Barack Obama has condemned African leaders who refuse to give up power, as he made the first address to the African Union by a US leader.
“Africa’s democratic progress is also at risk when leaders refuse to step aside when their terms end,” Obama said in a speech at the AU’s headquarters in the Ethiopian capital on Tuesday.
“No one should be president for life,” Obama said, adding that he himself was looking forward to handing over to his successor. “I have to be honest with you: I just don’t understand this. Under our constitution, I cannot run again. There’s still so much I want to get done to keep America moving forward. But the law is the law and no one is above it, not even presidents,” he said.
“And, frankly, I’m looking forward to life after being president. It will mean more time with my family, new ways to serve, and more visits to Africa.”
Obama singled out Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza – whose re-election to a third term provoked weeks of unrest in the small central African nation – as an example of the dangers of trying to stay put. “When a leader tries to change the rules in the middle of the game just to stay in office, it risks instability and strife, as we’ve seen in Burundi.” He said clinging to power was “often just a first step down a perilous path.”
“If a leader thinks they’re the only person who can hold their nation together, then that leader has failed to truly build their country,” Obama said, hailing Nelson Mandela as an example for the continent.
Obama also said the US stood with Africa to defeat terrorism and end conflict, warning that the continent’s progress will “depend on security and peace”.
“As Africa stands against terror and conflict, I want you to know the United States stands with you,” Obama told the African Union, highlighting threats ranging from Somalia’s Shebab, Boko Haram in Nigeria, insurgents in Mali and Tunisia, and the Uganda-led Lord’s Resistance Army rebels in central Africa.
Obama said the United States was backing AU military efforts and saluting the “brave African peacekeepers” battling militants. “From Somalia and Nigeria, to Mali and Tunisia, terrorists continue to target innocent civilians,” he said at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa.
“Many of these groups claim the banner of religion, but hundreds of millions of African Muslims know that Islam means peace. We must call groups like Al-Qaeda, ISIL (Islamic State), Al-Shebab and Boko Haram, we must call them what they are – murderers.”
But he also said that progress was being made. “Because of the AU force in Somalia, Al-Shebab controls less territory, and the Somali government is growing stronger. In central Africa, the AU-led mission continues to degrade the Lord’s Resistance Army,” he said. “In the Lake Chad basin, forces from several nations – with the backing of the AU – are fighting to end Boko Haram’s senseless brutality.”
