Goings and comings

Michael - Thursday

I’ve often wondered why anyone would want the job of leading a country in the first place. If the answer is to allow absolute power to corrupt absolutely, how much money does “absolutely” imply and when you get there why not step down to enjoy it? The answer to that seems to be that “absolutely” means "infinity".

Robert and Grace Mugabe

There have been several goings and comings at the top in southern Africa over the last couple of years, and the processes and outcomes have been rather different. First to go was Zimbabwe strongman Robert Mugabe. He sacked his vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, fueling speculation that he was paving the road for his wife, Grace Mugabe, who is much younger, to inherit the kleptocracy. The king is dead, long live the queen. Mnangagwa, however, had other ideas, and the ear of the army, and shortly thereafter took control of the government putting Mugabe under house arrest. Now, coups happen frequently – not only in Africa – but this one had a twist. Zimbabwe was desperate to throw off western sanctions. Western democracies aren’t too keen on coups, even when the outcome is to replace a senile dictator by someone ostensibly better. (This attitude seems recently to have changed somewhat as we see in Venezuela.) However, at that time, it was important for the transfer of power to be seen as a peaceful and according to the democratic principles and constitution of the country.

Emmerson and Robert in happier times

So it became a negotiation, and Mugabe had long ago decided that the only important thing about any issue was the price. He settled for keeping everything he’d stolen plus a pension and a staff of up to 23 and state vehicles, while throwing everyone who’d supported him to the wolves. He duly resigned. Nevertheless, he later challenged the whole process in court. By then Mnangagwa was in full control and the court ruled that all was in order, and Mugabe faded into the background. He’s 95 so Mnangagwa just has to run out the clock. He’ll keep an eye on Grace, but she was never popular in any case. He can get on with the real business. His bank account’s business.

Jacob. Not so happy

Meanwhile, a similar model was playing out in South Africa. Rather to many people’s surprise, the governing ANC decided that Mrs. Zuma wasn’t the right person to replace ex-husband Jacob Zuma as president at the end of his term, and installed Cyril Ramaposa instead. Ramaposa has the big advantage of already being wildly rich, having benefited from black economic empowerment rules in South Africa as well as plain old shrewd hard work. Perhaps people thought he hardly needed to put his hand in the till. Shortly after his elevation to the party leadership, the ANC executive persuaded Zuma to leave. Now he’s been charged with all sorts of things, and it is he who is running out the clock with delays and objections and appeals. But he’s only 77, so this one could be tight. This all was entirely constitutional, and most of the country breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Even more pleasant was the handover of President Ian Khama in Botswana, also almost exactly a year ago. Immensely popular and his party’s strongman, he resigned before his term was up – claiming that ten years as president was enough – and handed over early to his carefully groomed successor to give him time to settle in before the next general election, due this year. He made a farewell tour of the country speaking at kgotlas throughout the country and being showered with praise and gifts. (I hope he has a big farm or he’ll have space problems with the tractor and all the cattle he received.) A fairy-tail ending to a solid presidency.

Ian and Mokgweetsi in happier times

But. The last few years of Khama’s presidency were dominated by internal party squabbles. Since the handover, something has gone wrong between Khama and his chosen successor, Mokgweetsi Masisi. Relations have soured to the point where Khama gives interviews criticizing the new president’s behavior, while the latter challenges Khama’s pension and fires his staff. The trouble with fairy tale endings is that some of them are quite grim. I hope Khama will get to keep that tractor...

But, again, who would want the job in the first place? Take Theresa May. To become prime minister of the UK, she fights tooth and nail, using all her political skills and contacts, to grab a chalice marked POISONED in huge letters. Not only does she grab it enthusiastically, but she downs it in a single gulp and licks her lips. Now things are so bad that she’s become the first prime minister in history to offer to resign not if parliament doesn’t support her, but if it does!

Mustafa in happier times

End of the road

Sometimes you just have to go. Take Mustafa. He had a cushy life in the Karoo National Park, but felt he wasn’t appreciated by the other lions (in particular by the other lionesses), so he went AWOL in the middle of February. Of course, there was a big hue and cry as he made his way across local farms and through towns, helping himself to several sheep along the way. Helicopters, infrared tracking, expert ground trackers – lion pad prints are not that hard to identify – all were eluded with disdain as he became a local celebrity. But the end of the road for him came a couple of weeks ago on a farm near Sutherland about 200 miles away from the Karoo National Park. He was darted and - after spending a night in the Sutherland jail! - taken back home. Hopefully to a warmer reception from the locals. Or maybe he’ll have to fight for that leadership position after all.