In the past three years, there has been military unrest in the West and Central African regions, which has been accompanied by military takeovers from democratically elected leaders. These coups are becoming dominant in these regions as the takeovers spread to other territories in Africa.
This raises the question of whether military rule is the gateway to redeeming Africa from the fringes of economic hardship or whether democracy is the alternative.
The countries that have been successfully taken over by coups include Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, the Republic of Guinea, and Gabon.
The question is, why the sudden spread of a military coup? From the lens and utterances of the military leaders who seized power from the democratically elected presidents, they claimed that the government is not helping the country to develop but rather exploiting the resources of the country at the expense of the overall benefits of the citizens in the country.
These assertions cut across the proclamations of all the coup leaders in their respective countries. Let us delve deeper into the issues revolving around the coups in the listed countries.
Background to the coups in the various regions of Africa
Mali
On May 24, the interim president, Bah N’Daw, his prime minister, Moctar Ouane, and several other Malian officials were arrested and taken to the Kati military camp near the country’s capital, Bamako. The arrest came shortly after the appointment of a new government. The day after the arrests, Colonel Assimi Goita, ex-head of a group called the Committee for the Salvation of the People (CNSP) and current vice president, stated on national television that he was “removing the prerogatives of the president and his prime minister”. He accused them of incompetence and, above all, of forming a new government without consulting him, which is unlikely given the length of the negotiations, thus violating the transitional charter. This text, adopted in September 2020, gives Goita certain authority in defense and security matters but no power to suspend the president or prime minister. As such, the ex-CNSP officers’ takeover is an attempt at a coup d’état to regain control of a transition that was slipping from their grasp.
Before the coup, Mali had witnessed mass protests since June 5. The protesters had called for the resignation of President Keita because of their displeasure with the management of the insurgency, alleged government corruption, and a failing economy. The huge protests in the country have also been ignited by a poorly managed legislative election. The protests were equally provoked by some grievances, including teachers’ agitation for a pay raise and frustrations over insecurity, among others.
Niger
Mutinous soldiers detained President Mohamed Bazoum (the President) at his official residence in the capital, Niamey. They seized power in a coup because of the country’s deteriorating security situation. In a statement broadcast on national television, Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane, the coup leader, said, “The defense and security forces have decided to put an end to the regime you are familiar with. This follows the continuous deterioration of the security situation and the bad social and economic management. The country’s borders have been closed, and a nationwide curfew is in place.
Burkina Faso
The military in Burkina Faso announced on national television that it had ousted President Paul Henri Sandaogo Damiba. Damiba had become president after a military coup in January 2022; he was a lieutenant colonel in the military. Captain Ibrahim Traore replaced Damiba as the new military ruler of Burkina Faso on September 30, 2022. The inability of Damiba to ensure internal security in the regions of the country led to his overthrow. “Faced by the continually worsening security situation, we, the officers and junior officers of the national armed forces, were motivated to take action with the desire to protect the security and integrity of our country,” said one of the military personnel.
Chad
In April 2021, Chad’s army took power after President Idriss Debby was killed on the battlefield while visiting troops fighting rebels in the north of Chad. Under Chadian law, the speaker of parliament should have become president, but a military council stepped in and dissolved parliament in the name of ensuring stability. Deby’s son, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, was named interim president and tasked with overseeing an 18-month transition to elections. The unconstitutional transfer of power led to riots in the capital, Ndjamena, that were put down by the military; these events unfolded the coup.
Republic of Guinea
In September 2021, special forces commander Colonel Mamady Doumbouya ousted President Alpha Conde. A year earlier, Conde had changed the constitution to circumvent limits that would have prevented him from standing for a third term, triggering widespread rioting. Doumbouya became interim president and promised a transition to democratic elections within three years. According to the military, President Alpha Conde’s tenure was marked by poverty, economic hardship, and corruption; these activities stirred them to take over.
Gabon
A group of senior military officers in Gabon announced on national television on Wednesday, August 30, 2023, that they had taken power and the election results had been annulled. They said they had decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime just minutes after President Ali Bongo was declared to have won a third term. President Ali Bongo has been the country’s president for 14 years after taking over from his father, who ruled the country for 42 years. This placed the citizens in much discomfort in terms of the leadership of their country, also because Gabon is a very wealthy country in terms of natural resources, but the wealth does not translate to the lives of the people in the country. Meanwhile, the president and his family live in luxury. Immediately after Ali Bongo was declared president, the military took over because they believed his victory was a false one and the people were dissatisfied with family politics.
Coups d’états are becoming the new normal now, especially as the Sahel regions become the epic centers.
This has raised concerns and shows that democracy is not building African countries.
According to David Otto, Director of the Geneva Centre for Security and Strategic Studies in Africa on Al Jazeera, “the main reason for the military takeovers is that democracy is falling on the people and the military is stepping in the gap; this is evident from what is happening across the Sahel regions.
One of the factors contributing to the increase in coup d’états in Africa is that the people are experiencing less and less confidence in democratic processes, so this is a major concern within the regions because as long as coups continue to succeed, coups will continue to take place, making it a big challenge in the regions.
One of the key things seen amongst the coups and foiled coups d’état, especially in the Sahel regions, is the influence of international countries, which is making the situation worse”.
He concluded by saying each government needs to look at its unique situation, while development and security should be based on the country’s capacity because Africa is a continent that could be very powerful if it has peace, security, and stability.
