Shackling the Leviathan in PP and freeing the liberty.
The Ethiopian ruling party this week got its perfect election birthday wishes.
The upper chamber of the Ethiopian parliament approved a constitutional interpretation, which allowed;
- Election to be postponed until COVID19 is defeated in Ethiopia with an additional period for a campaign.
- Gave the party constitutional mandate to govern the country until an election is held.
Despite opposition groups expressing grave concerns about the ruling party’s unilateral decision to award itself new mandate, it is almost inevitable that the ruling party will stay in power beyond its original term.
The question one needs to ask now is how one can shackle the power of PP so that it does not become a monster?
I used the title shackling the Leviathan and freeing the liberty, and here is the context in which I am thinking.
In the 17th century, English political philosopher called Thomas Hobbes wrote a political treatise- the Leviathan. In his theory, he argued that for a nation to prosper, it needs a strong state with the capacity ‘ to enforce laws, control violence, resolve conflicts and provide public services’.
Many subsequent thinkers argued against the Hobbesian emphasis on law and order but not on liberty.
I have read Hobbes and his state of nature philosophy, where he pointed out the violent nature of man without external agency to keep him at check. In a layman’s term, Hobbes posits that violence is part of our environment and to ensure that we avoid short lifespans and violent deaths, we must have a stable government that keeps law and order.
Although the context in which Hobbes postulated his theory is different in the current Ethiopian state of affairs, I nevertheless argue that his approach can be partially applied to Ethiopia. Why partially? I will explain it in my conclusion.
Things should not fall apart for the opposition parties.
In his popular anti-colonial fiction- Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe chronicled the rise and the downfall of a young man by the name of Okonkwo.
In the story, Okonkwo, the son of a father who is less regarded in his clan, rises to prominence through athleticism and sheer bravery. Eventually, a combination of personal mistakes and the arrival of European colonisers resulted in the demise of Okonkwo.
The Ethiopian opposition groups who are mainly organised along ethnic lines have an opportunity of a lifetime to play a role in turning Ethiopia into a democratic nation.
The opposition parties now ironically joined by former all-powerful TPLF, must not repeat the historical mistakes in which they always play into the hands of the incumbent.
The ultimate goal should be taming and controlling the monster in PP until the election is held, rather than rioting on election postponement.
Conclusion.
How do they( the opposition parties) tame the monster without causing chaos? Here is where Hobbes’ theory, at least in part comes in.
I will argue that Leviathan offers some solutions to the current deadlock. The opposition parties need law and order to operationalise their alternative political programmes. You can only achieve this by having a stable government. Of course, this is a partial solution to the problem; another part would be the freeing liberty from the strong jaws of the Leviathan( i.e. the PP).
To free liberty from the Leviathan requires assertive and well-organised society. It requires energetic and engaging civil organisations as well as independent institutions.
Opposition groups should engage in bottom-up politics to gradually tame the monster in Prosperity Party rather than rushing it out of office.
