Editor,

Refer to James Katongana’s article, "Political Education is the answer to war torn areas of Africa” (The New Times, June 16).

President Thomas Sankara came to power at the wrong time of history. He did not clearly understand key stakeholders who were behind the political curtain of his home country. I suppose Patrice Lumumba of the DRC falls into the same category.

The lack of experience in international politics was one of the reasons of their and other early African leaders’ premature demise.

Nelson Mandela survived because he quickly understood that he could not rule South Africa without forgiving and living alongside white South Africans. In addition, before leaving the Robben Island Prison, he struck a deal with the white supremacy that could no longer pursue the ANC’s initial communist or socialist ideology.

On the other side, there is no doubt that some African leaders are trying to improve the livelihoods of their fellow citizens. Meanwhile, the big dilemma is that these goodwill leaders can’t survive without in-kind and financial support from Europe and America.

Another critical issue that is undermining Africa’s future is that most leaders who come to power don’t respect the law of the land and don’t like to pass the torch to the next generation. The more they stay in power, the more they leave chaos behind them.

Hosni Mubarak, Mobutu Sese Seko, Juvénal Habyarimana, and Muammar Gaddafi are just a few examples.

In short, there are still many things to do to move Africa to the next level. Let me also say that effective leaders are remembered by the legacy they leave behind for their people and the international community at large.

Thank you so much for a well articulated article.

Eddy Chico, United States