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The President of the United States Africa Commands, Ghana, Abednego Orstin Rawlings, has slammed West Africa Presidents for the collapse of the Economic Community of West Africa States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG).
He argued that if these African Presidents had not caused the ECOMOG to fail, no nation in the world could invade or dare.
According to Ortsin, the self-centredness of these leaders collapsed the only monitoring group that intervened to halt numerous civil wars in West Africa.
The ECOMOG was a West African multilateral armed force established by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
In an attempt to end the bloody civil war in Liberia, in August 1990, a group of West African nations under the auspices of the ECOWAS took the unprecedented step of sending a peacekeeping force to Monrovia.
Mr Ortsin wondered why current West African leaders are not thinking of reviving ECOMOG to tackle the current wave of instability within the sub-region.
He said most leaders in Africa think about themselves, families, and friends, not their citizenry. They only think of perpetual stay in office adding that a classic example was Guinea’s Alpha Conde who tampered with his country’s constitution to stay in power for long.
“What did his colleagues and other West African Presidents say to him? None of the West Africa Presidents made mentioned or said anything to Mr. Alfa Conde when he was messing up,” the AFRICOM boss said.
“They did not caution him and he went ahead to amend his country’s constitution. When he was overthrown, these same colleagues and Presidents condemned the military officer.”
He also lambasted Ivorian President Alhassane Quattara who told his Vice President, His Excellency Tiemoko Meyliet Kone, that he wasn’t competent enough to become President of the good people of Ivory Coast. Mr. Rawlings stated that only a few African Presidents put on their thinking caps.
President Alhassan Quattara must hand over power to His Excellency Tiemoko Meyliet Kone, his Vice President now before it is too late for him since he cannot be the only wise person in Ivory Coast, he stated.
The opposition leader of Senegal Ousmane Sonko was charged and jailed because the current President Macky Sall thought and suspected that if he (President Macky Sall) allowed him, he will become the next President.
Even though such a situation has led to chaos, no West African leader has condemned President Macky Sall. If the Military stages a coup, these same colleague Presidents will surely condemn it.
“Why do all the West African States consider Ghana to be a shining star or one of a kind? Among the West African States, no Ghanaian President would consider changing the written and sealed rules to allow him or her to run for the presidency for two terms.
“The Nigerian Armed Forces couldn’t fight small Boko Haram but are trying to fight the Niger Armed Forces, they shouldn’t dare them.”
According to Mr Ortsin, most of the current Presidents in West Africa States are abusing their offices to the extent that living has become very tough for the citizenry adding that only a few are enjoying the national cake.
The United States of America, which brought democratic government has offered Africa with United States Africa Command ( AFRICOM ), the only move that will surely make all the governments on African continent be under it but based on the abuse of offices, most African Presidents are not ready to welcome and accept it because they intend having the power to dead or life-style prevent them from bailing Africans from such atrocities ruling.
“If European leaders are rushing to become members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), to strengthen their security and lives, then African Presidents also rush in needless trading,” he charged.