Africa’s citizens, not soldiers, must protect and demand democracy

Recent protests show that citizens can demand accountability from their leaders instead of waiting for coups to fix broken governments.

Despite decades of democracy, many African countries have yet to realise the anticipated dividends. Accountability, a key feature in representative democracy, is largely missing from the continent’s politics. Rather, impunity and abuse of power seem to be the norm.

In countries such as Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Eritrea, and Uganda, leaders have manipulated their constitutions to extend their stay in office, and there is no legitimate way to remove them, irrespective of their performance.

Most African citizens have to wait for their countries’ next election before attempting to demand accountability through the ballot. However, the flawed nature of some elections hardly reflects citizens’ will; instead, these polls are designed to favour or secure another victory for the incumbent.

Even in cases where corrupt and underperforming leaders are voted out, their successors have not done better, as is being witnessed in countries like Ghana and Nigeria. As a result, many citizens have become disillusioned by Africa’s poor quality of representative, accountable and developmental governance.

Afrobarometer’s African Insights 2024 report reveals that despite most citizens believing elections are the best way to choose leaders, only 37% are satisfied with how democracy works in their country. Established democracies like Mauritius, Botswana and South Africa recorded the largest drops in satisfaction. These trends indicate that Africa’s democratic governance, peace and stability are in jeopardy if poor governance and underdevelopment continue.

But a more worrying trend from the Afrobarometer survey is the increase in tolerance for military intervention. Over 53% of respondents, especially the youth, were willing to tolerate coups if incumbents abused their powers. Citizens’ opposition to military rule has also dropped by 11 percentage points across 30 countries. Countries such as Mali, Niger, Gabon and Burkina Faso that experienced coups before or after the survey, recorded the highest support for military intervention and the least opposition to military rule.

The growing support for military intervention is dangerous not only for the continent’s stability but also for its development. While democratic governance hasn’t lived up to expectations, the history of coups and military governments from the 1960s suggests that most military regimes in Africa won’t do any better.

Instead of waiting for the army to get involved in fixing Africa’s broken governments, citizens should be demanding accountability. Recent events on the continent show that this is doable and that the public, especially the youth, can exert and demand accountability from their leaders.

Mass protests in Senegal by civil society, opposition parties, women, youth, organised labour and academia in recent years forced Macky Sall to abandon any intention of a third presidential term. Later, protests against postponing the polls contributed to the Constitutional Court declaring the president’s actions unconstitutional – ultimately leading to a successful election and handover of power.

In Kenya, the decision to introduce a finance bill that sought tax hikes to raise US$2.69 billion in revenue to pay off the country’s debt sparked widespread protest, especially among the youth. Thirty-nine people died and 360 were injured – but it led to the government withdrawing the bill and pledging to cut US$1.39 billion in expenditure. Among the many other proposed reforms were several demanded by the protesters.

In Ghana, public protests against the sale of 60% of the shares in four hotels owned by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) to a company owned by the agriculture minister also yielded results. After several demonstrations and engagements failed, organised labour embarked on a nationwide strike. This forced the minister’s company to withdraw its bid for the hotels and led the government and SSNIT board to terminate the sale.

Shortly after, Parliament’s introduction of a bill to amend portions of the 2012 Road Traffic Regulations was widely condemned. The bill would have allowed Members of Parliament, government ministers and Supreme Court judges to have sirens fitted in their cars – something usually reserved for emergency vehicles. This sparked a social media protest, which led to its withdrawal and a public apology from the Speaker of Parliament.

In Nigeria, citizens started a 10-day nationwide protest on 1 August under the headline #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria. Voters demanded an end to bad governance, corruption and the rising cost of living. Seventeen people died in the demonstrations, with over 681 people arrested. In response, President Bola Tinubu called for an end to the protest to allow for dialogue.

These developments highlight the importance and power of citizens in demanding accountability from their governments. They provide three lessons for presidents, policy makers and the public across the continent amid signs of rising disaffection with democracy and underdevelopment.

First, citizens are the only ones who can effectively police their democracy and ensure accountability. If the general public understands their power to make reasonable demands, there will be no need for the military to act against corrupt and failing governments.

Second, the public should not wait for a general election or regime change to demand that incompetent leaders perform. Africa needs citizens who are organised, united and prepared to defend their democracy without resorting to partisanship and ethnocentrism.

Third, leaders of African countries must understand that ultimate power and sovereignty belong to the people. The time of taking voters for granted is over. With a large, disgruntled, youthful population rapidly mobilised using social media, demanding accountability through mass protests has become more feasible.

The protests in Kenya and Nigeria are likely to be replicated in many African countries in the coming years if living conditions don’t improve and the abuse of power continues. A new era is here, in which a simple social media post can mobilise thousands and allow citizens’ voices to be heard in unison.

Written by Enoch Randy Aikins, Researcher, African Futures and Innovation, ISS.

Republished with permission from ISS Africa. The original article can be found here.