give them all the necessary support for quick reforms and restoration of constitutionality. Suspending aid at this time is not at all necessary because Guinea badly needs it at such a crucial time. This may lead to undesired results and further polarize the already volatile Guinean communities. It may also shape the foreign policy behavior of the West African nation to ways that may bring dangerous global actors in the sub-region. And that is not what West Africa needs at this time.
With collective international engagement and guidance, there is a great potential for the young military leaders to successfully embark on political, economic, and social reforms that may likely put Guinea in the category of West Africa’s successful democracies.
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