FUNNY ECOWAS BUST-UP

Ivorian representative Adjaratou Traoré errupted into a fit of rage at an ECOWAS Parliament session in Abuja on 20th July, 2024, when her Senegalese counterpart stated that African heads of state impoverished their countries. In her view, certain things should never be said about African leaders and this is one of them.

The Seneglese parliamentarian, however, is none of other than Guy Marius Sagna, who rose to prominence through his grassroots organising with the Front for an Anti-Imperialist Popular and Pan-African Revolution. He was at the forefront of the struggle against former Senegalese president Macky Sall’s neo-liberal policies and close ties to France. He has long accused Macky Sall and others like him of betraying the interests of their people and fought against certain economic policies, such as the free trade agreement Sall signed with the European Union.

A staunch anti-imperialist, Sagna went viral for another recent video, filmed at the ECOWAS summit two days prior, during which he blasted the bloc for allowing Swiss and US-based institutions to participate in the West African parliament as special guests.

While Adjaratou Traoré does not feel it is appropriate to accuse African heads of state of impoverishing their citizens, President Alassane Ouattara of her home country Ivory Coast is overseeing one of the largest mass-eviction campaigns in West Africa, removing thousands of Abidjan-residents from their homes for the past several years. The evictions have accelerated in 2024 and this month, protests and clashes broke out in Adjamé village in northern Abidjan as the villagers blocked the demolition of their neighbourhood. 170 neighbourhoods in Abidjan are being targeted for demolition so that new infrastructure projects and buildings can be erected, including a luxury shopping mall and a new bridge. Perhaps Guy Marius Sagna is on to something here.

What do you think? Did Sagna take it too far by bringing African heads of state into this or is he right on the nose?