The Gadfather Flexes His Muscles

Muammar Gaddafi's role as King of Kings, and head of the African Union looks to be heading for an acrimonious ending, as that little monkey known as 'rules' and possibly its cousin 'democracy' have reared their heads.

The problem is that Gaddafi is not exactly democratic by nature or inclination, or rather he practises 'one man, one vote', and he's that 'one man' with the 'one vote' in Libya.

Now that his one year reign as head of the African Union is coming to an end he is not a happy 'gadman'. His solution? Why not just change the rules so that he stays as head of the African Union? Simple! And to that end, one of Libya's Arab clients (no oil), Tunisia, has now suggested prior to a African heads of state summit next week, that Col Gaddafi stay on.

This would be fine if everyone just understood that Gaddafi is the only man for the job, but unfortunately some of the AU members don't quite see it the 'Gadfathers' way, and these 'troublemakers' are insisting that the AU rules mean that its Malawi's turn to lead the union.

"Personally I am confident that the candidature of Malawi is going to be endorsed by the whole African Union," said Eduardo Koloma , Mozambique's deputy foreign minister.

As usual with Africa, the sound of the begging bowl rattling is never far away. The AU is looking for $1.3bn for its programmes, Malawi is poor, Libya is by far the richest of the AU members (in terms of contributions), a deal is on the cards, and this blog is confident that with an exchange of cash to Malawi and the AU, our man will retain his status as the 'Big Man' of Africa.

STOP PRESS!

The BBC is reporting that Gadaffi has handed over the Chairmanship of the AU to the Malawian leader but apparently with not much good grace. He is reported as having complained about being sidelined, left out of decisions and most crucially, of not being invited to represent Africa at big meetings such as the G20, G7 and World Economic Forum at Davos.

He is also said to have made a very pointed reminder about how much funds Libya has contributed to the AU and suggested that as he had been in power the longest (no mean feat in a continent where re-election is optional) he should be given a special post in the organisation ........ obviously no elections are foreseen in Libya for the next decade or so.

I suspect that the AU will still be looking for the $1.5bn after this little episode.

Year of the Gadfather

As mentioned in earlier blogs we are keeping a beady eye on the Gadfather (aka Colonel Muammar Gaddafi) in his role as "King of Kings", African Union chairman and all round international world and universally acclaimed leader.

Reports suggest that someone is heading for concrete shoes (or at least a cellar in Tripoli) as the Gadfather has fallen out with the AU's Peace and Security Council ...... we await the explosion.

Addendum: Hardly had I posted this when stories came out that the Gadfather stormed out of the Arab League summit in Qatar yesterday after denouncing the Saudi King and declaring himself "the dean of Arab rulers". He took the microphone and criticised King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, saying "You are always lying and you're facing the grave and you were made by Britain and protected by the United States".

When the Qatari emir tried to calm him, Col Gaddafi, the Africa Union chairman, insisted he be allowed to speak, saying: "I am an international leader, the dean of the Arab rulers, the King of Kings of Africa and the Imam (teacher) of Muslims, and my international status does not allow me to descend to a lower level."

Go Gadfather Go! ..... glad to see that he hasn't let his fans down.

The Colonel Speaks His Mind

Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has said he would like any 'United States of Africa' to include "Caribbean islands with African populations"..... this is after he was recently made King Of Kings, by African traditional leaders, and then took the role of Chairman of the African Union.

This latest announcement, follows on to his dismissal of African democracy, and his plan for a "United States of Africa" (ruled presumably by a promising new 'King of Kings'), it all promises exciting times for a defunct organisation.

I will be watching his eccentric reign as King of Kings and AU Chairman with some interest, it looks like there is a real 'player' in town, and I for one will enjoy the show.

The "King of Kings"