I love this country

What happened today at the African Union is a stark reminder that leadership matters. It's unbelievable to note that a whole continental organisation can be tarnished or driven into a crisis by its own Chairperson, who is in office for not even two months. Unlike what I read here and there in the media, today's decision by the twenty (20) AU member States who broke the silence was not aimed at rejecting the candidature of anyone. It was aimed at opposing a flawed procedure initiated by President Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi, Chairperson of the African Union, in total violation of all rules and regulations governing African candidatures in the international system. In this matter, everything was wrong from day one: FIRST, on 2nd March 2026, the Permanent Representative of Burundi in New York sent a letter to the President of the UN General Assembly, informing her that: "my government, current Chair of the African Union, nominates His Excellency Macky Sall, former President of the Republic of Senegal, for the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations". This submission of an African candidature to the position of UN Secretary General came as a surprise to all African Heads of State and Government, as none of them was consulted by the AU Chairperson before taking this important decision. SECOND, after submitting the candidature of former President Macky Sall in New York, the President of Burundi attempted to force his African counterparts to endorse this gross breach of procedure. Indeed, he yesterday convened the bureau of the African Union (attended by only two other members) and decided to put such an important matter under an unusual 24-hour "silence procedure". In other words, President Ndayishimiye, instead of convening an AU Summit to advise him on the right procedure, chose to give his fellow AU Heads of State and Government only 24 hours to either endorse, by keeping silent, an AU decision that "EXPRESSES ITS FIRM SUPPORT to the President of the Republic of Burundi, H.E. Evariste Ndayishimiye, Chairperson of the AU for 2026, for having presented the candidacy of President Macky Sall [...] for the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations", or to reject it by breaking the silence. This was too much for many AU member States, which could not accept such a diktat and such disrespect from their Chairperson. They then decided to break the silence, block his decision and remind President Ndayishimiye that the African Union is governed by the rule of law. Unfortunately, the damage was already done in the outside world but I hope that this incident will nonetheless serve us as a lesson for future appointments of AU Chairpersons.

What happened today at the African Union is a stark reminder that leadership matters. It's unbelievable to note that a whole continental organisation can be tarnished or driven into a crisis by its own Chairperson, who is in office for not even two months. Unlike what I read here and there in the media, today's decision by the twenty (20) AU member States who broke the silence was not aimed at rejecting the candidature of anyone. It was aimed at opposing a flawed procedure initiated by President Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi, Chairperson of the African Union, in total violation of all rules and regulations governing African candidatures in the international system. In this matter, everything was wrong from day one: FIRST, on 2nd March 2026, the Permanent Representative of Burundi in New York sent a letter to the President of the UN General Assembly, informing her that: "my government, current Chair of the African Union, nominates His Excellency Macky Sall, former President of the Republic of Senegal, for the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations". This submission of an African candidature to the position of UN Secretary General came as a surprise to all African Heads of State and Government, as none of them was consulted by the AU Chairperson before taking this important decision. SECOND, after submitting the candidature of former President Macky Sall in New York, the President of Burundi attempted to force his African counterparts to endorse this gross breach of procedure. Indeed, he yesterday convened the bureau of the African Union (attended by only two other members) and decided to put such an important matter under an unusual 24-hour "silence procedure". In other words, President Ndayishimiye, instead of convening an AU Summit to advise him on the right procedure, chose to give his fellow AU Heads of State and Government only 24 hours to either endorse, by keeping silent, an AU decision that "EXPRESSES ITS FIRM SUPPORT to the President of the Republic of Burundi, H.E. Evariste Ndayishimiye, Chairperson of the AU for 2026, for having presented the candidacy of President Macky Sall [...] for the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations", or to reject it by breaking the silence. This was too much for many AU member States, which could not accept such a diktat and such disrespect from their Chairperson. They then decided to break the silence, block his decision and remind President Ndayishimiye that the African Union is governed by the rule of law. Unfortunately, the damage was already done in the outside world but I hope that this incident will nonetheless serve us as a lesson for future appointments of AU Chairpersons.

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