US President Barack Obama has warned that Africa will not advance if its leaders refuse to step down when their terms end.
He also called for an end to the “cancer of corruption”, saying it took money away from development .
Mr Obama made the comments in the first ever address by a US leader to the 54-member AU at its headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
The address marked the climax of Mr Obama’s five-day trip to Africa.
He visited Kenya and Ethiopia, the headquarters of the AU.
African leaders should respect their constitutions, and step down when their term ends.
Violence in Burundi following President Pierre Nkurunziza’s bid for a third term showed how stability could be threatened if constitutional rules were ignored, he said.
“Nobody should be president for life,” Mr Obama said.
“I don’t understand why people want to stay so long, especially when they have got a lot of money,” he added.
Democracy existed in name but not in substance when journalists were jailed and activists were threatened, he said.
Corruption was “draining billions of dollars” from Africa, he added.
The money could be used to build schools and hospitals, Mr Obama said.
The rapid economic growth in Africa was changing “old stereotypes” of a continent hit by war and poverty, he said.
But unemployment needed to be urgently tackled on a continent whose one-billion people will double in a few decades, Mr Obama said.
“We need only look to the Middle East and North Africa to see that large numbers of young people with no jobs and stifled voices can fuel instability and disorder,” he added.
Source: BBC Africa
Ends
don’t waste your time, they wont listen.
Obama has said everything. I rest my case
I hope our Gambian Dictator Yahya Jammeh is among the audience listening shameless to president Obama’s speech. Dictator Jammeh and his unpatriotic unconstitutional supporters of ignorant think that pardoned 229 prisoners is Democratic move not knowing that even Allah the Almighty himself have prepare for us two place paradise and hell fire for the human beings, and Jin to go. I lf I am disobedience and act evils till I died, I have no other place but hell fire but if I did worshipp Allah wholeheartedly, doing good to my parents and humanity at large and then died in those good acts, then Allah will reward me Jannah. In any place in this world governments pardon prisoners even recently Obama has pardoned prisoners from Oklahoma state. I welcome dictator jammeh’s conditional pardon because he did it not by Allah but to seen and call his name has a Allah’s fearing and good leader. In fact some of those soldiers among his pardoned act or gruel treated gambians inhumane while he dictator jammeh and those pardoned ex soldiers are in good terms. In fact he released this prisoners because of high cost of feeding and taking care of them (1.5 millions dalasis) per month which his government cannot continue to afford that. Simple and plain. But mark my words, if I am those pardoned prisoners, I will leave the country before sending them back in prison soon.