Mauritania and the African Union; All is rather easily forgiven

Mauritania and the African Union; All is rather easily forgiven

CAIRO

From The Economist print edition

A coup-maker becomes a civilian president

ALMOST a year after General Muhammad Ould Abdelaziz took power at the head of a military junta, he has stripped off his uniform and got himself elected as Mauritania’s civilian president. Various governments and international bodies, led by the African Union (AU), at first denounced his coup. Now they seem likely to welcome Mauritania fully back into the community of democracies.

Mr Abdelaziz won nearly 53% of the votes cast in the first round of an election on July 18th, forgoing the need for a run-off. His main rival, Messaoud Ould Boulkheir, who had been the parliament’s speaker, strongly opposing last year’s coup, got only 16%, ahead of three other candidates. He called Mr Abdelaziz’s victory an “electoral coup d’état” and said there had been massive fraud. But observers from the AU, the Arab League (of which Mauritania is a member) and the International Francophone Organisation endorsed the result.

Once Mauritania’s Constitutional Court approves, the old regime in new clothes under the original coup-maker is expected to repair its relations with the AU, the European Union (EU) and the United States, as well as the World Bank and the IMF. All these governments and bodies will argue that, thanks to the poll, they have not, in fact, endorsed a coup.

Mauritania has had a chequered history. One of the world’s poorest countries, it has been plagued by drought, locusts, and a lot of military coups. Maaouya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya ran the show from 1984-2005. In 2007 the country held its first fully democratic presidential poll. But a year later its current leader seized power from Sidi Muhammad Ould Sheikh Abdellahi, who had been recognised as the country’s legitimate leader after a genuine election victory only a year before.

As a result, development aid and a number of trade deals had been frozen and Mauritania’s membership of the AU suspended. General Abdelaziz, as he then was, found himself facing threats of sanctions from the AU and the EU unless “constitutional order” returned. Despite Libya’s and Qatar’s mediating efforts, the main opposition rejected the general’s proposal for a fresh election. In the end, Senegal’s president, Abdoulaye Wade, brokered a deal. Mr Abdellahi formally resigned, a transitional unity government briefly took shape, and the coup-maker got his democratic mandate. But it is not yet clear if ordinary Mauritanians think they have got a decent deal.

Source:The Economist

Guinea-Bissau holds run-off vote

Ruling party candidate Malam Bacai Sanha is seen as the front-runner Guinea-Bissau has held a run-off vote to replace President Joao Bernardo Vieira, who was assassinated in March. The poll pits two former heads of state against each other - Malam Bacai Sanha, seen as the favourite, and Kumba Yala. Guinea-Bissau has a history of coups and its people say they are tired of broken promises and violence, a BBC correspondent reports. President Vieira was killed in March in apparent revenge for the death of the head of the army in a bomb blast. Mr Vieira led Guinea-Bissau for most of the period after independence from Portugal in 1974 - serving as president for a total of 23 years between 1980 and 2009. There were no reported incidents of violence during Sunday's voting, and turnout among the 600,000 registered voters was estimated to be similar to the first round at around 60%. 'Time has come' Hoping for change in Guinea-Bissau The first round of polling on 28 June saw Mr Sanha win nearly 40% of ballots, 10% more than Mr Yala, the AFP news agency reports. When the two faced off in 2000, Mr Yala emerged as the winner. In their final campaign rallies, both men repeated promises to bring peace and stability to the country. Mr Sanha, who served as interim president from 1999-2000, is the candidate of the ruling PAIGC, the party of the 1970s struggle against Portuguese colonial rule. This is the third time he has stood for president, having been defeated once by Koumba Yala and in 2005 by Mr Vieira. His motto is "Hora Tchica" - meaning "the time has come". Koumba Yala oversaw a period of economic crisis Mr Yala, who was overthrown in a 2003 coup, is the leader of the opposition PRS. Many Bissau-Guineans hold him responsible for changing the political and economic course of the country for the worse, the BBC's Luis Cardador says. During Mr Yala's presidency, the IMF and the World Bank suspended aid to the country after accusations of mismanagement and a string of sackings in the government. But he is believed to have wide support within the military. Our correspondent says in past elections, voting has largely gone along ethnic or religious lines, but many people are now so fed up with the situation that this seems to be changing. Guinea-Bissau is cash-starved and heavily dependent on just one product - the cashew nut. In recent years it has become a major transit point in drug smuggling between South America and Europe. BBC

Feature: Africa’s future is up to Africans

“If we do not approach the problems in Africa with a common front and a common purpose, we shall be haggling and wrangling among ourselves until we are colonised again and become the tools of a far greater colonialism than we suffered hitherto’’ Dr. Kwame Nkrumah

Africa is a land of resources; a land richer than any continent or richer than any part of the globe. It is a land of gold, bauxite, manganese, cocoa, forest resources. It is rich in different plant and animal species than any other continent. We are told by the experts that more than 60% of the world’s gold comes from Africa with South Africa and Ghana being leading producers. We are also told that 42% of the world’s hydro-electric power potential is in Africa and that; the Congo Basin alone can produce food to feed half of the world’s population. What then is our problem? What then makes Africa and her people the poorest in the midst of plenty? What is the future of Africa? These are questions that need to be answered by every African and African leaders in particular.

To start with, good governance is one ingredient that can help Africa out of poverty and open up opportunities for her people. Accountability, rule of law, freedom of the media, efficient judiciary inter alia all play important roles in strengthening efficient governance in Africa. These are elements of democracy. Democracy however has been thrown to the dogs of Africa and right from Cairo to Cape Town and Dakar to Addis Ababa; all is not well with our people as far as democracy is concern. People’s rights are violated because they probably do not belong to or support the ruling government. Our leaders often massage the constitution to enable them stay in power forever. This is evident in Kenya, Zimbabwe, Niger, Gambia, Cameroon among others. ‘‘Powerful leaders’’ such as Col. Qaddafi, Paul Biya, Robert Mugabe, Blaise Campoare, Hosni Mubarak have stayed in power for over two decades. In the words of President Obama, what is needed in Africa is strong institutions and not strongmen.

Corruption, nepotism and tribalism are enemies of development but which are deeply rooted in the continent of Africa. Corruption for instance has become a part of our life and most, if not all, of our leaders are victims of this canker. It will not also be wrong to say that some of them are in politics to amass wealth and property. Some often oppose every bill that is to be passed in parliament for the interest of the people but will support one that will grant them loans to buy cars for themselves and families. These are not the kind of leaders we need in Africa if we want our future to be free of poverty. It must be made clear that no amount of foreign aid and grants can take Africa out of poverty. Our future depends on how our leaders are able to use our resources efficiently and effectively for our benefit. Africa needs selfless and dedicated leaders and not tribalistic and inward-looking leaders who are interested in themselves and God for us all.

Furthermore, conflicts in Africa must give way to peaceful co-existence. How can we develop when people are fighting in Sudan, Congo, Somalia etc.? What affects one in any of these countries affect all of us indirectly for in the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr., ‘‘injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere’’. It is about time we used dialogue and non-violent means to fight for our rights. Now is the time to change the status quo and bid good-bye to conflicts and wars in Africa. Africa must unite to fight the common enemy of development.

In addition, education is the surest way of overcoming poverty. The development of Africa depends on the quality of her human resource. Countries like Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia and South Korea made it to the commity of developed and middle income countries because of the investment their governments made in their educational sector. Our educational system has collapsed and our leaders keep on reforming it almost every year. Corporate institutions instead of investing in education fail to do so but complain when graduates under-perform in the job. Students should be made to do vacation internship to make them fully equipped by the time they complete their courses of study. One thing certain is that, our leaders often send their children abroad for them to acquire the best of education and allow majority of us to our fate. This can not help us if we want a prosperous future for Africa.

Also, ‘the resource curse thesis’ seems to be working effectively in our part of the world. This is because most of the areas with abundant resources such as oil, diamond, manganese etc suffer a lot when it comes to the issue of development. The resources in such areas have become a curse rather than a blessing. Nigeria’s oil-rich Delta, Chad, Liberia, Angola and Rwanda are some of the resource rich areas yet, people in these areas are walloping in poverty. Some reside only a few metres away from the oil wells. But they lack electricity and indoor toilets. They have no hospitals, no running water and no schools. And there is unemployment too (African Agenda, 2006, Vol.9, NO. 4, page 5).

Agricultural development is one area that can put Africa’s future into a prosperous one. It is unacceptable that in the midst of vast land with plenty resources, Africa still receive food aid from America and other developed countries. In West Africa for example, over 60% of her population are employed in the agricultural sector whereas only 3% of the population of America are employed in that sector yet, the total produce from the West African countries can not even measure half of what is produced by the 3% of farmers in America. What a shame! Our problems are indeed numerous. Irrigation dams, credit facilities and modern farm implements should be made available to our farmers if we want to increase productivity in that sector.

In his speech to the parliament of Ghana, president Obama said, aid is not an end in itself. The purpose of foreign assistance must be creating the conditions where it’s no longer needed. I want to see Ghana and for that matter Africa not only self sufficient in food, I want to see you exporting food to other countries and earning money. You can do that (Daily Graphic, 13th July, 2009, page 9). Value should be added to our agricultural produce to make our goods competitive on the world market. Industrialisation should therefore be vigorously pursued across Africa.

Conclusion could be drawn by quoting the words of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah that; ‘‘the resources are there. It is for us to marshal them in the active service of our people. Unless we do this by our concerted efforts, within the framework of our combined planning, we shall not progress at the tempo demanded by today’s events and the mood of our people. The symptoms of our troubles will grow, and the troubles themselves become chronic. It will then be too late even for Pan African Unity to secure for us stability and tranquillity in our labours for a continent of social justice and material well-being’’.

Credit: Francis Xavier Tuokuu
National Service Person
University of Ghana
P.O.Box LG 59
Legon-Accra
(mactuokuu@yahoo.com)

Where were you when the UK government imploded?

By Brandon Hamber

There is probably not a reader of this column who has not been part of a ‘where were you when?’ conversation. Where were you when Nelson Mandela walked free? When Princess Diana died? When the Twin Towers crumbled? 


The last few weeks, in the UK, has been a ‘where were you when’ sort of time. Events have not been as dramatic as the assassination of JFK, but rather a slow build-up towards a ‘where were you?’ crescendo that is on its way.

This accumulation has concerned the revelations by the Daily Telegraph about UK members of Parliament’s (MPs’) expenses. The culmination will, at the risk of making wild predictions, be the collapse of the once dominant Labour Party of Tony Blair and then Gordon Brown. The process will reach its pinnacle when Labour loses the general election next year.

The revelations of how MPs from all parties 
have used expense accounts have been damning. MPs can claim expenses for costs of running a second home because most have to live in two places, that is, in their constituency and also in London, to attend Parliament. MPs can claim up to £24 006 (in 2008/9) for this ‘additional costs allowance’. They can claim things such as mortgage interest payments on second homes and utility bills. However, officials have allowed MPs to claim for furnishings, maintenance and food. Until recently, claims up to £250 did not even 
require a receipt.


The most shocking claims have included a claim for £1 645 for a ‘duck island’ (a little wooden house where your ducks can sleep, if you are wondering), expenses to clean a moat around a large house, £1 000 for the removal of ivy from a wall, household maintenance and refurbishment worth thousands, new 
toilet seats, trees, bath plugs, trouser presses, TVs, carpets and mock Tudor beams, not to mention all sorts of food claims.

What is even more worrying is that an array of politicians have engaged in ‘flipping’. This is the process whereby they claim one house as their second home, carry out necessary maintenance and refurbishments, and then flip to their ‘first’ home, claiming it then as their second home. Expenses for that property then follow. Other politicians have been even more crooked, claiming mortgage interest for properties on which they no longer owe money, and couples who are politicians claiming for the same property.


MPs, however, argue that their claims are, generally, within the rules. 
The rules, however, state that costs can only be claimed for those “incurred . . . wholly, 
exclusively and necessarily to enable” them to “stay overnight away from my only or main home for the purpose of performing” duties as an MP. But anyone can see that MPs have been using allowances to literally feather their nests, increasing their property values and lowering their daily expenses through having their grocery bills supplemented. 
Are such claims necessary to perform governmental duties?


Of course, not all politicians have been 
engaged in such practices, although most must have known about the system and its excesses. A number of ‘more guilty’ MPs have resigned. Others are attempting to pay back
some of their 
extravagant claims. But even in making these repayments, most seem to continue to miss the point.

Many persist on defining their repayment as a benevolent gesture for an error in judgment that took place within the context of the rules. But, to the person in the street, this just smacks of 
insincerity because everyone knows the rules have been abused. There is the letter of the law, but then there is the spirit of the law. The actions of many UK MPs are, at best, ‘generally corrupt’, and, if such actions took place in Africa, no one would hesitate to condemn the whole system as endemically corrupt.

So, my MP friends, where will you be when the UK government comes crumbling down? Cleaning your duck pond or down on your knees begging for forgiveness?

Edited by: Martin Zhuwakinyu

Belfast and Johannesburg: peas in a racist pod?

By: Brandon Hamber

I long to live in a society where there is no racism but, living between Belfast and Johannesburg, this is impossible.

About a year ago, xenophobia in South Africa hit the international newspapers. Foreigners, mainly from Africa, were driven from their homes, with over 50 people being killed. Over 100 people have been prosecuted for the attacks. But recently information surfaced that local businesspeople in some townships have been meeting secretly to ‘look at’ how to rid the community of busines- ses owned by immigrants. Sporadic attacks continue.

Belfast recently featured in international papers with a similar storyline. Some 100 Romanians were forced from their homes by mobs of young people claiming the immigrants were taking their jobs and houses and stealing from the local community. The attacks seemed to take on a neo-Nazi feel, with swastikas and Nazi salutes being prominent. Most of the Romanians have now left Northern Ireland.

However, attacks against foreigners in Northern Ireland are not new. They have been a consistent feature of the society over the last decade.

In 2004, for example, Bill Rolston, at the University of Ulster, highlighted attacks against Pakistanis, Chinese and Zimbabwean immigrants, besides others. He also reported on incidents where local minorities were greeted at night by masked men robbing their houses and telling them: “You won’t be needing these; you’ll be leaving soon.”

Police statistics show that, in 1996, there were 41 racist incidents recorded; in 2006 and 2007, there were 1 047. Research by Neil Jarman, of the Institute of Conflict Research, has found that such incidents, although perceived as taking place largely in working-class Protestant areas in Belfast and linked to far right groups, have been documented in Catholic areas and recorded in all major cities, towns and villages in Northern Ireland. Perpetrators of such inci- dents also vary and are not restricted to rightwingers and paramilitary groups, as some believe.

Of course, the increase in incidents of racism can reflect the growing number of immigrants, improved reporting rates and the increased visibility of the issue. But the numeric increase is undeniable and the figures are also underrepresentative because many incidents go unreported. Weighing up the research on the issue, the conclusion is clear: racism is a serious problem in Northern Ireland.

The public response has been interesting. As in South Africa, the majority have condemned the xenophobic violence, and a range of antiracism protests have been organised. These actions are commendable. However, there also seems to be social distancing from the problem. Routinely, commentators and the public make reference to “groups of thugs” being responsible and are at pains to point out that the majority are welcoming and want foreigners in the cities.

I agree that the incidents are the work of relatively small groups, but there also seems to be a lack of acknowledgement that prejudice is deeply ingrained across the society, as it is in South Africa. People in Northern Ireland, like those in South Africa, tend to take notice only when problems explode. In the times in between, most of us, including politicians, ignore low-level violence and racism. This reinforces the idea that there is an ‘acceptable’ level of violence and that some racism is toler- able. This creates the foundation for extremism.

I am yet to meet an African living in Belfast, myself included, who has not, at some point, been abused for not being from the society. Such incidents are generally not life threatening and most people are indeed friendly, but the hatred must be coming from somewhere and cannot be overlooked or seen as concerning specific individuals only.

In this context, surely, the majority of the population’s general avoidance of issues until they reach mammoth proportions, the ongoing use of segregated schools and housing, which inculcates a propensity for division, and the fact that most political parties continue to appeal to voters using narrow, single-identity politics and, in some cases, anti-immigration rhetoric, cannot be helping the situation.

Edited by: Martin Zhuwakinyu

Congo election results in court

Brazzaville - An opposition presidential candidate on Friday asked Congo's constitutional court to throw out last weekend's vote that saw President Denis Sassou Nguesso re-elected in a landslide.

"I have just filed the appeal signed by Mr (Mathias) Dzon to ask for the cancellation" of the election, said Herve Ambroise Malonga, a lawyer for Dzon.

He said the complaint was based on allegations of ballot box stuffing, among other reasons.

Also on Friday, four candidates, including Dzon, held a news conference to denounce the vote results as being cooked up in the "laboratories of power".

Dzon, a 62-year-old former finance minister, had been seen as Sassou Nguesso's main rival but took a mere 2.3% of the votes.

He and five other candidates had called for a boycott of the election after allegations that the electoral list had been grossly overinflated.

Sassou Nguesso, who returned to power after civil war in 1997 and has run the Congo for a total of a quarter century, won Sunday's poll with 78.6% of the vote.

- SAPA

Presidential Campaign in Mauritania Enters Final Week By Scott Stearns Accra 12 July 2009 Presidential campaigning in Mauritania enters its final wee

By Scott Stearns Accra

Presidential campaigning in Mauritania enters its final week with the country's leading opposition politician squaring off against the former general who took power in a coup last August.

Electoral Commission President Sid Ahmed Ould Deye says Mauritania will be ready for Saturday's vote.

Mauritania's toppled president Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi formally resigning as part of power-sharing deal with military, 27 Jun 2009

After a meeting with Interim President Ba Mamadou, Deye told reporters that the electoral commission is performing its duties with neutrality and transparency, ensuring equal treatment for all candidates.

Deye says there will be more than 250 electoral observers on hand to monitor the vote.

It is a contest to restore constitutional order in Mauritania after General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz toppled the country's first freely-elected leader 11 months ago.

President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi formally resigned last month as part of a power-sharing deal negotiated in neighboring Senegal. The deal led to an interim government of military leaders and political opponents that is to yield power following this election.

General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz ( file photo)

Aziz resigned his military commission to contest the vote. He has been running longer than any of the other candidates, as he campaigned for nearly one month before an earlier scheduled vote that he agreed to postpone as part of the power-sharing deal.

Aziz is being challenged by another former military leader who organized the election that chose Mr. Abdallahi. Ely Ould Mohamed Vall is the only Mauritanian military ruler to give up power to civilians. He has considerable administrative and defense experience, including 20 years as director of national security.

The country's main opposition leader is also a candidate. Ahmed Ould Dadah's Alliance of Democratic Forces holds the most seats in parliament. He finished second to Mr. Abdallahi in the last election and hopes to win the backing of many Abdallahi supporters as the former president is not a candidate.

If no one wins more than half the vote Saturday, Mauritania's power-sharing deal calls for a second round of balloting August 1.

Presidential Campaigning Ends in Mauritania

Presidential Campaigning Ends in Mauritania
By Scott Stearns Rosso, Mauritania

Mauritania's toppled president Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi formally resigning as part of power-sharing deal with military, 27 jun 2009

Presidential campaigning in Mauritania ends Thursday. Saturday's vote is meant to restore constitutional order following a military coup that ousted the nation's first freely-elected leader.

Supporters of opposition leader Ahmed Ould Dadah cheered their candidate at a rally in the southern city of Rosso. He is from this farming community along the border with Senegal and is expected to do well here.

Dadah finished second in the 2007 election, behind Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, who was toppled in a military coup 11 months ago. Soldiers eventually yielded power to a transitional government that is organizing Saturday's vote.

Dadah tells his supporters they have a choice between the cycle of coup d'etat - transitional government - coup d'etat-transitional government, or a real democracy where the decision is made by people in the polling stations. Make your choice, he tells them, it is up to you to choose.

Dadah's party holds the most seats in parliament. He says he was quiet after, what he claims was, the electoral fraud that denied him power in 1991 and 2007 because he did not fear for the future of the country. But this time he says he is not prepared to be silent if the election is stolen, and, he tells his supporters, neither should they.

Sixteen kilometers up the road, supporters of former military leader Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz say the retired general is the right man to lead Mauritania because he is determined to fight corrupt politicians.

Corruption is one of the reasons Aziz gave for leading the coup against the Abdallahi government last August. He ignored African Union demands to restore civilian authority because he said that would not be in Mauritania's best interest. Instead, he changed the constitution to allow retired officers to run for political office before resigning his commission to contest this vote.

Aziz says the real people of the agricultural region around Rosso support him because they know he is committed to helping the poor. He says his civilian opponents in this election are all criminals, and after he beats them he is going to jail them. To the cheers of his supporters, he vows to build more prisons to hold the country's political elite.

If no candidate wins more than 50 percent of Saturday's vote, there will be a second round of balloting August 1st. Of the seven other candidates in this race, most political observers say the main challenger to Dadah and Aziz making it through to the second round is opposition legislator Massoud Ould Belkhare.

He is the descendent of freed slaves in a country where black Mauritanians in the south have generally had little political power.

Belkhare says this is a vote about defeating those who take power through military force. It is part of the continuing fight between democracy and dictatorship, and he says Mauritanians want to see the triumph of democracy.

Belkhare and Dadah have both vowed publicly to support the other if the vote comes down to one of them in a second-round run-off against Aziz August 1

World celebrates as Mandela turns 91

Happy Birthday Madiba, Africa is proud of you.
AFP
If there is a story to be told of an icon that inspires the world, characterised by the humility, warm humanity and a will for prosperity, then Madiba’s 91-year life story offers a story of life worth living Related Content Madiba rests while world works GALLERY: Smiles for Madiba Article Tools Print E-Mail Save and Share Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first democratically elected president, turns 91 today with a call for community service and celebrations from New York’s Madison Square Garden to downtown Johannesburg. Mandela Day makes magic Madiba rests while world works GALLERY: Smiles for Madiba The increasingly frail former statesman who is affectionately called Madiba, his clan name, has been inundated by messages of goodwill, from multinational companies to ordinary South Africans. But the Nobel peace laureate will spend the day at home with his family and close friends. This year’s birthday marks the inaugural Mandela Day, initiated by his charitable foundation in honour of the much-loved icon who became president in 1994. People around the world are being urged to dedicate 67 minutes of their day to volunteer for community service. The number reflects the number of years since Mandela dedicated his life to the struggle for equality in South Africa, as he joined the ruling African National Congress in 1942. Oprah Winfrey, a long-time Mandela friend, is among the big names who have pledged their support for the day. President Jacob Zuma praised Mandela as a beacon of hope, saying it has taken too long for the country to celebrate "this gold that is Nelson Mandela". "If there is a story to be told of an icon that inspires the world, characterised by the humility, warm humanity and a will for prosperity, then Madiba’s 91-year life story offers a story of life worth living," said Zuma. "Madiba taught us that we couldn’t live in peace in South Africa while the rest of Africa suffered the scourge of conflict and war," added Zuma. Mandela stepped down as president in 1999, after serving one term in office. He is still revered around the world for his promotion of peace, non-racialism and the fight against HIV. "Dear Madiba, thank you for getting out of jail or you would never have been president. Very very happy birthday," wrote an eight-year-old pupil from a girls’ school in Johannesburg, printed in one of the many special newspaper supplements dedicated to his birthday. Today’s main celebration is in New York, with a star-studded concert at Madison Square Garden. The line up includes the legendary American soul supremo Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and the West African musician Baaba Maal. In South Africa, celebrations will take place across the country under the theme of devoting time to help the less fortunate. Local pop stars will also hold a concert in downtown Johannesburg. According to his foundation, South Africa’s ambassador to the UN is lobbying for the official recognition of Mandela Day by the world body.

Presidential Election Begins in Mauritania

Presidential Election Begins in Mauritania
By VOA News 18 July 2009

Mauritanian woman casts her vote for president at polling station in Olympic Stadium, Nouakchott, 18 Jul 2009

Voters in Mauritania are casting ballots for a new president, less than a year after the country's first freely-elected leader was ousted in a coup.

General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is a candidate in the election. General Aziz overthrew President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi last August.

The general then changed the nation's constitution to allow retired officers to run for political office before resigning his commission.

General Aziz now faces challengers that include opposition leader Ahmed Ould Dadah. Mr. Dadah finished second in Mauritania's 2007 election.

Mr. Dadah is from a farming community near the country's border with Senegal and is expected to do well in his home region.

If no candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two candidates will face off in a second round of balloting on August 1.

More than 250 electoral observers from the Arab League and African Union are in the northwest African nation to monitor the vote.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and AP.

African View: A question of leadership

Obama told the large crowd of Ghanaians that he was honoured to be in Africa In our series of weekly viewpoints from African journalists, columnist and filmmaker Farai Sevenzo considers issues of leadership and that Obama trip to Ghana. My fellow Africans, it is an honour for me, indeed for us as a people, to be living in these times. From Accra to Zanzibar, from Lusaka to Libreville, we have been witnessing leadership the likes of which we may never see again. Just the other week, somewhere in a Libyan backdrop, a great leader said we should become the United States of Africa immediately, that we should not wait. Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi is calling for a united Africa And within the last 12 months, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi had been shouting from every mountain-top for the African people to share in his grand design of African Unity. "We want an African military to defend Africa, we want a single African currency, we want one African passport to travel within Africa," the colonel told assembled kings, chiefs and traditional rulers last year - before being declared "King of Kings" by the gathered chiefs, who were themselves in danger of being declared clowns with crowns. Predictable leadership But nobody listened then and they weren't listening only two weeks ago when those who purport to be our leaders gathered in the colonel's tent in Sirte and gave us another predictable African Union conference in which the brotherhood of presidents nod to each other and ignore issues of human rights. Obama understands them, said the commentators, he can speak to Africans better than anyone else can, as if the language of empathy is an alien one Tough love from a brother They talk up the idea of union even as they wage wars against their neighbours and kill their own for voting the wrong way, and choose to stick together when the International Criminal Court accuses one of their own of crimes against humanity. Save Bashir from the evil ICC, they cried. No he must face the music, said Botswana. Occasionally there is a lone voice of dissent, but leadership as we have come to know it is predictable fare and the pace of change on our continent remains tied to the fate of men and women who have no wish to give up that leadership. Friend in the White House I was in the middle of these musings over a very late breakfast, when the airwaves seemed to go up a pitch in great excitement. It was as if the second coming was here. Journalists, broadcasters, ordinary people were positively gushing over the expected speech of one Barack Hussein Obama to the parliament of Ghana in Accra. Whenever this grandson of Kenya opens his mouth, it is to spew great floods of hope and purpose, to carry all our ears to the loftiest clouds of possibilities. Furthermore, unlike an Obama Beer, he leaves no trace of a hangover after these flights of fancy. Will it stop the killings, the rapes the blind loyalty to men who will not be in the future we need to build? He spoke to the chosen lucky Ghanaians and reminded them of their proud past, he evoked Kwame Nkrumah and told us Africans to fight for our right to democracy. He went on and on with that pop star charisma about what this 21 Century demands of us if we are to reach our full potential. He chided and encouraged, bit and blew kisses, and like everyone else who has been caught in the glow of his amazing journey, the Ghanaians seemed to glow at Barack Obama's passing over their fair city. Obama understands them, said the commentators, he can speak to Africans better than anyone else can, as if the language of empathy is an alien one. Is this the leadership model that will win us over? Is this the one to follow? Then what do we do with all the generals and coup-plotters and geriatric old men who gathered in the colonel's tent a fortnight ago to silently imply that democracy doesn't work in Africa, that opposition breeds violence? And what exactly did his speech tell us that we have not been saying to ourselves? More importantly will it stop Africans from crossing the desert, paying people traffickers for the privilege of drowning off the Spanish coast in search of a life outside of Africa? Will it stop the killings, the rapes, the blind loyalty to men who will not be in the future we need to build? Will presidents end their habit of changing constitutions so they can stay on and on and on? According to the Orator, it's really up to us. And before you all start screaming "Yes We Can" at your radios, or naming your twins Barack or Hussein, yes the President of America is the first friend we have had in the White House in a long time, he said he carries African blood in his veins, but he cannot fix our tomorrows. What do think about Farai Sevenzo's latest viewpoint? Send us your comments using the postform below. I think people like Gaddafi should simply shut up and stop boring Africans with this talk of United States of Africa. It'll never happen and that's a fact of life. He's had his hand in every coup pie on this continent. The likes of Charles Taylor and late Sankoh are his own products. Osabutey ANNY, Tema, Ghana You have in the same tent in Sirte: Mugabe, Gaddafi, Bashir, Dos Santos of Angola, Nguesso, Mubarak, Odinga, Kibaki and you want to talk democracy?You must be joking. Majority of them should just be shipped to join Taylor. Lesetja Ledwaba, Tshwane, South Africa Farai's write-up is a nice one. Our leaders in Africa are quiet insensitive and selfish. They lie and steal, slain and slave us... Africans need to rise up to the challenge. We should not wait for Obama to provoke our minds to action. Even if he has African blood in his veins, can he shed it for the continent? We are the inmates of the land and our success will definitely be from our hands. Popoola Bil'amin, Abeokuta, Nigeria I am a proud African, but not proud of the kind of leadership that we have. Obama is correct to say the things that he says about Afica and we know they are real, we live with them daily and we say it is okay, it is order of the day, but if we want an Africa that we are all proud off, then we need to believe that we too can set the standards, institutions and even move away from all the stereotype that we have been made. But on the other hand, isn't America, just doing PR because at the end of the day they will always want to be superpower and if helping Africa genuinely was to happen, then it should have happened a while ago. Edwinah Orowe, Nairobi Kenya I don't agree with this perspective at all - to assume that Obama 'understands' Africans simply because he is an African - yet the content of his speech made no acknowledgement of the role of the US in constructing African dictatorships. These rulers get a lot of support from the West and the West benefits materially out of these regimes - Shell in Nigeria is a good example. Obama also glossed over AfriCom - a move which has been resisted by African leaders and this is an important interest of the US setting itself up in Africa. I agree with JohnBMal, the BBC needs a more critical perspective on things. Nsandi, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe I am an African who feel very offended by Mr Obama coming to our continent and being a very ungracious guest. Mr Obama where are your manners? You don't get invited into somebody's house and you go and bad mouth them. Yes colonialism and neo-colonialism are responsible for most of our problems in Africa. Who are you kidding?! You want to blame African leaders for the continent's crisis but don't you know that these leaders try to operate in global system that is screwed against them? What really do you know about colonialism and its after effects? I cannot believe that a foreign leader comes into our continent and abuses us and we clap for him. Which other regions of the world will allow that? I don't care if African blood is in him he must not come there and disrespect us. personally I hope he never gets invited back into Africa. But I will advise Mr Obama that if has anything to say next time about Africa, he should instead talk about the immense constraints imposed upon Africa by this international system. The entire structure, organization and function of this system is biased against us. So I am not happy at all with this speech. It was a terrible insult to us Africans. Even if what he said was completely true, he should have met the African leaders, say at the AU meeting, and talk to them there. He has just given Africa's enemies more ammunitions. And I ask my fellow Africans: Where is your pride and love for your motherland? Are you that dumb that somebody will curse you out and you applaud them? WAKE UP!!!! Aminu Wouba, Cameroon Africa has the best politicians money can buy! I know people are not happy with what Obama spoke, he spoke like a distant relative paying a visit and he spoke the truth, it is painful, it is bitter and it is true. Every government in Ghana since independence has had a charge of corruption levelled against them. This hold's true for every government in Africa. Selfish self-centered politicians who get wealthy at the cost of the electorate, set up totalitarian regimes to stay in power, rape the economy and blame it on the foreigners. If you have son or daughter who wants to be a politician, kill them for they will bring shame to your family name. FiveFiveFive, Accra Ghana Africa expected too much from Obama because his father was African, after reading his book "Dreams from my Father" I am in no doubt that he is as biased and as morally arrogant to us as all the other 'white men' that come here. 'White men' don't always have white skin and it takes more to be an African than to just have African DNA. Lesley Agams, Abuja, Nigeria As an American I am absolutely offended by the comment that President Obama is the 'first friend we have had in the White House in a long time.' African's should discount all the efforts and money President George W Bush provided to Africa. As a tax payer who's money went to Africa under Bush, I am appalled by such an ungracious comment. Sure Bush wasn't 'African', but I don't think that is a legitimate qualifier for acceptance. If so, then we should be re-thinking our whole development strategy. Everyone needs to wake-up, Obama's greatest qualification is not his race! Amber, New York I find it disturbing that a President of any nation, addressing the Political leadership of another country, decides to use that venue to discuss a whole continent (50+ countries). As if the men/woman in that room are responsible for what happens in Sudan or Congo, anymore than a congress man in Washington DC is responsible for the actions of a politician in Canada. Why did he not speak that way to the Russian parliament when their Corruption Perception Index is higher then 96% of most other countries and dissidents are being poisoned? There seems to be a "talk-down-to" and a "lump-together" mentality there. He was in Ghana and should have spoken about Ghana. We may all look the same but we don't all salute the Ghanaian flag (in "Africa".) Andrew Priam, Abuja, Nigeria Well said article. I could not add more. Only few exceptions exist in Africa. Belay, Addis Ababa Can someone please tell this guy to stop showering praises to Obama as if he is the king of the world in this age because from the looks of things he is leading a crumbling economy. Instead of him going around the world and having photos of him taken Like his some Hollywood Star and uttering a lot of meaningless words which are not backed by works, he should consider going back into his oval office and think of ways to America before he starts thinking of saving the world. As far as i am concerned at the present moment China is the super power because its the one with all the money so i don't know what's all this craze over Obama. Huddy, Cape Town I take issue with that statement that "yes the President of America is the first friend we have had in the White House in a long time". That is an insult to Bill Clinton, George W Bush and many American Presidents that have been great to democracy on the continent. How is the Messiah I mean President Obama any different from past presidents? He is a man like them all. Wait and see. Isaac Mensah, Baltimore, Maryland, USA This writer says that Obama carries African blood in his veins but cannot fix our problems. Obama can make promises to Pakistanis, Afghans, Muslims and Israelis about what he can do to solve their problems. Yet his only solution to his continent is that Africa solves its problem. President George W. Bush helped Africa more if President Obama were to end his reign on this note. Thomas, New Jersey, US The great orator did not say new things. We always knew that change can only come from within. However, this does to mean that the West did not/is not playing a negative role. We do not produce weapons of killings the West does. We do not topple revolutionary governments but the West does through its hired mercenaries. ...And we Africans, we deserve the governments that we have. We have to change and pragmatically try to bring change to our country. Simply blaming strong men of Africa is not enough!! Kelemu, Alberta,, Canada Well said Mr Sevenzo. What chance does the continent have if after all these years the Godfather of coup plots - Gadafi is repositioning himself as the father of the radical changes Africa Need? Clearly, he cannot claim to have any new strategies he has not already implemented. However, as a mark of his commitment to the illusion that is "United States Of Africa", he should declare Libyan job market open to all Africans and most importantly, step aside and allow the concept of true democracy to come to the fore. Suhood Komeh, London Farai's opinion is 100% correct. There is no leader in Africa but rulers that are being disturbed by indigenous crude mentality. It requires an exotic breed of Obama's Ideology for them to wake up from their slumber. Gadafi is advocating for United Africa that they (leaders) will sit upon to oppress. God will not allow the plan to work. Amen. Dr Gbolagade LAMEED, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria The problem with African leaders is that they lack vision. They have no clue what legacy means. All they think is how to enrich themselves at the expense of their followers. They fear poverty than they fear death. But death is certain. Poverty can be banished or tamed with good governance. Tayo Olayiwola, Tallahassee FL I find this very troubling - why is that the BBC always gets those who support its point of view to write articles? Even in readers/viewers comments only those with view identical to the BBC are printed. The truth is most Africans are unhappy with Obama's speech. Many articles have been written in the past 48 hours on this, yet the BBC again prefers to make the story instead of reporting. JohnBMal, Pretoria I don't agree with John BMal, they may criticize Obama's speech that their right to do so, if you look at where Africa is now and where was immediately after the independence you will find instead of moving forward is going back ward, how are we discuss about United of Africa, while in South Africa are killing other fellow Africans who helped them fight against discrimination. Look where Zimbabwe is now, is that kind leaders we wish to have in Africa, he thinks himself to be the only intelligent capable to rule Zimbabwe until he dies. Alimasi Omari, New Jersey, USA