My keen observation: Where is Tigrai Heading after today’s brief with Wed Ashebir (General Teklay)
Mekelle, Tigray January 18,2025 (Tigray Herald)
Written by Bereket Kiros
We have seen heads of state, prime ministers, and other officials rise and fall to power; I have observed individuals who betrayed their people and parties for personal enrichment. I have witnessed too many thugs, irresponsible, and mediocre Tegaru politicians vying for political power to keep the status quo that failed us. We are at a crossroads in the fight for today and the future of Tigrai. We can navigate wisely, putting our differences aside and marching forward if we understand our enemy’s intrigues. I envision a far better Tigrai that we could all claim as our own than the vision of those self-promoting groups. The vision of a glorious Tigrai is something to behold and aspire for as a realizable future, and at times, reality seems far distant from now.
The recent political skirmish between factions in TPLF vs. Interim Administration demonstrates to me, and others concerned Tegaru, the degree of the political immaturity of the leaders of that political organization. The seeming power struggle between two leaders also demonstrates the deep-seated 50-year political fault, i.e., the shift of political power from the hardcore loyal cadres headed by Debretsion PhD, who want to remain in power by any means. The most considerable outrage, however, is the issue of territorial integrity and displacement being replaced by power-hungry maniacs and the security and well-being of the Tigrai people being neglected in such a tough time. Individuals and an association of Tegaru scholars will post their views on chat rooms and social media on the future political resolution of the bottleneck situation in Tigrai.
Today, the history of the so-called leaders of Tigrai (TPLF) resembles a chaotic Marcato market. Nevertheless, the crude power-seeking infighting within this one organization is illustrative of the grave malady that all politicians suffer—hunger for power as a shortcut to one’s personal material success as opposed to power to be used in the service of the people of Tigrai to improve the living standard of such a people. Thus, Tigrai needs an excellent core with characteristics of selfless deeds of heroic Tegaru personalities to benefit a traumatized community and not a third-rate political manipulation of ideologically diminutive men and women that we have been subjugated to follow for decades now. We do not have to fight, tooth and nail, to convince each other which group neglected the plight of Tegrau or corrupt leadership with no accountability. Today, Wedi Asheber (General) confirmed the deep-seated resentment of our political leaders.
The sad reality of our political situation in Tigrai, whether we are dealing with Interim administration or TPLF, narrow-minded political leaders, or the politics of ideologically corrupt Diaspora émigré of every kind is simply a short-lived passing phenomenon, but what will carry us forward and help us survive as a people and a nation is the system of unity and our zeal for our own sovereignty.
Wedi Asheber’s brief, well-articulated, meaningful interaction needs well-deserved attention. As someone put it, if you know your enemy and know yourself, you will always win. However, not all of us can explicate legal issues or politics during a crisis. Hence, individuals with area expertise must come to the nation’s aid in this time of uncertainty, and his plea seems to capture that reality.
It is time to speed up our efforts and get off the political merry-go-round that promises the illusion of taking us somewhere. It is also time to revive or build on good practices, no matter who initiated them. At times, we are too wrapped up in the past, and the last four years are full of grief, fear, and anger. “Time does not run backward.” And yet many in our community, including myself, still nurse grievances and a personal vendetta of fifty or more years of TPLF undemocratic absolute power. Unfortunately, removing these sentiments from our minds will leave us with little more to say.
In other words, in politics, it is possible to differentiate the personal from the public and to participate in realizing a common goal. We should also remind ourselves that we never cease to relate to each other, whether friends or foes, as long as we live within the same cultural-historical matrix. We live in an image-conscious world where relevance, to an extent, depends on capturing the current public mood. Our people demanding justice can no longer go on with a false promise.
The Debretsion splinter group understands this so well that it has mounted an effective public relations campaign to shift the mood. Repeating a message to reinforce memory and elicit action is a well-worn concept employed by communists that does not come close to the Tigrai reality. The splinter group seems destined to fail because of its inability to produce competent and compassionate leaders. If there had been some form of political compromise and accommodation, Debretsion groups would never have been a part of such a future Tigrai government. So far, two distinct approaches have evolved from discussions on the structure of the future government of Tigrai. Irrespective of the divergent views of such entities, I am very apprehensive about having the Debretsion group, already devastated by their years of miss-rule, abuse, and treasonous activities, for another year will be disastrous. In short, by totally banning the leadership of TPLF from future participation in the political life of Tigrai, one may be able to work with someone other than Debretsion from that organization.
