highlights the shortcomings of walk to work campaign initiated by the opposition in Uganda:

‘Undoubtedly, the protests were an excellent idea where the Ugandan opposition rallied around an issue of common interests that affects the Nation as a whole instead of rallying around individuals and personalities. Even though the Idea isn’t original, the fact that it works is what mattered the most; participating in an activity that isn’t illegal but drives a point home. The biggest problem with the protests is their violent nature. As much as they claim to be peaceful, we have seen shops looted, businesses abandoned government cars set on fire among others as certain elements use the confusion to perpetrate crime…

‘First and foremost, the opposition should denounce all forms of violence … They should clearly state that any individuals who engage in any form of violence or crime shall be disowned and are not a part of what the cause is trying to achieve…

‘As accountable leaders, they should take responsibility for all their actions even when things go wrong. The opposition should keep a record of all deaths during the protests and should offer any possible help to the grieving families in their time of despair.’

The Zambian Economist reviews the recently unveiled manifesto of the Patriotic Front (PF) – Zambia’s largest opposition party:

‘The Patriotic Front (PF) has adopted "change" as their core theme for their campaign this year. Indeed, their recently unveiled manifesto promises a significant departure from virtually all policies implemented by the ruling part - the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) - in the last 20 years...

Beginning with the foreword by the PF president, the promise of the PF manifesto is a Zambia where jobs are plenty, individuals (and companies alike) pay low taxes (even lower for families with children), while the value of incomes and savings is protected by a low inflation rate and a fixed exchange rate. For those that want to borrow, there will be government assured low interest rates…

‘You could be forgiven for mistaking this idealistic picture the PF manifesto creates with the biblical description of paradise…

‘What fascinates - or worries - most about this manifesto is not what it says, but rather, what’s missing; the details of how this PF utopia can be achieved! Exactly how would PF simultaneously (and vastly) increase public sector spending, while lowering taxes and refusing to borrow from external partners?

‘The PF manifesto is heavy on "good-to-hear" sound bites, but incredibly thin on detail - the "how?" question. Without the details, and specifics, the PF manifesto is nothing more than hollow rumblings aimed at exciting the uninformed and unsophisticated masses!’

West Africa wins always sheds light on the perplexing destruction of statues constructed by ex-President Laurent Gbagbo in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire:

‘The statues Gbagbo erected across the city to celebrate the glorious superiority of Ivory Coast were, as it turns out, diabolical instruments to consolidate his grip on power. Human sacrifices are said to have been buried under the statues to cast a powerful magic spell on Gbagbo’s presidency, which of course his wife considered a god-given position no human being could take away. It is only when Ouattara’s troops smashed two of the biggest ‘monuments’ that they were able to break Gbagbo’s spiritually enhanced resistance and enter the hide-out under the presidential residence to arrest him. This is what one of Ouattara's soldiers told me, and he was not joking. Destroying the rest of the statues was one of the first acts of government Ouattara carried out before his inauguration. A bulldozer was removing the remainders of the Saint Jean roundabout today.’

Rising Africa highlights the plight of Hassan Touray who is currently in prison in The Gambia because his company sued the government for non-payment and breach of contract:

‘In the murky gloom of Gambia's dictatorial regime, and Jammeh's misrule and tyranny, a few beacons of light stand out with purpose. None other than Hassan Touray, a man who gives us hope that values like honesty, integrity are not outdated and extinct in today's world.

‘What is clear is that Yahya Jammeh is not the only culprit in The Gambia, he just happens to be the most visible face of its misery. The Mafia families, the patronage networks, the cronies of the regime are equally culpable. Tackling just Jammeh and letting all his associates go scot free, would just mean replacing one crook with another. Which is what happened in Russia, all the ex Communists, ex KGB, ex Comissars, went and joined the Russian Mafia or became oligarchs themselves, replacing one form of tyranny with another.

‘Hassan Touray had a succesful, comfortable consulting career in the US, he could have happily lead a peaceful life, like most other immigrants. But he choose to give it up, all come back to his home nation, to build a better future. Which is why it is imperative, that people like Hassan Touray receive our support, these are the kind of leaders that not just Gambia, but the entire world needs. People of integrity, honor and values. People willing to sacrifice for the sake of their nation. Hassan Touray, for all his sacrifice, has been charged and arrested by the Gambian Government. He needs our support, not just him, but every Hassan Touray in Africa needs our support. For too long, we have allowed the continent to be manipulated by self seeking leaders who looted the countries.’

Danniso provides a scathing analysis of the performance of President Bingu wa Mutharika of Malawi:

‘He’s got no clue how to khala bwino, how to properly interact, with his own people. One day he’s calling Northerners arrogant ungratefuls for their anti-quota system stance (even as he doles out plum parastatal and civil service posts only to members of his ethnic group), the next he’s calling all Malawian drunks because they couldn’t understand the reason our flag had to be urgently changed.

‘Our president brooks no criticism and doesn’t tolerate complaints. Dare criticize and in his eyes you’ll be nothing but an unemployable fool. Dare slight his performance on governance and he’ll take to the podium to rant that you're a nkhwezule, an insignificant being. If you happen to be an ambassador, better not let the president get wind of what you privately report to your bosses about him lest your country gets labeled a stupid donor that listens to an equally stupid opposition.

‘Ironically, our grumpy old man in State House whines that he’s the most insulted Malawian president ever. Yet the truth is that he's rewriting the thesaurus on presidential insults. How to Insult Your Own People may be hitting the shelves not too long from now.

‘Is the president's grumpiness a result of his incompetence to run the country? Indeed, some pundits have argued that the president has lost his way because his eyes are primarily focused on how to play his cards so that someone he favors succeeds him in 2014. Yes, it’s possible that haunted as he is by indiscretions that he doesn’t want uncovered by an unfriendly regime, he can hardly focus on the problems that bedevil the country. Nightmarish visions of a Malawian prison cell can indeed knock a president off his stride.’

BROUGHT TO YOU BY PAMBAZUKA NEWS

* Dibussi Tande blogs at Scribbles from the Den.
* Please send comments to [email protected] or comment online at Pambazuka News.