The United States of Africa: A dream reborn

The eventual ousting of Moammar Gadaffi, counter-intuitively, has the potential to bring the African continent one step closer to the tyrannical despot’s long pursued pet project of a United States of Africa.

In stark contrast to the personal monopoly over power illegitimately accrued by Gadaffi and his cohort of African heads of government, a federation of African states necessitates a decentralisation of authority, resources and political representation.

Most, if not all, modern federations are premised on the idea of “We the People”, those very people who took to the streets to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the likes of Gadaffi, Mubarak, Bashir, Ben Ali and others in the Maghreb.

Federalism has at its heart the idea of constitutionalism, the separation of powers, localised representation, and the proximity and responsiveness of government at the various levels. Moreover, and unlike the domestic realities of Libya, it demands a vibrant civil society, active participation by citizens, and a clear distinction between party, government and state, and in particular with reference to the military, police and judiciary.

It is exactly these “checks and balances” that are absent from Gadaffi’s Libya, and proves why he himself (among others) is the greatest obstacle to the achievement of a United States of Africa. Tangible enthusiasm for such a continental federation is justifiably absent when Gadaffi’s paternalistic motto is “do as I say, not as I do”.

With Libya’s brother leader hardly leading by example it is little wonder that the governments of Africa’s powerhouses, beyond the fraternal lip-service and rhetoric, hardly take it seriously, let alone consider it practically.

Indeed, it is not up to the self-proclaimed or elected (democratically or otherwise) leaders of our continent to champion an African federation, for its very roots should lie in the popular, free and legitimate expression of support by the continent’s sons and daughters.

Building a united, prosperous Africa freed from the shackles of both political and economic neo-colonialism, demands that we start by deposing Gadaffi and his brethren who continue to clench the collective dreams, aspirations and future of Africa and her people in a suffocating iron fist.

A luta continua! and may the flag bearers of the revolution in the Maghreb pass the torch to their brothers and sisters in sub-Saharan Africa.

Let chaos reign if necessary, because as Tom Barrett puts it, although “chaos in the world brings uneasiness, it also allows the opportunity for creativity and growth”.

Let the oppressed, exploited, trampled upon and disregarded discover freedom, democracy, self-determination and ownership of their collective and individual destinies and aspirations. After all “our real discoveries come from chaos, from going to the place that looks wrong and stupid and foolish,” as Chuck Palahniuk puts it.