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Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Response to GhanaWeb article on US Bases in Ghana, W.Africa, and the AU as a whole



It looks like a whole lot of people are forgetting about the sacrifices that have been made by our leaders past and present.

Since 1900, all the true leaders of Africa have been working not only to secure our freedom, way of life, and our ability to determine our common future; but also to be able to control the security of our land. Their efforts resulted in the OAU which made huge strides in so many areas; it would be a disservice to attempt to condense them into this small commentary.

From the OAU, has emerged the African Union [AU].

Now bear with me here...

The AU, under international norms and regulations, is a Federal Republic following the signing of ‘The Union Act’ [March, 2001]; incidentally making the AU the world's largest country by size (29,800,000 km2), and the third largest by population (880 million). Our Federation has a Parliamentary government, led by a Head of State; Hon. President Gertrude Ibengwe Mongella; who is also the head of the Pan-African Parliament [PAP].

Ghana is therefore one state of 53, of ‘The Federal African Union’, meaning that our sovereignty is effectively passed onto the highest institution of the AU government; the Pan-African Parliament.

The AU has set in motion the process which will result in the creation of a Pan-African ‘African Defence Force’ [ADF], with its own African Chiefs of Defence Staff; previously called the ‘Joint African High Command’. Combined it currently has a force numbering 3,500,000 (3.5m) active men and women, over 1,000 units in the Air Force, and an ever expanding Naval Force; capable of patrolling, securing and defending the territorial waters of the Federation which measures 30,490km. The AU is currently operating peace-keeping missions in Sudan and Congo, not to mention having mediated and overseen the ending of the long-standing Chadian-Sudanese conflict. AU forces are also heavily involved in humanitarian missions all over the world, and have played an active role in a vast number of international missions in collaboration with the UN.

The ADF is focused on ending Intra-African conflicts, allowing us the people to concentrate our efforts on the developing of ourselves and the social, economic, and cultural fabric which surrounds us.

Plans are well underway to establish regional command-centres for the A.D.F. all across the Federation, as well as to improve and expand upon the military training centres and officer training institutes around the AU.

Now bearing all this in mind, how can we as Ghanaians, in any way, shape or form, allow any country; superpower or not; to simply ‘decide’ to place their military bases on the sovereign soil of the Federal African Union? How can we betray those who have come before us? How can we forgo the brotherhood and unity between us and the rest of the African People; at home and abroad?

This goes for all the other AU states that have considered the advances of the American army.

If the USA is truly concerned about the security of the oil-fields from which they plan to source over 25% of their oil-based energy, they should request to set-up a meeting with President Gertrude Mongella, The PAP (Pan-African Parliament) she heads, and the African Chiefs of Defence Staff of the Federal African Union. Through this dialogue, they can together, as equals, come to an agreement on the best way to utilise the ADF Naval, Ground and Air Forces to secure the energy exports that the Americans are so concerned about.

This goes for N.A.T.O. and any other army forces aside from that of the Federal African Union’s A.D.F. We respect their sovereignty, and they must in turn respect ours; at all times and in all situations.

President Gertrude Mongella should be the first to be consulted on such an issue. When we speak of ‘Unity’, all of us being part of ‘One Africa’, etc.; we should come to realise and accept that we have now well and truly passed the point where we simply spew rhetoric without taking concrete steps in the right direction.

Maybe this is the time forge “The African Dream”. Maybe we need to start taking responsibility for our own future. Maybe, just maybe, we need to realise our own potentials and responsibilities in the global economy, and collectively stand our ground and make it known that we will control what happens on African soil. In any case it is still the fact that the AU seeks to continue the cordial relations we have with all our trading partners and allies. So why should the USA be so concerned?

These are the realities of today’s Africa; we are only one state of 53 in the AU. We can no longer act unilaterally on such issues. This is something that we are simply going to have to get used to. After all, it is this unity of thought and unanimity of action that we have been working toward for well over 100 years.

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