The Signs of the Time: Cooperation or Confrontation (CC)?

14. June 2011 by Assimba.

 Obo Arada Aba Shawl    June 13, 2011

Distortion on IBSA’s profile and belief

Introduction

I have read Amnewsupdate’s blog “The OLF controversy: Veteran OLF hardliner Ibsa Gutema…”as was posted in Assimba Website. I have also read Obo IBSA’s article titled “In Defense of Bilisummaa” that was attached also dated on same date as posted – May 22, 2011…

What IBSA Gutema wrote on colonial history and of economics is his own readings and belief. I think he belongs to a category of ADWA I in terms of history and Adwa II in terms of economic policy.

 

Since our days in school or in workplace (Transport), Ibsa and I have come to grasp that subsequent Ethiopian governments have been instruments of Oppression ጭቆና and Exploitation ብዝበዛ. The reason was simple. There was no written contractual agreement between the government of the day and the people of the day. Living together was based on simple trust cemented by Orthodox Christian belief.

 

However, according to Marxist historical theory, five economic systems have come to exist in the history of humans. IBSA and I have witnessed all the five systems of oppression and exploitation (OE) being concurrently practiced in the entire country of Ethiopia during our lifetime. These were

1. the primitive system

2. the slave system

3. the feudal system

4. the crude capitalist system and

5. The Pseudo socialist governance system.

 

Mr. Ibsa has encountered bureaucratic maladministration locally, regionally as well as on a national level whereas I have traveled and gathered first hand data/information on socio-economic system. We both theorized and analyzed the five systems of economic and political systems of Eathiopia. Mind you within our life time, centuries of transformation and reform was presented to us on a platform. No one can beat this speed except the “Melese regime’s TD Bond phenomenon”. Ours was an era of Revolutionary and Reform and we are still living in it. Are we not a bit lucky? I think we are.

 

What I am writing here is to defend Ibasa’s personal records in college, in government and in social affairs. There are ten points that should be corrected or updated by Amnewsupdate in order to be a credible blog.

 

The content of the blog

1. about politics of hate

The first sentence starts with “Ibsa Gutema is no novice to hate politics.” What an assertion of distortion. I have known this person for exactly half a century (50 years). He was and still he is an Oromo nationalist but not an internationalist! Is it not true that nationalism is higher ideal than tribalism? Which one do we choose a Tigrian tribalist or an Oromo nationalist? You be the Judge.

 

IBSA Gutema cannot hate politics as he chose to graduate in political science. Are we referring to ethnicity, nationalism or religion? Ethnicity is about survival, nationalism is about faith, and religion is about hope.

 

IBSA’s personal life did not apply in any of these three. As far as his personal life is concerned, he is the only person I know who is happily married for life with a large family. He did not, have identity crisis of nationalism for his roots are deeply entrenched in Oromia. And as far as hope, he was/is an Orthodox Christian who believes in the next world. So why did he chose to live in prison for a decade, to be exiled or to advocate for Oromia Nationalism. The answer is simple and straight foreword. He is worried for the Oromo people. That does not mean he is not interested in Ethiopia and Eathiopians. That is precisely why he asked the right question at the right place and at the right time. Manew Ethiopiawi? That question ማነው ኢትዮጵያዊ was it sociological, anthropological, psychological or political question? At the time, for me it was a poetical question and I did not care for poetry at the time. For many Eathiopians, poem is a way out for freedom of expression. I leave the answer to the readers of this article. Who is IBSA? Oops, wrong question.

 

A decade ago, I asked Obo IBSA why he was still stacked to his poem of the 1960’s. He said to me jokingly “no one gave me a response” That was and perhaps how he still feels. Forty years is a long period of time to be national of any nation. There is always a statute of limitation in any society.

 

2. about joining the Melese regime

A decade ago, I had asked IBSA as to his participation within EPRDF’s government, he told me that OLF has accepted the power sharing on the following principles:-

 

The Oromo’s for the most part were/are peasant farmers and were suburbanized, for this reason; the OLF chose to take four cabinet ministers in order to transform their people’s lives…These were

• The ministry of Agriculture

• The ministry of Interior

• The ministry of Education and

• The ministry of Information

 

These four ministries are conducive for changing lives and for transformation and development even for any developed nation. Mind you, OLF leaders did not aspire for the defense, foreign affairs or finance which they left for the “Habeshas”. By the way the Habesha is a pejorative name even for the Northern Ethiopians including to the Eritreans.

 

Actually that was the right and correct way of transformation and development not the current way the Melese regime wanted us to believe about TD

 

The Oromos are far genuine for transformation and development though not necessarily at their expense. I have witnessed it myself when I was in National Service. If they were for the so-called “independence” struggle – they would perhaps, choose other ministries. I believe their whole cultural identity is based on “DEMOCRACIA” bottom up not top-down as is the way of the “Habesha’s.”

 

3. The Blogger claims that IBSA lives in lives in New York, that is not true

4. The Blogger claims that IBSA has penned a book about the fictional Ethiopia. That writer is not IBSA Gutema, it was Sisay Ibsa.

5. My own observation is that everybody and everyone are sticking to his/her birthplace or residence and not to ideology or commerce. The writer of the blog teases IBSA that he did not know anybody from Eritrea perhaps colonized. The fact is that IBSA’s roommates were for the most part were Eritreans.

 

 

6. IBSA does not need exit visa or entry visa from leaders he does not recognize. As far as he is concerned, he is a freeman to go in and out of his birth place

7. We are not Ethiopians – the empire has to be dismantled. This is the slogan IBSA’s and every one of us believes. If we all believe in DEMOCRACIA and democratization in all over Ethiopia, then we are speaking of dismantling the Empire, be it the empire of MTY (Minilik-Tewodros-Yohannes), be it of Haile Sellasie, and be it of Menghistu, Melese or Issais. The Eway Ethiopian Revolution was carried out in order to democratize the Institutions of Ethiopia. We have not done that yet. And so the struggle will continue.

8. The Blogger claims that IBSA played a prominent role in the abandonment of Geez Alphabet and adoption of the so-called Quubi. What is wrong with this effort? Are we opposing knowledge or the abuse of knowledge? Geez Alphabet: AGOL (alpha-Geez-Omega-Latin).

 

9. Obo IBSA has written a book on Conscience in relation to Prison and Prisoners in Ethiopia. The Blog did not mention about this book. Why?

 

10. Although I have not seen it, I was told that IBSA has produced a Dictionary of Oromiffa.

 

I do understand that many of my readers will be puzzled by mixing up the above named personality of leaders. However, it is time to tell that we all should have common understanding of Ethiopia or Ethiopianism. “Call me by my name, what is my name?’

 

• The Europeans has defined Ethiopia on a mythical geography.

• The Amharas defined Ethiopia in terms of philosophical geography

• The Tigrigna speakers defined Ethiopia as physical geography

All others including IBSA’s Ethiopia is defined by Political Geography.

 

As if the above definition is not enough to confuse us, there is the Biblical definition of Ethiopia which in real terms is not compatible with the current state of religious affairs being practiced everywhere.

 

 

 

CONCLUSION

IBSA Gutema is not a linguist scholar and I am not educated in linguistics either. IBSA was educated in political science and I was educated in Economics. IBSA has worked in various Bureaucracies of Ethiopia and he understands the concept of Oppression. I do recognized what Exploitation was meant as I have worked in semi-autonomous organizations.

 

Take for example, the Kilil concept, and we should have a look at Addis Ababa and its environs. It is populated by Oromo population. Look inside the Washington Metropolitan surroundings. It is populated by Eathiopian aka known as Amharas. My friend IBSA and I do not communicate on geographical or mythological terms but on ideological and political understandings.

 

When IBSA says the Empire “has to be dismantled” I think he meant the way Eathiopians think is outdated. They are still live in conspiracy and secrecy. That age is gone for ever.

 

I know IBSA’s action and thought are motivated by love, the outcome of which will be advantageous to all of us.

 

We do not have to believe what we have read or heard. We should not support liars.

Proposal

Democratic culture is the norm. One piece of advice to my friend Ibsa is to come out and revisit the broken families, the academic and the communities. It is not about the government that is responsible for killing the Oromos. Everyone and everybody is aware of the world is even lost between working class and the capitalist.

 

As a seasoned politician and an elder citizen, please come up with a workable proposition. I for one believe that we all need a cultural change – a Revolutionary or a Reform – I cannot tell. For a starter, I can suggest a debate among Eathiopians who reside in Washington Metropolitan in Virginia and Maryland. According to my preliminary studies, our Diaspora communities are clustered on the following basis.

 

• The Socialist Eathiopians are living in Maryland

• The Ethiopian Capitalists reside in Virginia

• And the hyphenated Eathiopians are living in Washington DC

 

Let us debate about economic and political systems and not for nation-nationality issues based on languages and ethnicities. Our common friend Wallelign has done that. It is time to move on beyond building Walls as in Shaebia, building Dams as in Woyane but building Bridges as in BRDCMV.

 

Let us respect DKW (Dega-Kola-Weina) of our country not victory or domination as wrongly claimed by the leaders of Shaebia and Woyane. Our actions should be on negotiations and should be demonstrated in good faith for success stories belong to those who operate in good faith. The leaders of Shaebia, Woyane and their outcrops do not operate on good faith. Both organizations hate the word democracy maybe they are scared, I cannot tell. As to the new emerging agents such as Medrek and Ginbote, we should not be bothered by their intentions and actions. They have to learn the hard way as we did.

 

The current regimes of Weyane and Shaebia cannot out-live, out-manipulate or maneuver other Eathiopians no matter how clever they are. Everyone and everybody who acts in good faith have to pay a price. Our value or love is universal truth.

 

TRUTH WILL PREVAIL

 

For comments and questions

woldetewolde@yahoo.com

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