Political Coprophagia: Ethiopia’s Leaders and Their Cycle of Failure

By Eyassu Epheraim G Hanna
UK London 

Since the fall of Emperor Haile Selassie, Ethiopia’s political discourse has been imprisoned by the so-called “nation and nationalities question.” Codified in Article 39 of the constitution, this framework casts the Amhara as historic oppressors and champions the right of each ethnic group to its own territory, flag, and—if possible—its own country. Far from delivering peace and justice, it has only deepened Ethiopia’s divisions and fuelled endless cycles of conflict and social disintegration.

A recent online public meeting organized by Ledetu Ayalew—watched by more than half a million people—captured the urgency of this crisis. With the slogan, “Stop War: stop subjection: peace reveal!” (ጦርነት ይቁም! አገዛዝ ያብቃ! ሰላም ይምጣ!), the event brought together over 15 speakers: Sebhat Nega, the founder of the TPLF; Oromo activists like Jawar Mohammed, Ezekiel Gebissa, and Jal Taha Abdi; Fano leader Zemene Kassie; former PM security advisor and Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew; Mistre Selassie Tamerat, the current leader of EPRP, a party that predates her birth; Dr. Ismail Qodox for the Somali region; former diplomat Yussuf Yassin for Afar; and Tigrayan activist Alula Solomon, who provocatively called war “Tigrayan culture.”

While these figures called for peace and regime change, what united them was not a shared vision for a just and democratic Ethiopia. It was a shared enemy: Abiy Ahmed’s government. Their gathering was less about crafting a political ideology to transform society and more about seeking political power itself—an ambition that has fuelled Ethiopia’s endless crises.

This is a familiar cycle. When the TPLF was ousted, it was not replaced by a new national vision but by a loose coalition of those who opposed Tigrayan dominance. In that vacuum, power shifted to the OPDO, a party once complicit in TPLF’s oppression of its own Oromo people. Abiy Ahmed emerged from this chaos, promising change but delivering even harsher repression. The pattern repeats: those who seize power without a shared civic vision inevitably turn into the very tyrants they replaced.

Today’s political alliance mirrors this dangerous dynamic. Like a clan of hyenas snatching a kill from a lion, they gather to topple Abiy Ahmed—but they will surely turn on each other to devour the spoils. Their only real unity is the desire to topple the current government, not to build a new Ethiopia. Without a shared commitment to civic nationalism—one that transcends ethnicity and prioritizes shared citizenship—any regime change they achieve will simply empower new warlords and plunge the country deeper into chaos.

This is what I call political Coprophagia Syndrome: a compulsive, self-destructive cycle of feeding on the same toxic ideas and power grabs that created the crisis in the first place. As Albert Einstein warned, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

True transformation in Ethiopia will not come from politicians who see the state as a prize to be carved up and consumed. It will not come from opportunists who join forces to destroy a common foe only to fight among themselves for the spoils. Unless Ethiopia can break free from this political Coprophagia Syndrome and embrace a civic nationalism that values equality and justice over ethnic division, every new “peace” summit will be just another hollow performance—another chapter in a tragic cycle of betrayal and violence.

Editor’s Note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com      

  __

Subscribe  : https://borkena.com/subscribe-borkena/ 

Join our Telegram Channel : t.me/borkena

Like borkena on Facebook

Add your business to Ethiopian Business Listing / Ethiopian Business Directory  Business Listing Toronto 

Join the conversation. Follow us on X (Formerly Twitter)  @zborkena to get the latest Ethiopian News updates regularly.  Subscribe to YouTube channel To share information or for submission, send e-mail to info@borkena.com