Today, Addis Ababa is one of the biggest cities in Africa, with population estimated to surpass 5 million (unofficial estimates). Just like other cities and states, the formation of Addis Ababa, historically, is far from being pure and straightforward. ), former mayor of Addis Ababa, sees the ‘origin story’ of Addis Ababa to be of two strands: one from 14th century and one from even further 4th century, where in both cases respective emperors of the time had used Addis Ababa as either a seat or one of the seats to preside over their territorial jurisdiction. Oromia was a State governed from Addis Ababa without, however, governing Addis Ababa itself,” he argues, and that is fundamentally wrong given the historical heritages, according to Tsegaye. For one, no ethnic or other communities including the residents of Addis Ababa, which seems to have sprung into action in recent times under the leadership of activist and publisher EskindirNega to claim the “exclusive ownership” of Addis Ababa; cannot make such legal claims without amending the constitution.

Source: Ethiopian News March 30, 2019 07:30 UTC