Africa Horn Now

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Africa Horn Now

Democrats v autocrats in Africa: is there a winning formula? – podcast

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Presented by Hugh Muir and produced by Simon Barnard | THE GUARDIAN

As the dust settles on the elections in Uganda, where Yoweri Museveni has prolonged a presidential reign of longer than 30 years, Hugh Muir looks at the trade-offs between progress and freedom.

Last week, Ugandans voted in presidential elections and, amid allegations of intimidation and vote-rigging, the incumbent president Yoweri Museveni hung on to power.

Museveni isn’t the only leader unwilling to relinquish the reins. Other long-serving African leaders have changed their constitutions to allow them to stay in power, among them Rwanda’s Paul Kagame. Other African leaders have ruled for more than three decades, including Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe, who has just turned 92.

So what are the pros and cons of long-term leaders, and are there any ways to mitigate their grip on power?

Joining Hugh Muir are Richard Joseph, John Evans Professor of International History and Politics at Northwestern University; Ugandan journalist and human rights advocate Patience Akuma; and Dr Phil Clark, from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.