A few years ago under the stewardship of the then South African President, Thabo Mbeki, the Organisation of African Unity changed its name to African Union.
The name change was a part of a broader rebranding exercise that Mbeki had dreamt up and called African Renaissance.
It entailed the reawakening of a continent that, over the years, had seen a great deal of its potential literally submerged under the greed, poor imagination and general recklessness of its own leaders.
As a result of greed by the leadership, the continent was reduced to rubbles, owing to wars, civil strife, plunder and disease that had become an integral part of the continent’s bloodstream.
Under such circumstances, it was difficult to stave off the label of a “dark continent” that was flagrantly brandished by the Western media ÔÇô not altogether unfairly.
Of course, there were a few countries like Botswana, Ghana, South Africa, Namibia and others that, against the odds, tried to defy what had come to be accepted as a given that all African countries could not succeed economically, politically and or democratically.
To his credit Mbeki tried hard to convince his other African counterparts that it was important for Africa to claim its position at the high table with the world’s other successful countries.
So determined was Mbeki to see Africa reawaken that, for most of the time, he was accused of abandoning his South Africa in favour of Africa.
Ultimately, he paid a heavy price for his ambitious and lofty plans when his own African National Congress deposed him in a bloodless coup.
But what is there for Mbeki or for Africa to show for all the glitzy grandstanding that swept most of the continent in the late 1990s and for a greater part of early 2000s?
The answer is not much.
As we write this commentary, most of the Western Governments have come to the rescue of Libyan civilians who for most of this month have fallen victim to the heinous butchery of Colonel Ghadafi ÔÇô an evil man who has used the proceeds from the Libyan oil not to develop his people but to sponsor other friendly dictators across the African continent.
Not only has African Union not supplied assets to help save the Libyans from the misery under Ghadafi’s jackboot, the African countries are also conspicuous even by at least endorsing what the coalition forces are doing by way of implementing the United Nations resolution No-fly zone.
As the West takes the lead to protect the lives of innocent civilians in Libya, not the voice of even a single African country can be heard in the horizon.
As Africans, we should be ashamed of ourselves for keeping quiet for so long as Colonel Ghadafi butchered his own people ÔÇô vowing to search room by room, while showing neither mercy nor empathy.
It is perhaps a sign of our importance that early this week some hush voices were heard from a few African countries calling for a ceasefire.
Why a ceasefire now when one of their own has his back against the wall? Why did African Union not call for a ceasefire when Ghadafi had an upper hand against the poorly trained, poorly equipped rebels who were only trying to protect the civilians that had gone onto the streets, peacefully calling on the democratization of the Libyan state?
The answer to these questions is simple.
Whether one chooses to call it African Union or Organisation of African Unity there is no difference.
The organisation remains a club of dictatorial leaders whose only concern is closing ranks and protecting their ilk ÔÇô including against unarmed civilians.
The African Union continues to be as irrelevant as its precursor.
