The success of the monumental task they are to undertake and the national responsibilities they are to shoulder will largely depend on the will of the Ethiopian public, at home and abroad. Hence, supporting the APC at each step and contributing towards the successful conduct and process of the convention are not matters of choice, but national duties and obligations for all well meaning Ethiopians. Why? The answer is simple and the choices are clear. This convention succeeds in what it sets to achieve, a new day of hope and a beginning of national renewal for Ethiopia. This convention fails in what it sets to achieve, continued despoliation and national defacement under the grip of the ethno-centric hordes that are thoroughly anti-Ethiopia in all sense of the word. No doubt, all well-meaning Ethiopians, regardless of their political persuasions and backgrounds, will opt for the former.
How will the support of the Ethiopian public guarantee the success of this long awaited coalescing of the Ethiopian political forces through the process of the APC? The fresh breeze in our current political life is that most of the participating political organizations have come to the realization that the Ethiopian people have no more stomach for the persistent sectarian and disjointed political movement of the opposition. The support the Ethiopian public gives to this convention sends a clear message to such political groupings that are not in tune with the aspirations of the Ethiopian people and who, wittingly or unwittingly, play into the hands of the enemy. Furthermore, the unfettered public support accorded to the convention will place an immense psychological burden on the participating organizations. It will, at least, force each of them to think twice on positions they take and roles they play in effecting the success of the conference. It will make it difficult for them to face the public that is waiting for the result of the convention with their hearts throbbing if the outcome is otherwise.
The benefits that could arise from a successful conduct of this convention are multifold. Internationally, the just struggle of the Ethiopian people against the dictatorial ethno-centric regime of the EPRDF will earn legitimacy and muster diplomatic and material support. Clear choices will avail themselves to all those who have strategic interest in Ethiopia: a choice between a viable, legitimate, pluralistic, and democratic government of Ethiopia or an illegitimate government of ethnic homelands without popular mandate. The calculus of international alignments and co-operations will have a new tangent; and that will be in favor of Ethiopia.
Internally, it is long realized that the only sure way of shortening the tenure of the illegitimate government now in power is through coalition politics. It is quite refreshing and encouraging that most of the major political forces have now recognized their limitations to wage an up-hill battle if they chose to do it alone. The pleas of the Ethiopian people are heeded and the public has the duty to seize the opportunity and encourage the political organizations to stay the course. Furthermore, the successful conduct of this conference creates unique opportunities for all involved political organizations to develop a more comprehensive political, economic, and social agenda for the country on a broader national platform. In due time, and through the course of continued consultations and co-operations, the process can lend itself towards the merger of some of the organizations that are operating on similar programs. All organizations will have unencumbered access to each other’s constituency base, which in turn will facilitate more understanding and fraternal relationships amongst the organizations and their respective membership.
Finally, and for most, the government that will be borne out of this exercise cannot be any thing, but democratic and pluralistic. It is not the desire of any particular organization or a sheer manipulation by any one interest group that is to reign; but a deliberative outcome obtained through dialogue, consultations, compromises, and accommodations. The struggle and the sacrifices of the Ethiopian people are not just to replace the current impious government, but to also have a government of its own that is accountable for its actions. The currently evolving new culture of consultation and dialogue amongst the participating organizations is indicative of what is to necessarily be the mark of the government that is to emerge from the coalition.
The general Ethiopian public and organized civic associations have immense roles in actualizing this mode of governance. By supporting the APC process and by forcing the desired outcome that will rid Ethiopia from multitudes of political, economic, and social ills, the public and the civic association will enter into an accord of partnership with the political organizations that will carry them through thick and thin. That is what our country needs from all of us today; and that is what will put us on the path of a new day of hope and a beginning of national renewal for Ethiopia.
