Out of the frying pan into the fire

When I first wrote this column https://www.whyafrica.co.za/out-of-the-frying-pan-into-the-fire/ below, a little more than two years ago, there was a lot of optimism in southern Africa. There was a new president in Angola after 38 years of relentless Dos Santos rule during which the family amassed unthinkable wealth through corruption. Jo?o Louren?o started reforms, but the odds were stacked against him, with the Dos Santos family entrenched in business and government. My prediction was that it would be more of the same in Angola. I was wrong – the Louren?o broom swept cleaner than expected. Angola started privatising all state-owned institutions, seriously started eradicating corruption, and got rid of the poisoned Dos Santos chalice in the process. As a result, it has become a top destination for foreign investors.

Contrary to my ambitious predictions, though, Zimbabwe went from bad to worse. Mnangagwa, since then, has led Zimbabwe further into the abyss than even Mugabe had done during the darkest days of his kleptocratic rule. The country is in dire straits and Mnangagwa has turned to the only remedy he knows – the military. 

Ramaphosa has probably been the biggest disappointment. It is not so much his questionable relationships and blurring of the lines between governance and private interests, but the fact that he has not been able to control his greedy cadres. Corruption has become an institution in the ANC, and the Coranavirus has exposed Ramaphosa as a weak president with no influence in the ruling party. Ramaphosa has led South Africa out of the frying pan into the fire. In stark contrast, Louren?o has calmly steered the Angolan ship through rough waters and Covid-19. I always had my doubts about all three presidents, but I shared the overall optimism at the time. Read below and let me know if these presidents have lived up to expectations?

https://www.whyafrica.co.za/out-of-the-frying-pan-into-the-fire/