On Monday, major African economies saw mass protests in Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, and Tunisia.
These protests were led by opposition figures tapping into popular discontent over the costs of living, election losses, and foreign influence.
Uganda opposition activists, encouraged by these actions around Africa, have perked up their interests.
Even though the outcome of street actions in Uganda has been straight F9s, our busybody opposition has had their appetite whetted.
I wish to say that these street protests are doomed to failure. Single-agenda protests are rarely resilient or successful in toppling sitting regimes. Even the gains of the Arab Spring were rapidly reversed. I don’t see a trajectory of success for Raila and his acolytes.
So, the winds that are currently buffeting countries in Africa will not be sustained in the long term.
They will quickly fizzle out, just like they started. Raila in Kenya is a spent force, an old man with a bag of grievances. We’re seeing the last kicks of a dying horse.
The motormouth Julius Malema in South Africa cannot match the ANC’s organizational capability and pedigree. The APC in Nigeria is too entrenched to be removed by simple street protests.
So where does this leave us? We’re going to see more incremental changes than drastic or revolutionary changes in Africa. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
The author is an NRM Cadre from Minakulu, Oyam District, Lango Sub-Region.Email:patrickodongosnr@gmail.com
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