October 29, 2006

Greetings from Joyce Bakeshop, a must-visit for those of you who end up in Brooklyn. Perfect pastries, perfect coffees and free wireless – it’s everything the freelance journalist or recent Vassar grad could ask for.

Anyway, I thought that I’d take a break from the blog while I was in New York. But I realized two things. First, if I don’t write for six weeks, no one is coming back when I return to Cameroon. Second, there will always be jibba jabba that must be challenged.

Today’s edition of why I wish we could press the reset button on Africa like a bad round of NHL 2005 on the Gamecube is the recent announcement by Mo Ibrahim, a Sudanese billionaire, that he would establish a $5 million prize for retired African leaders, who, well, who leave office before they die and don’t loot their country’s treasury.

Predictably, this effort has generated great acclaim for Mr. Ibrahim and his foundation, and I agree that it’s nice of this guy to reward people for doing their jobs. But in all seriousness, if we’re offering a prize to people who call themselves democrats for leaving office and not pillaging their people, maybe we’ve run out of ideas.

Let’s just look at the logic behind this. If you were a dictator – err, check that, president – why would you leave office for the chance at winning $5 million. A recent report by the Nigerian anti-corruption watchdog said that since 1960, successive Nigerian governments have stolen or wasted $380 billion.

I’ve done the math so you don’t have to. The study, which is fairly conservative since the anti-corruption task force just went through official government documents, covers a period of roughly 45 years. That’s about $8.4 billion stolen per year through every sector of the Nigerian government. Now, although every petty bureaucrat in the country was probably on the take, the president has the most access to the funds. To them, $5 million is nothing.

(To be fair, critics say the study is politically motivated and is not to be trusted.)

I doubt President Omar Bongo of Gabon, who has been in power since 1967, is sitting there thinking, “hmmm….If I leave office now, how am I going to make ends meet? Wait, I’ve got a chance at $5 million. You know what, I do think it’s time for a life of ease and plaid pants in Florida.” Bongo just won an election to extend his term as the world’s longest-serving leader. And it looks like he’s thinking about running again. Viva democracy.

I guess this prize is as good as any idea out there right now, which is yet another sad statement. But like most other solutions to Africa’s many problems, it focuses on the top level rather than the small-scale changes that might actually make a difference. People need to feel like they can make a change, like their voices, wishes and desires matter. I doubt a prize for a president who leaves office will accomplish that.

Don’t worry. I have thoughts on that. But I want to let this marinate.

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Meanwhile, I’ve been conscripted into a group of writers and thinkers on African affairs, the sub-Saharan African Roundtable. Since blogger.com is giving me issues about linking to it, here's the URL: http://ssaroundtable.wordpress.com/.

It’s my friend Blake’s creation and includes several accomplished thinkers, African and expat alike, around Africa. And me. One of these things is not like the others.