We Must Speak Out or Perish in Silence” — Prof. Lumumba Decries Leadership Failure and False
Renowned Pan-Africanist and public intellectual Professor PLO Lumumba has issued a powerful rebuke against what he describes as “cowardice,” “false democracy,” and “leadership greed” in African countries, calling on the continent’s citizens—especially the youth—to awaken to the realities of their governance systems and demand accountability.
Speaking at a public symposium yesterday, Prof. Lumumba lamented the rising tide of impunity, corruption, ethnic politics, and electoral manipulation across Africa, warning that the continent cannot progress under its current political systems.
“This is not the time for cowards who die many times before their actual death,” Lumumba declared. “If we remain silent today, our children and their children will pay the price of our cowardice.”
He decried recent assassination attempts on reform-minded leaders, referencing his friend Captain Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso, who he said has survived multiple attempts on his life.
“When you’re doing good in Africa, they try to take you out,” he noted. “But like Samora Machel said, when colonizers praise you, pause and ask: what evil are you committing against your own people?”
On Failed Democracy
Lumumba criticized the state of democracy in Africa, stating that many African nations adopted colonial systems of government post-independence, rather than developing systems rooted in African traditions and values.
“No African country adopted a governance system based on its own traditions. Instead, we inherited Western systems—systems that are now failing us.”
Citing the situation in countries such as Sudan, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mali, Lumumba pointed out that several coups in recent years are signs of deeper systemic failure. “What we call democracy has become a mockery,” he said.
A Broken System of Governance
He described Kenya’s political landscape as one where tribalism trumps ideology. “Political parties don’t matter. What matters is your ethnic group,” he said. “No presidential candidate has ever contested twice under the same party. The forest changes, but the monkeys remain the same.”
He sharply criticized Kenya’s Parliament, alleging rampant corruption, nepotism, and insatiable greed among elected officials.
“Our MPs are among the best paid in the world relative to our GDP, not because they serve us—but because they serve themselves.”
He accused politicians of turning the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) into personal empires, enriching themselves through companies registered in the names of relatives and household staff.
Call to Action for Young Africans
Prof. Lumumba challenged young Africans to rise above tribal loyalties and demand better leadership and governance.
“The tribe must die—not in identity, but as a basis for decision-making,” he said. “We can’t keep voting for people just because they gave us 200 shillings.”
He emphasized that development requires discipline and prioritization. “We have 47 counties in Kenya, each acting like an independent nation. Yet, some of these counties generate 400 million annually but consume over 2 billion. We cannot grow—not even with divine intervention.”
On Democracy and African History
Dispelling the myth that democracy is a Western invention, Lumumba traced the practice back to Africa’s pre-colonial systems and the 1235 Manden Charter among the Mandinka people, long before the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“We knew democracy. We practiced it. But the version we now practice is neo-colonial, imposed, and failing.”
Closing Message
Referencing the killing of six people on April 29th in what he described as “cold blood,” Lumumba lamented the culture of lawlessness and impunity that pervades African governance.
“What is the value of knowing what is right if we do not do what is right?” he asked. “We are unmoved and untouched, but until we change, nothing will change.”
He concluded with a rallying cry:
“This is not the time for cowards. We must speak out and bear the consequences. Africa must rise.”
