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Last Sunday the 3rd Local and bi-elections took place in
Ethiopia. It was momentous and indicative of the will and
commitment of Ethiopians to the democratic values enshrined in
the Constitution. Ethiopia and all its citizens should be
proud for the progress they have made through this momentous
democratic act. Through the broad participation of the people
and the political parties they have once again made us proud
of being an Ethiopian. Their active and democratic engagement
in the third Local election has added to the countries'
democratic resume in a lot of ways.
First this election was a clear continuation of the democratic
process that we have seen in the pre election and election of
2005.The voters registered
in mass. A record number of 27
million voters registered and more than 90% of them have cast
their votes. Even the number of voters who participated in
Addis is as high as 80% of the registered voters and few
thousands short of the 2005 election. This is unprecedented,
especially when measured based against the imagined effects of
the post 2005 crisis. Ethiopia must be congratulated for its
successful implementation of this election where the majority
of the electorate have taken matters into their own hands.
This is another victory of the Ethiopian democracy.
The pre election period of the third local election has shown
us the deepening of the democratic culture of fair
competition. Contending parties have been accorded sufficient
print and electronics media time and space to expound their
alternatives and they have used this opportunity to the best
of their ability. The parties in Ethiopia must be commended
for their courage and commitment to the democratic ideals
enshrined in the constitution. Truly speaking I feel this is a
healthy signal of rejection of the zero sum game politics that
we widely see in the developing world.
The efficiency exhibited by the National Electoral Board in
terms of the conduct of the election was simply superb.
Ensuring a smooth and efficient voting process for 27 million
people simply could have been a logistical night mere. But the
National election Board has done it. For such a late organized
body like the NEB the ability to conduct such a big election
without serious flows indicates that the Ethiopian electoral
system is functioning like a properly oiled machine. It is
another success that makes us Ethiopians proud on our emerging
democratic institutions. All in all the 3rd local and
bi-election has disproved all the wrong predictions about the
possible back tracking of Ethiopia from Democracy; on the
contrary it once again has proved that Ethiopia is not only on
the right track, but also on a thoroughly democratic footing. |
