Mekelle፡Telaviv, Nairobi, Pretoria, London, (Tigray Herald)
Open Letter to Tadesse Werede, President of the Tigray Interim Administration Tadesse Werede.
Subject: Objection to the Legitimacy and Direction of Your Governance
Your Excellency,
Notwithstanding the illegitimate and extraconstitutional means by which you assumed the presidency through a coup d’état against your predecessor, we, the members of I Can’t Be Silent About Tigray, adopted a principled stance to provisionally support your leadership.
This decision was not born of naivety regarding the unlawful nature of your accession, but rather of a sober and urgent prioritization of the immediate suffering of the Tigrayan people. We hoped that, chastened by the past and guided by necessity, you would align your leadership with the aspirations of our people and faithfully uphold both the eight-point agreement you signed with the Federal Government and the spirit of the Pretoria Agreement.
Regrettably, your conduct since taking office, most notably the formation of your cabinet and your recent public rhetoric, has dispelled that hope. It has become painfully evident that your presidency is both structurally and morally compromised, if not dead on arrival. We are therefore compelled to express our
profound dismay and to delineate the grounds of our objection, rooted in both legal principles and the ethical imperatives of democratic governance:
- Breach of Agreement and Public Trust: In direct violation of your signed commitments and the public trust, you have appointed a cabinet dominated by operatives of the illegal TPLF faction, a group under investigation and subject to imminent revocation by the National Election Board of Ethiopia for its
persistent noncompliance with lawful directives. - Empowerment of a Discredited Regime: The composition of your cabinet evidences allegiance to a faction historically associated with repression, systemic corruption, and criminal activities including illicit gold mining and human trafficking. This group has been overwhelmingly rejected by the Tigrayan
public. - Disregard for Democratic Mandate: Your appointments reflect not the will of the people but the restoration of a failed totalitarian regime, widely believed to be colluding with the Eritrean dictatorship,
the sworn enemy of Tigray. - Procedural Impropriety: The cabinet was assembled without the requisite consultation, transparency, or public deliberation, a clear instance of “putting the cart before the horse.” It appears the selections were
pre-determined by the office of the illegal TPLF faction, with you merely serving to ratify them. - Violation of National and International Norms: The formation of this cabinet undermines constitutional order, violates the Pretoria Agreement, and breaches the expectations of the Federal Government, with whom you entered into a binding commitment under the observation of international guarantors.
Worse still, it raises serious concerns about the potential pursuit of renewed conflict, particularly in light of known affiliations between certain members of your administration and the hostile Eritrean regime.
- Marginalization of Youth and TDF Voices: Your administration has disregarded the growing demands of Tigrayan youth and members of the TDF, many of whom are actively resisting what they view as a
coup against the legitimate Interim Administration previously led by Mr. Getachew Reda. - Reintegration of Discredited Military Commanders: Your reinstatement of military figures removed by your predecessor signals an intention to restore discredited power structures and undermines prospects
for transitional justice and institutional reform. - Instrumentalization of Power: Rather than utilizing political power as a means to redress the suffering
of the Tigrayan people, your actions suggest that power is being wielded as an end in itself—to fulfill personal ambitions and to reinstate a faction that has lost all moral and political legitimacy.
In light of these facts, it is clear that any appeals to “unity,” “reconciliation,” or “harmony” under your leadership amount to little more than demands for the Tigrayan people to acquiesce to a political apparatus
that has long subjugated them.
The situation in Tigray requires a pragmatic approach—one that is inclusive, representative, and therefore
more effective. We believe the focus must be on transforming the current crisis into an opportunity.
The Tigray Interim Administration should remain fully committed to working in close partnership with the Federal Government of Ethiopia to ensure the full implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement
(CoHA) and to bring about lasting peace in both Tigray and Ethiopia.
We therefore call upon you to immediately restructure the cabinet following democratic principles, the expressed will of the people, and the binding commitments of the Pretoria Agreement. Failure to do so will
leave us no choice but to publicly repudiate your administration and to align ourselves with the Tigrayan people and the Federal Government (signatory to the Pretoria Agreement) in resisting your illegitimate
regime until the rightful demands of the people of Tigray are fulfilled.
