Ethiopia’s prime minister resigned on Thursday, apparently sacrificed by his ruling party, one of Africa’s most ruthless, as it scrambled to secure its weakening hold on power in the face of swelling popular protest. Hailemariam Desalegn’s announcement that he was stepping down was, on the face of it, a highly unusual moment in Africa. Only once since decolonisation in the Sixties — when Tanzania’s Julius Nyerere resigned in 1985 — has a leader on Africa’s eastern coastline resigned voluntarily midterm. But although Mr Hailemariam’s departure closely followed the enforced resignations of South Africa’s Jacob Zumba and Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe, few observers saw it in the same mould. Representing less than seven percent of the population, Tigrayan domination has been shaken by three years of crippling protests by the Oromo and Amhara ethnic groups, who account for 60 percent of Ethiopia’s 105 million people.

Source: Ethiopian News February 15, 2018 18:45 UTC