This archive report was first published on 14 December 2019.
As the world watches the drama unfold in the United States, it's hard not to notice the stark contrast between the American experience and our own in Africa.
While Americans are engaged in a fierce battle to resist being turned into Africans by their own elected president, we in Africa are often stuck with our leaders forever.
Donald Trump's antics have sparked widespread ridicule and mockery, with Western leaders openly snickering behind his back. But despite the embarrassment, the Americans have a system in place to remove a rogue president, and it's only a matter of time before Trump is gone.
Not so in Africa, where our own 'Trumps' often cling to power long after they've outstayed their welcome. Some have come to power through military takeovers, while others have stolen elections and imprisoned or killed their opponents to stay in office.
But what about those who have gone through the motions of legitimizing their accession to power, only to engineer strategies to stay put even when they're no longer wanted? This is a question that may have given President Trump an idea, when he suggested that any attempt to remove him from office would trigger a second civil war in the United States.
It's a scenario that's all too familiar in Africa, where a sitting president who has nothing left to offer unleashes the instruments of coercion onto their people, killing, maiming, and raping until they give in and there's 'peace'.
But this is the 'peace' of the cemetery, and it's a fate that many Africans have suffered at the hands of their leaders. The main undertaking is the despoliation of our countries' resources for the benefit of the rulers, their families, and cronies, and foreign 'investors'.
So, while the Americans are engaged in a grim battle to resist being turned into Africans, we in Africa must ask ourselves: do we have the courage to get rid of our own 'Trumps'?
