via Bulawayo24 NEWS | Mugabe’s AU post ‘insignificant’ by News24 06 February 2014
President Robert Mugabe’s recent election to a top African Union (AU) position should not be seen as significant, the South African Institute for Security Studies has said, quashing reports that the veteran leader’s appointment could give him some form of credibility.
“It’s wrong to see Zimbabwe’s election to the Bureau as significant. The positions on the Bureau are rotational and it was Zimbabwe’s turn, Institute for Security Studies, Jakkie Cilliers told News24.
Mugabe was appointed first deputy chair of the AU executive council, a title for a potentially high-profile job.
The appointment was made at the AU assembly summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia last week.
According to the Herald, Mugabe’s election to the post positioned him to assume the AU chairmanship next year.
Africa’s autocrats
Cilliers said Mugabe could never be considered the future of the continent but “rather part of a diminishing number of Africa’s autocrats”.
African leaders at the summit also resolved not to attend the European Union-AU summit scheduled for Brussels in April if Mugabe was not invited.
But Cilliers said the leaders’ decision was one of “principle” rather than support for Zimbabwe or Mugabe.
COMMENTS
Well this is news. African leaders have at least one “principle”. How wrong I have been all this time. I thought they had no principles whatsoever. I stand corrected. These people must be proud now that they have a “principle”. It will be interesting to see who they sacrifice for this new “principle”. Since honesty, honour, decency, humility and self sacrifice are all out of the question this is where they will make their stand.
Sour grapes. This is all this article is about. Mugabe is the man of Africa at the moment and there is nothing anyone can do about it. There are many African countries that have not taken the chairmanship of the AU and among them only Zimbabwe was chosen. That was not a rotational coincidence. Those who do not believe that Mugabe is steering Africa towards Zimbabwe’s economic and foreign policies will have themselves to blame when they see Africa hardening its stance on resource nationalism, indiginization and other Mugabe policies. Mugabe has opened the eyes of the whole of Africa and Africa will be a continent with open eyes from now onwards. Is this analysis that Mugabe was chosen purely because it was Zimbabwe’s turn the same analysists who told us that Mugabe was not going to last for seven months after the 2002 Presidential elections? Some analysts indeed!!!!
Nimrod
If wishes were horses, even Shona gukurahundi beggars would ride!!!
True John Thomas true. One principle after 50years. Another principle 50years later and so on and so on. What a joke these jokers are.
The question is who stand to benefit or loose if african countries don’t attend the EU/Africa summit? One thing for sure is people don’t eat principles.
The AU is useless to us in as far as legitimacy issues are concerned. We don’t give a damn about AU, a club of no value which just wants to maintain the status quo. To hell with AU. what we need is sound economic policy, not irrelevant political hegemony.
I don’t believe that statement to be true at all. They are now pondering on weather they done the right thing after Mugabe ran his mouth and said “take your dirty hands off Africa” They were most probably hoping he would say “take your dirty hands off Zimbabwe” In any case why would the AU want to be holding meetings with countries with dirty hands? Why would they want aid from countries with dirty hands? He spoke for them all and if the EU had any pride at all they would stick to their guns or call off this conference. The AU needs to be exposed for what it is, A CLUB OF DICTATORS AND ASPIRING DICTATORS.
Who are you fooling Dr Dolittle? European wealth is actually African wealth which Europe stole. Without Africa there would’nt be Europe. What you are saying belongs to the past when Africans used to be told that they were lucky to be colonized. For a start, let us have all Europeans leave Africa and go home. Africans would be glad to leave Europe and come back home. Who would complain if we were to call for such a scenario? Europeans of cause. Why one may ask? The answer is very simple Europe depends on Africa. Now, through Mugabe, Africa is waking up and all europeans do not like it, including you Dr. Dowrong.
@ Nimrod
Oh – Europe stole all the money hey? So I guess the fact that the scientific and industrial revolutions happened in Europe [the basis of the modern world] have nothing to do with EU wealth?
And colonialism ended 50 years ago. So have the EU been ‘stealing’ since then? And the infrastructure that the Europeans left in Africa? What has happened to that?
Keep your minerals comrade. Your GDP is less than 1 percent that of Australia – and less than 0.5% that of the UK. You may think you’re a bigshot – but you’re fokal.
The west will just go to Botswana and most other African countries are doing business with the West. It’s just Mugabe that is a moron.
Mr Mupanasengende if you don’t know something why don’t you just shut up. Who told you that European economies rely on Africa. Look at your Zim. Its vice versa. What makes rhe economy to grow is the investments a country attracts from other countries. All those political lies about the past are no longer relevant in modern economies. Since you chased the white man what have you achieved in the last 10 years. The Zim industries are closing down at an alarming rate. So what is there to praise a leader. who want to score some cheap political points on the expense of the demise of the cuntry’s economy. So in your eyes Mugabe is a hero. What a joke.
Did anyone know that the GDP of Australia is the same as the entire AU? Or that the GDP of the UK alone is almost twice as much as the entire AU?
Why should anyone be concerned about the AU? If they like Mugabe – fine – ignore them. Just do business with pro-western AU countries, like Botswana – or maybe the EU should get it’s resources from countries like Australia and Canada.
Nimrod what African wealth are you talking about? If you mean that the EU is selfishly doing things to benefit themselves yes I would agree with you. Just like Zimbabwes wealth is now South Africas wealth. This is the way of this cruel world. That is why I said IF THEY HAD ANY PRIDE. Do not fool yourself and think that the EU cannot survive without Africa. If they need African resourses they can get them cheaply from middleman China. The reason why they would like to engage Africa themselves is because China is getting too strong. What about Africas wealth that is in the hands of some of these dictators and China. Some have more in their foriegn bank accounts than Chinamassa’s budget, so I am not fooling anyone. I am mearly giving my opinion as an African.
Forgive that nimrod guy he is living on a cocoon. He still has grudges for things that happened before probably he was not even born. He relies on heresay. What African people want is a fair share of resources not suffering while a few black Africans enjoy.
Shona gukurahundi Mugabe thought he had struck gold – what a sad ending for the 90-year Shona gukurahundi!!!
People want to act like Africa will always be poor..hanzi noone cares about Africa/AU handiti iyo EU ndivo vari kuisa invitation to Africa not the other way round??? Australia GDP is more than that of all AU but how much of that prospoerity is enjoyed by the indigenous people of Australia??? It’s a joke. And that is the kind of development rejected by Mugabe and Zimbabweans on 31 July 2013…THAT is the real reason why Mugabe is branded a tyrant and a dictator and placed on sanctions whilst the same leaders wine and dine the royals of Saudi Arabia and the autocrats of China who don’t allow women to vote or in the case of China there is NO vote at all and press freedom is non existent..Opponents are regularly jailed or executed asi the West havana basa nazvo and we still believe kuti the West is on Mugabe because of rights issues and not the issue of opening the eyes of Africans to self empowerment and control of our resources….
Don’t let yourselves be fooled..Africa is the continent of the future and everyone knows it except some of our own Africans who are trapped by the mentality of thinking external ideas/ideologies are superior…..Mugabe has opened the eyes of Africa…Land,Mines,Companies,Resources in Africa belong to Africa and should benefit Africans…We cannot be Aboriginised
@ Wezhira
Australian aboriginals make up less than 2% of the Australian population, yet they now own up to 10% of the land – and have rights to numerous mineral concessions. There are more Chinese people in Australia than Aborigines.
‘African for Africans’? Oh – I take it you mean black Africans only? Arabs are genetically more closely related to Europeans than Bantu Africans, and all peoples originated in Africa. So are Arabs not African – even though they are Caucasoid?
So can you please elaborate on what you mean by ‘Africa for Africans’? If you mean Bantu Africans, then I can remind you that Bantu African people (like Mugabe) originated in Central Africa and migrated southward (into Zimbabwe, displacing the indigenous San communities). If you mean Africa is for bantu Africans only – then that violates one of the first principles of the UN charter of Human Rights, and that is that discrimination on the basis of race.
Facts comrade. Facts.
Nimrod Mupanesengende wakadyiswa kanakuti uriBorder Gezi. Usatarisa pawakatsika, tarisa pauchatsika. Urirombe repfungwa chairo. Economics dzaunotaura ndedzipi, dzekuba mari. Muroyi akasengedzva chitunhu womuti ishasha!!!!!!!!!!! You were brainwashed by ceap ZANU PF politics. There is only one respectable President in Africa, KHAMA iBig Dhara. Mugabe wako is a symbol of shame, failure, necorruption. Basa kuvata kumameetings whether chairman or what a failure is a failure. Zimbabwe is a concrete symbolism of failure led by the most learned but uneducated man. Zimbabweans have NOTHING but stinking poverty. Our country its like used toilet paper because of people like Nimrod Mupanesengende vaiterera mateacher nepahwindo
It seems Mugabe is following in Gaddafis footsteps with his AU appointment. The people of Zimbabwe should also follow in the people of Libya footsteps.. An African autumn perhaps