[By T. Tekle]
It is disingenuous that the TPLF faction led by Dr Debretshion Gebremichael attempted to convince the diplomatic and international partners it was not doing a coup against the Tigray Interim Regional Administration (TIRA). But the fundamental issue is that the TPLF tried to justify enforcing of the “constitutional order and rule of law” while the TPLF faction and its armed group were using lethal force to confiscate TIRA’s seals and engage in human rights abuses in Seharti, Adi Gudem, Adigrat, and Mekele.
This contradiction has raised serious concerns among Tigrayans, observers and stakeholders about the true intentions of the TPLF faction. As national and international attention to the TPLF political duplicity is growing, the TPLF faction must clearly state its political stands in the Pretoria peace agreement.
The TPLF faction’s cowardly actions in dismantling the TIRA are going to have a negative effect on its political power and self-rule in Tigray. The TPLF is slowly detaching itself from its core supporters and the people of Tigray. The people had enough of the TPLF’s repressive and rigid political system. The majority of people want fundamental change after their worst experience of the Tigray genocide. The TPLF faction is blind to see and observe what the people of Tigray demand and want now is a fundamental change in how they are governed. The people are demanding peace, security, democracy, accountability, transparency, and good governance – no more, no less. If the TPLF can’t understand the people of Tigray demand to reform its political ideology to meet the people’s needs, the TPLF will be colluding with the people and will not survive its existence in Tigray.
The TPLF must learn from its repeated mistakes and the Palestinians, who have protested against Hamas in Gaza on Tuesday, March 25, chanting “out, out, out, Hamas out” “down with Hamas rule“ and “demand the group step down from power.” The Palestinians have had enough of the Hamas hardline ideology and called for an end to the war with Israel, demanding peace, no more war and suffering. The TPLF should watch the sudden Palestinians protest in Gaza, who “refuse to die for anyone, for any party’s agenda” after many decades of bitter war against Israel. The TPLF may encounter the same fate of political phenomena in Tigray as in Gaza.
The TPLF’s incoherent political duplicity is humiliating Tigray; it is prolonging the suffering of the people in Tigray, for which the TPLF has failed to fulfil its accountability and responsibility in the implementation of the Pretoria peace agreement. Instead, Debretsion and his loyal faction have been sabotaging and becoming obstacles to the return of Tigray territories, claiming that it would save the party first and then save the people of Tigray.
Dr Debretsion and his cliques have created the political mess to remove the TIRA President Getachew Reda, giving Abiy Ahmed the opportunity to devise a new strategy in adding more fuel into the political infighting in Tigray so that he can blame Tigray for annulling the Pretoria peace agreement. The TPLF’s lack of political foresight is hurting the people of Tigray but helping Abiy Ahmed to reengineer his unfinished genocidal project against the people of Tigray by reimposing the siege, blocking fuel, stopping the Tigray budget, and sanctioning generals to trigger his second genocidal war.
Moreover, Abiy Ahmed is interfering in Tigray’s internal political process and asking the people of Tigray to nominate a new president through an email to his office, which is legally invalid and an insult to the people of Tigray. This is the fault of Dr Debretsion for bowing and begging Abiy Ahmed about eight times to make him the TIRA president, which has shown his political weakness to evidently endanger the peace, security and national interest of Tigray. This situation highlights a significant erosion of trust in the TPLF leadership, as many now question the motives behind such an unintended approach to grabbing power. The people of Tigray deserve a leadership that reflects their aspirations, rather than one dictated by the TPLF faction’s personal interests and political manoeuvring by Abiy Ahmed over Tigray’s self-determination.
The TPLF has already damaged the unity of Tigray, and its political failures have given Abiy Ahmed reasons to install his own chosen president in Tigray. Abiy is trying to inflame the antagonism between the warring TPLF factions, and he is succeeding in widening the division started by the TPLF. The Pretoria peace agreement mediators may simply give up or take sides in support of Abiy, as the TPLF has been trying to form its alliance with the Eritrean regime and Amhara Fano, who are not party to the peace agreement. The TPLF has lost its credibility in the eyes of the people of Tigray as a result of infighting for power obsessively before the welfare of the Tigrayan people. To redeem Tigray’s politics, it is time for the TPLF to reform its political ideology, and this ought to happen quickly without delay if the TPLF wants to continue its existence and be accepted by the people of Tigray as it claims deviously it is the people’s party.
It is crucial for the stability of Tigray that a transparent and inclusive approach to leadership is adopted, fostering genuine dialogue and collaboration among all stakeholders in Tigray to restore faith in the political process to ensure democracy, good governance, and self-determination are exercised in Tigray. This requires a commitment from the international community to support a fair and equitable process, encouraging the voices of Tigrayans to be heard and respected and not to be dictated to by the TPLF’s failed political system or intervention by Abiy Ahmed in the democratic rights of the Tigrayan people. Only such an approach can bring long-lasting peace and minimise external involvement to overshadow Tigray self-rule, eliminating dependency and empowering Tigrayans to exercise their rights and shape their own future.
The task for the people of Tigray now is to manage the risk and prepare to minimise the worst-case scenarios that come from Abiy Ahmed. The fact that the TPLF breached and failed its duty, accountability and responsibility again brings the looming second genocidal war to Tigray. We, the Tegaru, must come together to demand that the TPLF relinquish power, as it can no longer lead Tigray. Tigray must elect its president quickly from the interim council before Abiy does.
The urgency of this situation cannot be overstated, as time is of the essence Tigray. Only through unity and decisive action we can safeguard our future and ensure that our voices are heard amidst the growing turmoil. We must rally the people of Tigray and engage in dialogue to foster a collective vision for Tigray’s future.
On the other hand, the impending geopolitics in the Horn of Africa and Red Sea are increasingly attracting many superpower countries. The leadership in Tigray must assess how Tigray can be prepared to minimise and counter the threats of harms that may come to Tigray.
The time for complacency must end; now is the moment to assert our demands and reclaim our freedom, liberty and independence in shaping the destiny of Tigray. This journey will require courage, resilience, and unwavering commitment from every Tigrayan. Together, we can forge a path towards peace, democracy, good governance, and prosperity, ensuring that the sacrifices made by our martyrs are honoured and that the national interest of Tigray guides us forward to realise our freedom to live free in our ancestors’ land, Tigray.