Mahama-Africa's lone voice on Ebola
Where is the African voice on Ebola? As the world battles to contain the deadly Ebola virus disease, the Africa Union (AU) has remained surprisingly quiet.
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It is amazing that, but for Ghanaian President, John Dramani Mahama, the continent would virtually not have been heard on the epidemic which the latest World Health Organisation (WHO) figures indicate has infected over 10,000 and killed more than 4,800 mostly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
The tremendous mobilisation work being undertaken by Mr Mahama on the world stage has brought some level of hope in the lives of the peoples in the most Ebola-hit countries – Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
I travelled with the President during his recent visit to the three countries and I was a witness to the level of praise he received from his colleague presidents in those countries.
Apart from Mr Mahama, no other African leader has visited any of the three countries since the disease broke out. I stand for correction anyway.
Some political opponents at home think the President is devoting too much of his time on Ebola when in fact the country is confronted with economic challenges that needs serious attention.
Yes, the country is in economic difficulties that must be tackled to bring some level of hope to the people. But, I strongly disagree with this assertion that too much time is being devoted to Ebola.
Any worthy leader will not close his eyes to a disease that could completely devastate nations. As the chairman of ECOWAS, Mr Mahama is showing real leadership in this battle.
If all African leaders would be making similar efforts, at least 50 per cent of the battle would have been won already. We tend to rely too much on the international community in seeking solutions to our problems.
Criminal abdication
The complete quietness from our leaders within the continental body, the Africa Union (AU), must be condemned in no uncertain terms.
I cannot agree more with Gathu Kaara, a columnist with The People Daily newspaper of Kenya who wrote: “Amidst all this chaos, one distinct voice is missing- that of the African Union.
What other disaster is the AU waiting for to spur it into action? How many deaths are enough for the AU so that it can finally recognise this as a crisis? African presidents, does this not constitute a crisis? Who will summon the continent’s leaders for an urgent and special summit to address the Ebola crisis in West Africa?”
Describing the AU’s inaction as “criminal abdication,” Kaara added that, “This is the real crisis for which you were established.”
“Whole countries are being shut down, and shunned. Whole economies are threatened with real collapse, and a region is on a literal death watch. Yet the AU continues to dither”, Kaara said.
For now, it appears only ECOWAS is in seeing some action even though much more needs to be done. In one of the latest efforts of the sub-regional body, the ECOWAS News Today reported last Saturday that regional experts in crisis communication and community mobilisation have validated harmonised messages to be rolled out with strategic tools to engender massive community participation towards strengthening national and regional responses to the Ebola Virus Disease.
Besides, the ECOWAS Commission and the African Development Bank last Wednesday in Abuja, signed a Grant Protocol agreement worth US$300,000 for the coordination of Ebola Crisis Response Project in the most affected countries in the region.
UN epistle
The face of the sub-regional group has been President Mahama. Why should this happen?
Some argue that once the Ghanaian President is the leader of the group, he is performing his legitimate duty. That is true. But, beyond that, the question must be asked about the inputs of his colleagues in ECOWAS.
At the 69th United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York, President Mahama was the only African leader who perhaps took the Ebola fight to another level.
This was a huge platform for Africa to demonstrate to the rest of the world what it was doing, and what the international community needed to do to bring the pandemic to a stop.
But, the lone voice was Mr Mahama. Indeed, that important statement he made at the UN General Assembly still holds a place in international discourse on the disease.
The President said, “Ebola is not just a Liberian problem; Ebola is not a Sierra Leonean or Guinean problem. It is not just a West African problem. Ebola is a problem that belongs to the world because it is a disease that knows no boundaries. “
Mr Mahama agreed to allow Accra to be used as the headquarters of the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER).
The UNMEER, the first-ever UN emergency health mission, is using Accra as a base to respond to immediate needs concerning the fight against the disease.
The time is up for the AU to stand up to lead the coordination efforts on Ebola. The Africa solidarity must show in this time of terrible crisis......
Writer’s email: [email protected]