As the sun finally sets on Laurent Gbagbo’s reign in the cocoa growing nation of West Africa, signifying an imminent collapse of his regime, it has become pertinent to begin to take a look at what the future of Cote D’Ivoire should` look like post Laurent Gbagbo.
That this West African nation has suffered so much instability since the death of its first President, Felix Houphuet Boigny in 1993, seem like repeating the obvious.
As Alhassane Quattara takes over the mantle of leadership it is important he takes a deep look at the history of his country with a view of identifying the immediate and remote cause[s] of instability in this once peaceful and economically prosperous nation. He should NOT see himself as a politician who must take back his proverbial “pound of flesh” for the numerous injustices he has suffered, but rather consider himself as a statesman whose primary assignment is the healing of wounds and also reintegration of a country that is divided along ethnic/religious/geographical lines, that is, [north/islam] and [south/christianity] dichotomy.
He should also not seek to mete out the treatment visited on him by past Ivorien leaders who denied him his nationality claiming he was a Burkinabe on his rivals but rather invite them to form an all inclusive national government to chart a prosperous future for Cote D’Ivoire. And lastly, he should take a cue from the neighboring West African nation of Ghana whose political leaders have decided to build strong democratic institutions as opposed to the pervasive “personalization” of power rampant in most parts of Africa.
Indeed Quattara must hit the ground running in order to lead his country to the right place she belongs to as the country has lost valuable time bickering over a contrived and avoidable political crisis.
