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Thabo Mbeki Advocates for Conscious Political Decisions to Achieve Unity in Diversity in Africa
Former South African President, Thabo Mbeki, on Thursday, said achieving unity in diversity in many African countries was possible, but it must be a conscious political decision.
He also linked the unending challenge of non-seamless borders on the continent to the decline in commitment to Pan-africanism and a larger political problem.
Mbeki, the second democratic president of South Africa, stated this position at the Thabo Mbeki Foundation in Johannesburg, in a meeting with the third cohort of the MTN-sponsored Media Innovation Programme (MIP) during their ongoing study tour to South Africa.
The MIP, a six month-long intensive training, was birthed three years ago to foster innovation and development, as well as transform and empower media practitioners to take advantage of technology and innovation in doing their jobs better and telling stories that needed to be told.
However, discussing how he managed the identity differences and diversity of South Africa, when he was president and his advice for leaders of today, he cited cogent examples, including that of Tanzania that eliminated the language divide and brought its citizens under one identity.
He said, “It’s a very political thing – management of diversity. It’s because it’s central to the survival of all of the African states, because there’s no African state which is not characterised by the diversity of its population now.
“So, if you want to keep this country together, this is one country, one nation, as it were, so it’s got to be a conscious political decision, if you take, for instance, the one outstanding example in this regard is Tanzania.”
He said when Tanzania was Tanganyika, they took very important decisions under Julius Nyerere that everybody must speak Kiswahili with their mother tongue as second language, adding that they also abolished the institution of chieftainship, thus eliminating loyalty to tribal chiefs.
Mbeki also cited the instance of the formation of the African National Congress in 1912, in which one of its principal slogans was to bury the demon of tribalism.
“How do we make sure that we have unity in diversity becomes important, that’s a political decision and that’s a challenge. We all have to make sure that at least that kind of understanding on the continent persists. If it doesn’t, then you are faced all the time with weak states that are in conflict, inevitably.”
He also responded to a THISDAY question on the difficulty in ensuring movement of persons through a seamless border on the African continent, despite the offerings of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, which has 43 parties and another 11 signatories in 2018, when it was established.
Mbeki said, “Part of the problem is a decline in commitment to Pan-Africanism in the continent. That sense of a strong Pan-Africanism among the political leadership has receded.
“So when you raise the matter about the movement of Africans amongst themselves, you are talking to people who no longer have that sense of Pan-Africanism or common belonging. It’s a problem.
