THOUGHT LEADERSHIP - The African Mirror

Dec

13

2025

Coups in Africa: how democratic failings help shape military takeovers – study

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

MALI, Burkina Faso, Niger, Guinea and Gabon have all suffered regime change in the last five years, led by men in military uniform. Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau experienced the same fate in 2025. Benin looked to join the list in early December, but the civilian government held onto power – just. The academic literature on coups in Africa has highlighted a wide range of influences and triggers. These include: personal and institutional rifts within the armed forces susceptibility to both elite manipulation and popular pressure instigation by foreign powers against governments deemed hostile to their interests. In a recent paper, I…

Feb

11

2025

By HENNING MELBER

Sam Nujoma personified Namibia’s struggle for freedom

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SAM Nujoma was an outstanding Namibian leader who personified more than anybody else the country’s liberation struggle history and independence. His death at the age of 95 marks the end of an era. But his legacy will live on. Together with Andimba Toivo ya Toivo, he was central in the foundation of the national liberation movement, the South West Africa People’s Organisation (Swapo). Samuel (Sam) Shafishuna (“lightning”) Daniel Nujoma was born on 12 May 1929 at Etunda near Okahao in northern Namibia in today’s Omusati region, the eldest of 11 children. His childhood was devoted to helping care for his…

Dec

10

2025

By JOVIAL RANTAO

The spectacular self-immolation of Senzo Mchunu

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THERE are many ways a politician can end their career. A sex scandal. A corruption conviction. A spectacular policy failure. But Senzo Mchunu has chosen a path far more excruciating: death by a thousand self-inflicted wounds, delivered live on national television, with millions watching him tie the noose, kick away the chair, and then helpfully explain why gravity is actually quite misunderstood. Welcome to the Madlanga Commission, where South Africa's suspended Police Minister has been treating us to a masterclass in political self-destruction so comprehensive, so thoroughly executed, that one almost has to admire the commitment to the craft. There…

Dec

10

2025

By JOHN JOSEPH CHIN

Benin’s failed coup: three factors behind the takeover attempt

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

MILITARY elements attempted to topple Benin’s government in early December 2025. However, unlike other coups across the Sahel and West Africa since 2020, this bid triggered a military response from Benin’s neighbours. Benin is a West African state of 14.8 million people bordered by Togo, Burkina Faso, Niger and Nigeria. Responding to two requests for assistance from the government of President Patrice Talon, Nigeria deployed fighter jets and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) deployed elements of its standby force to target and dislodge the pro-coup forces. Ecowas intervention likely played an important role in undermining the coup’s…

Dec

10

2025

By BUSANI NGCAWENI

South Africa and Pakistan: countries brought to their knees by elite capture and economic paralysis

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

IN the ongoing quest to understand South Africa’s political and economic stagnation, it may be helpful to look at other postcolonial states that have travelled further along the path of independence. This may help clarify the stagnation question that citizens, politicians and economists are grappling with. Much of the analysis of postcolonial Africa and Asia has identified poor leadership, authoritarianism and misguided economic policies as determinants of stagnation. These factors do matter. But they do not fully explain why some new independent states collapsed into dysfunction while others achieved growth. The deeper question is how institutions are built, sustained or…

Dec

09

2025

By FEDERICO DONELLI

Djibouti’s democracy takes another knock as ageing president engineers yet another term

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

DJIBOUTI’S president, Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, pushed through constitutional changes removing presidential age limits in October 2025. The changes enable him to remain in power beyond 2026. He has already ruled for 26 years and is a shoo-in at elections in April 2026. Guelleh leads a country on the Horn of Africa where the Red Sea meets the Indian Ocean – one of the world’s most strategically important locations. Federico Donelli, who has studied Djibouti’s political landscape, unpacks the dynamics that have kept him in power. Who is Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, and what is his governance style? Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, commonly…

Oct

21

2024

By NICODEMUS MINDE

Who is Tundu Lissu? Tanzania’s opposition leader is fighting for change in the face of fresh attacks on political freedoms

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, EDITORS CHOICE

TUNDU Lissu has become the face of opposition in Tanzania following his defiant and unrelenting criticism of the government. Since he came into the national limelight in 1995 when running for a parliamentary seat, Lissu has been a champion of democracy and human rights. He has taken on the ruling elite, exposing corruption and demanding accountability. This almost cost him his life in 2017. In September 2024, new evidence presented at a London tribunal revealed that the telecommunications company Tigo had shared Lissu’s mobile phone data – including his location – with the Tanzanian government. The implication was that the…

Oct

07

2024

By PETER HARRIS

Freedom for Chagos islands: UK’s deal with Mauritius will be a win for all

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

BRITAIN is close to resolving its territorial dispute with Mauritius over the Chagos Archipelago, located in the central Indian Ocean. For years, Mauritius has claimed the island group as part of its sovereign territory. It says that Britain unlawfully detached the islands from Mauritius in 1965, three years before Mauritius gained independence. The Mauritian position is backed by international courts and the United Nations, creating enormous pressure for Britain to decolonise. London, however, has been reluctant to abandon the Chagos Archipelago. This is because the largest island, Diego Garcia, is the site of a strategically important US military base. Britain…

Dec

08

2025

By JOVIAL RANTAO

The ANC sisterhood of power, politics: meet the queens of Gauteng’s political chessboard

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THEY didn't arrive on horseback, but they might as well have. From the rolling hills and coastal winds of the Eastern Cape, a formidable alliance of women politicians has descended upon Gauteng - South Africa's economic heartland -and they're not here to play supporting roles. They're here to rule. Meet the power quartet reshaping the African National Congress from within: Loyiso Masuku, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, Khusela Sangoni-Diko, and Vuyo Mhlakaza-Manamela. Educated, politically astute, battle-tested, and unapologetically ambitious, these women are engaged in a sophisticated game of political chess that would make Machiavelli take notes. The New Queen of Johannesburg: Loyiso Masuku's…

Dec

06

2025

By JUDITH COULLIE

Who was Albert Luthuli? The murdered South African leader who put his people above himself

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SOUTH African liberation leader Albert Luthuli died on 21 July 1967 near his home in Groutville, in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. A government inquest concluded his death was an accident – that he was hit by a train. This was always disputed by his family, and almost 60 years later, they were vindicated. In 2025, a court ruled that Luthuli was murdered, his death the result of “assault by members of the security special branch of the South African police”. The ruling corrects long-standing historical records. It adds Luthuli’s murder to the catalogue of torture and assassination that…