Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf election: what it means for Africa

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf election: what it means for Africa

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By Tonderai Munakiri

THE inauguration of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf as a first female-elect President of Liberia is not only significant for Liberia but important for Africa for a lot of reasons.

It is indeed the dawn of a new era for Africa to have one of its daughters grace the highest office of the land. Sirleaf has defied history, culture, myths and all the stereotyping about women. She has vindicated her lot and has made an indelible mark in African history for being the first female elect-President.

I can understand the joys that are shared by women the world over about the election of Sirleaf to the highest office of the land. What is inspiring about Sirleaf is her unwavering stance when the opposition tried to dispute the results of the just ended Presidential election. Sirleaf’s election was endorsed by the local and international observers as free and fair. The landmark election will go down in history as one that ushered a new paradigm to our fledging democracy. It embeds our continually evolving value system which is pivotal to good governance, equality and an all embracing political culture.

The presidency of Sirleaf is significant because Africa is embracing shifting paradigms and has demonstrated beyond doubt that no value is cast in stone, that our cultures are not static and neither have we reached the end of history. For these reasons, the election in Liberia is a turning point and will open a new chapter in the annals of history about Africans’ quest for an all inclusive participatory political culture that we are gravitating to.

While this election is significant to all of us, it is more significant for the African woman who to date has been sidelined in major political decision making.

Women have been on the periphery of politics owing to our political culture, our patriarchical society, our value system and some static paradigms. The African culture has placed limitations over what women can and cannot do; it has made women observers and not players in the political system and has placed them in perpetual bondage where they remain accountable to men. As a result of the inhibiting culture, the women’s sphere of influence has been confined to the household. However Sirleaf’s ascendancy gives all of us hope that women have started to break barriers and walls that have limited their participation in political decision making. This election therefore is a sure sign that women are set to see better things and that their destiny is no longer in the hands of men.

The Sirleaf era we hope signals a new era in the politics of Africa. We are hoping that gone are days when civil conflict was allowed to claim innocent lives of women and children. It is my hope that Sirleaf will seek to preserve and guard jealously the prevailing peace and will promote economic development which will eliminate and make poverty history. The Sirleaf era, we hope, will give birth to the advancement of women’s rights. Additionally, the ascendancy of Sirleaf we hope will see a fusion of compassion, love and politics. This is because politics in Africa has been associated with ruthlessness, torture, marginalization of certain minorities like women from power and knowing what matters most in women’s hearts, we hope that the era of insensitive government is over. We hope the senseless loss of blood is gone-by and that we shall never see stupid blood letting in Africa again.

Sirleaf‘s election is important for Africa’s diversity. Diversity brings with it divergence of opinion, an alternative voice to political and national thinking which is health for our embryonic democracy. Gone are the days when men’s word was final, when men were ubiquitous in every facet of life. The Sirleaf era we hope is a turning point that will usher new a value system and paradigms.

In the same breath, l just want to remind the current crop of women who have made breakthroughs in political offices to be cognizant of the challenges that lie ahead. This is because institutions and structures of power have been a preserve and domain of men and as such it will take time for them to feel at home in their new positions. In addition, women have a window of opportunity to demonstrate to the world that they too are capable and that their elevation was long overdue. We hope the era of bad governance is kissing us good bye and that the era of economic prosperity and development is upon us.

I am confident that Sirleaf understands the huge responsibility she carries of continuing the peace initiatives of the international community and that she will hold this peace dear. I’m also confident that Sirleaf knows that she is setting a precedent for her fellow women all over the world. She shall be used as a barometer for measuring how women can fare in positions of power and so whatever she does with her political power, it shall be used to judge fellow women the world over. If Sirleaf fails, the electorate will punish prospective women vying for political office, and if Sirleaf excels, the electorate will reward all prospective candidates running for office.

Again, l hope that the woman-elect President discharges her duties with the integrity that befits the highest office of the President. It is said new brooms sweep clean and it is our hope that Sirleaf will clean Liberia from the mess of assassinations, from the mess of authoritarianism, from the mess of corruption and bad governance.

The woman-elect President has a huge responsibility of instilling a national ethos and culture of civility, integrity and prosperity by aspiring for the highest good and guarding jealously the current tranquility. Sirleaf will help build every one woman’s self-esteem if she excels in her current fort and will allay myths and stereotypes about woman’s capacities in politics and business. This is good for Africa and we hope the woman Vice-Presidents from Zimbabwe and South Africa will support their counterpart in whatever way possible.
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