Dawit Weldegiorgis: Derg remnant and Esayass’ coolie pontificating blood bath in Ethiopia

Berhane Kahsay
Tigrai Online, Ethiopian News, August 21, 2016

Shaleqa Dawit is at it once again. In his latest article posted on various extremists’ websites, the Derg left-over cites the genocide in Rwanda and said ‘’If civil war begins in Ethiopia it will be unprecedented catastrophe the likes of which has not been seen in Africa.’’  In 1994 nearly 1,000,000 Tustsi were massacred in 100 days and Shaleqa Dawit is predicting   that the calamity in Ethiopia would be far greater than what transpired in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.

When the EPRDF assumed power in 1991, the same man prophesied that Ethiopia would be plunge into protracted turmoil but thanks to the remarkable leadership of the organisation, his aspiration flatly failed to materialise. As before, his latest pontification would not ensue because the Ethiopian people are supremely intelligent and wise, and would not wish to see their country immersed in an unending blood shed similar to what is unfolding in Syria, Yemen, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt. Besides, they want to keep a government that has firmly placed their country among the best economic performers in Africa and beyond. What the populace need instead is loyal opposition groups with alternative policies that could unseat the incumbent administration without spilling blood and elevate the achievements so far to the next level.

The hate driven ethnic turbulences that took place in limited parts of the nation is solely the responsibility of Shaleqa Dawit and his co-conspirators, and has nothing to do with the party in power. These criminals are prepared to sacrifice innocent lives to gratify their sponsor, Esayass, who routinely commits crimes against his own people as attested by the UNs Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea.

The current system in Ethiopia has catapulted the country from rock-bottom to the 3^rd/ 4^th largest economy in Africa in just two decades.  As a result, the nation has received world recognition for her successes, but Shaleqa Dawit and his likes invariably swerve out of their way to disparage the socio-economic triumph and his recent article states ‘’ …the government and its international supporters have been blatantly asserting that Ethiopia has the fastest growing economy in Africa, while in actual fact it is one of the ten poorest countries in the world currently with over 10,000,000 facing famine.’’

It is pretty obvious that poverty still exists in Ethiopia and it is for this reason that the EPRDF has been relentlessly endeavouring to eliminate destitution and hanger for a quarter of a century; while the likes of Shaleq Dawit and his associates have been conspiring with the enemies of the country to scupper the fight against the number one foe of the Ethiopian people. As to the ‘’famine’’ in Ethiopia, it is simply a white lie of the highest magnitude. Yes, the country has been afflicted by the worst drought in 50 years, but the EPRDF government has succeeded in avoiding famine by using its resources and assistance from development partners.

Famine was rampant during the past authoritarian rulers including during the epoch of Shaleqa Dawit but they were entirely unable to resolve it without the complete intervention of the international community despite the fact that the population was significantly lower than it is now. Since the coming of the EPRDF, the population has shot-up from 50 to 100 million but the massive increase has not prevented it from surmounting the colossal drought; and this proves beyond reasonable doubt that the country has developed significant economic muscle ready to be employed to withstand disasters of this proportion.

No doubt Ethiopia is on the correct trajectory and as long as the prevailing peace and stability remains intact, additional wealth that can meaningfully transform the lives of the people will be created. But Shaleqa Dawit seems to be determined to realise his underwriter’s wishes by engaging himself in pushing the nation into a civil war. To actualise his intentions, the Derg residual is desperately trying to pull the Oromos into his scheme and in his piece he asserts that ‘’….. the two largest ethnic groups, the Oromos and the Amhara, have demonstrated once again the power of a marginalised majority to wreak havoc and paralyse the country despite the state’s brutal response.’’

Another white lie; the country was by and large functioning perfectly during the turbulence and it is simply laughable and outlandish to claim that the Oromos and Amharas have been ‘’marginalised.’’ Facts on the ground reveal that under the current political system, there are no regions in Ethiopia that have prospered more than the two ethic groups. The Derg apologist is fully aware of this undeniable reality and the reason he is spreading falsehood is to hoodwink the Oromos in order to utilise them to unconstitutionally unseat a sitting government.

It is just amazing that the Amhara elite that treated the Oromos harshly and considered them as second class citizens in their own country are now telling us that they have been ‘marginalised’ when for the first time in their history they are administering their own region, freely developing their culture & language, and walk with their heads up without being ashamed of their ethnicity. Sooner or later, the Oromo youth would see through the Amhara elite and desist from being used as tools to ferment ethnic disharmony that would enable their former oppressors to assume power and undo what they have achieved under the current federal system. 

Shaleqa Dawit is predicting ‘civil war’ in the horn region but this is not remotely feasible. But his wishes can come true if the EPRDF was to be removed by incitement and armed rebellion because the country would undoubtedly plunge into an unimaginable strife and blood bath. The thing is that the Dergist would not have been in a position to orchestrate disturbances in Amhara region from his station in Asmara if the EPRDF was able to listen to the electorates concerns and address them with urgency. EPRDF is simply creating the conditions that are being exploited by foreign enemies such as Eritrea and Egypt who are bank-rolling the disloyal and unpatriotic opponents residing in the diaspora.

Firm and resolute measures against corrupt EPRDF members, irrespective of their position, coupled with genuine and far reaching improvements in the political climate would deny the enemies of Ethiopia the opportunity to destabilise the nation. Once these are achieved, EPRDF should consider destroying economic and military targets inside Eritrea in retaliation for Esayass’ involvement, through his surrogates, in the recent disturbances in some parts of Oromia and Amhara region. Previous measures, if there were any, have not caused the Eritrean dictator to refrain from his evil intentions but we have now arrived at a stage where a stern action is required to deal with him once and for all.  It is appropriate indeed to end this article by quoting a paragraph from Shaleqa Dawit’s piece which Tigrians should take note ’’ Ethiopia’s minority ethnic group, the Tigrai, which comprises less than six percent of the population of ninety million, has ruled the country with an iron-fist for 25 years. As was the case in Rwanda decades ago, the accumulated anger directed at this minority group is likely to explode and result in a human catastrophe with serious implications on the regional stability.’’