David Cameron's success stories Vs Tony Blair monumental failures in Africa

By Sam Akaki

Former British Prime Minister David Cameron may have spent only 2,196 days at No. 10 Downing Street, but his Africa policies have benefited millions of people. To fully appreciate Cameron's impact in Africa, it is necessary to put his achievements side-by-side with the monumental damages caused by Tony Blair, his Labour party appositive number.

We call Archbishop Desmond Tutu to give evidence against Blair. In his article, ‘Why I had no choice but to refuse to share a platform with Tony Blair', published in The Guardian newspaper on September 2, 2012, the Nobel laureate and icon of the anti-apartheid struggle, testified:

"The immorality of Great Britain's decision to invade Iraq in 2003, premised on the lie that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, has destabilised and polarised the world to a greater extent than any other conflict in history."

He continued "more than 110,000 Iraqis have died in the conflict since 2003 and millions have been displaced. By the end of last year, nearly 4,500 American soldiers had been killed and more than 32,000 wounded."

In conclusion, he told the court of public opinion, "those responsible for this suffering and loss of life should be treading the same path as some of their African peers who have been made to answer for their actions in the Hague."

The Sir John Chilcot's recent report on the Iraq war has reached a similar damning conclusion, pointing out that "Saddam Hussein posed no imminent threat at the time of the invasion".

 Former British Prime Minister David Cameron and family wave good bye

Crucially, the report found that "the invasion of Iraq without a specific UN resolution had the effect of undermining the Security Council's authority".

In Africa, Mr Blair had only one policy - Iraq-style regime change in Zimbabwe. For example, he led sustained international calls for crippling economic and sanctions, which led to the deaths of a million Zimbabweans, especially children and other vulnerable people, according to many estimates.

Mr Blair cynically blamed Robert Mugabe for these appalling deaths, and hounded Zimbabwe out of the Commonwealth. He ignored looked the other way, and some say encouraged pro-Labour protesters who tried to serve a "citizen's arrest" on President Robert Mugabe during an official visit to London 1999.

His successor, Gordon Brown, went a step further, and tabled a Chapter Seven UN Security Council Resolution SC/9393 of 11^th July 2008, declaring that "the situation in Zimbabwe posed a threat to international peace and security in the region."

It called on "all Member States to all take the necessary measures to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer to Zimbabwe, of arms or related material of all types, including weapons and ammunition, military vehicles and equipment, paramilitary equipment, and spare parts for the aforementioned".

In effect, the resolution was calling for a military blockade of Zimbabwe, which is a prelude to an invasion. Thankfully, China and the Russian Federation, voted against a draft resolution.

My contrast, Mr Cameron Africa policies have been conspicuously constructive. For example, in 2006, four years before he became Prime Minister, Mr Cameron apologised on behalf of the Conservative party, which had "labelled Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress (ANC) as terrorists".

As Prime Minister, Cameron's first action in Africa was to persuade the EU to remove many of the economic and diplomatic sanctions that that had been imposed on Zimbabweans under Blair.

In Rwanda, thanks to Cameron's diplomatic and financial support, the country previously known for the 1994 genocide in which 1 million people were killed in a hundred days, is today a shining example of discipline in government, fighting corruption and, above all, prudent use of British aid money.

In Somalia, Cameron led the international drive to fund the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). As a result, the country which had ceased to be a state in 1992, is today enjoying a functioning government, parliament, judiciary and civil service. Besides, Somalis and foreign tourists are now confident enough to visit the beaches once controlled by pirates. 

It was also Cameron, who introduced The International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015. The law legally binds the government to spending 0.7% of GDP on foreign aid each year.

Mr Cameron's most commendable work in Africa was tackling the Ebola epidemic, which killed almost ten thousand people in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. He funded and equipped armies of British soldiers, doctors, nurses and volunteers who brought the epidemic to an end.

Finally, through Brexit, Cameron has not only given Africa the desperately needed opportunity to escape EU poverty-generating trade restrictions. He has also extricated the UK from the damaging EU-wide foreign policies such as economic sanctions on Zimbabwe and Eritrea.

But Cameron may never have achieved any of above without the dedication of his former International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell. Unlike his former Labour opposite numbers, who lectured African leaders and civil society, Mitchell consulted and worked with them as partners. We call upon the new Prime Minister Theresa May will emulate Cameron's commitment to Africa.

The writer is a former FDC international envoy to the UK, also former independent parliamentary candidate in the UK, now Executive Director, Africa-EU relations, London