African leaders who have exceeded ten years in office other than ceremonial or parliamentary monarchs should be forced to relinquish power or be expelled from participating in regional or sub-regional forums meant for African Heads of State and Government, one of the continent’s active rights groups has said. “They should also be arrested, prosecuted and jailed for office (tenure) abuse crimes. A code-ban should also be put in place banning their sons, daughters, wives, brothers, cousins, in-laws and other relatives from succeeding them particularly when they die in office,” said the International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law (Intersociety).

The group, which operates from Onitsha in South-East Nigeria, made the recommendation while marking the 2014 World Human Rights Declaration Anniversary last Sunday night at the Retreat and Conference Centre of the Knights of St. Mulumba in the famous commercial town.

Intersociety in a paper entitled ‘Africa: A Blessed Continent Ruined By Dictatorship & Tyranny’, further suggested that “the AU and other African sub-regional bodies like ECOWAS and SADC should also block such regime tenure abusers from participating in all UN-related functions including the General Assembly meetings and proceedings. This can be done by way of written recommendations to the United Nations.

“Lastly, respected and democratically stable African countries like South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, etc are urged to empower their judicial bodies with trans-border or regional jurisdictions to pave way for indictment of such dictatorial and tyrannical leaders over office tenure abuse and political crimes as well as crimes against humanity.

“International arrest warrants should be issued against them as well as prosecuting them in person or in absentia within best international practices. Where it is possible for other African countries to dethrone them for strict purpose of enthroning free democracy, free speech, credible regime change and peace building, they should be dethroned.”

Intersociety Board Chairman Emeka Umeagbalasi, who presented the paper, lamented that “over 60% of African continent’s member-states are presently under the clutches of dictatorship and tyranny.”

According to him, “It has also been indisputably established that over 70% of the African states are politically unstable. All the genocidal, civil, military and political conflicts that have ravaged Africa in recent times are triggered off by dictatorship and tyranny. The problems facing the continent are hugely man-made and flow from top-down politico-social vices and mis-governance. They are pollutant viruses afflicting Africa and Africans.”

Umeagbalasi warned that “unless credible and effective benchmarks are put in place to fight dictatorship and tyranny, Africa will continue to wallow in intractable politico-social vices.” The continent, he said, “must borrow a leave from the European Union that set strict criteria for intending members including free democratic, good governance, human rights and budgetary performance indexes.”

The event was graced by dignitaries from various parts of Nigeria, including immediate past Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, who received the maiden Intersociety Outstanding Performance In Socio-Economic Governance Award.

•Photo shows Umeagbalasi presenting his paper during Intersociety’s ceremony marking the 2014 World Human Rights Declaration Anniversary.