University students challenge EPRDF officials

ESAT News

August 19, 2014

Students in Gonder University taking part in the mandatory training which compels over 350 thousand new and existing university students to be trained in government’s policy and strategy have posed several critical questions to the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) officials who are leading the training. The training directive states that students who do not hold the certificate of completion of this training cannot continue their studies.

The meeting held amid a disorder, is reportedly aimed at preparing students for the upcoming election and recruiting new members. On the first day of the session held last Friday, students asked questions about rights, democracy, and economy.

The students have asked if there was really equality between ethnic groups in Ethiopia. They also stated that there is a domination of one ethnic group in the leadership positions of different organisations and the Amhara ethnic group is being insulted by people who even claim to represent the people. The students said that there was no democracy in the country, doubted if there was religious equality too. Although the current regime often critics the former regime, the students said the works of the current regime are not even better than the past and it is difficult to even differentiate them.

Similarly, the students aired their criticisms on the economic front saying that road constructions are often not completed, there is no sugar in the market, and recent reports show that Ethiopia is still one of the poorest countries in the world even if there are infrastructural developments which are built by Chinese money.

The students also asked about the border problems between Sudan and Ethiopia in the North West and why they force them to attend such training when elections arrive, the chairs were unable to answer the questions satisfactorily which annoyed most of the students.

So far only students that have come from rural areas were given small amount of per dime. This has caused a fall out between the rest of the students and the officials of the ruling Front who organised the meeting.

Students told ESAT that the interest of the students to participate in the training has been minimal and most of them who started attending the training have left in the middle.

A document that was prepared by Addisu Legese, former Deputy PM and now top official and trainer within the ruling Front, EPRDF, for the advisors of the Ethiopian Prime Minister, recommended that the Front should change the way it recruits and trains its members for the success of the “transformation journey”.