Eyob Balcha Gebremariam

The new Ethiopian parliament was officially opened on Monday, 5 October, 2015. The best depiction that can capture the essence of this new parliament is its paramount role in the consolidation of electoral authoritarianism in Ethiopia.

The May 24, 2015 Ethiopian election is an archetypical political process where authoritarian developmentalism went to the poll seeking procedural democratic legitimacy for its less inclusive economic growth and severely restricted civil and political rights of citizens.

Lots of questions came to my mind. What’s the importance of the “The US-Africa Summit”? From whose perspective shall we measure its relevance? From the US leaders’ perspective (especially President Obama)? From African leaders’ perspective? From US citizens’ perspective?