Seye Abraha seems to suggest that the support that TPLF is getting Tigray is not because it is loved. He insinuated that people in the region knew that the TPLF leaders did. They are supporting them because of what they are facing.
borkena
February 24, 2020
One of the former notable leaders of Tigray Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF) visited Tigray last week to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the organization.
In an exclusive interview with Tigray Media House, he said he was invited for the event (unclear if it was paid for trip), and that he was very happy about it.
In the interview that took well over an hour he nostalgically expressed his feeling. “TPLF used to be innovative and creative in its heyday.”
His displeasure that TPLF lost influence in central politics is apparent. “We could have gone further,” he said. The time TPLF government spent in the years after the death of Meles Zenawi to perpetuate “legacy of Meles” was wrong in his view.
Regarding the situation in the country and in Tigray region, he sounded pacifist while not dismissing the possibility of conflict it is not possible to resolve it through dialogue. “Let us give peace a chance,” is his advice – seemingly to those who seem to think that war could solve the imagined or real problems that Tigray is facing.
He pointed out, and rightly, that if conflict breaks out, it will me a major one and there will not be a winner from it, and it will be a prolonged one.
His remark could be a bit perplexing in that he said he supports what the current leadership in Tigray under Debretsion Gebremichael is doing. Yet, Debretsion is talking about an independent Tigray and that the gap between the Federal government and Tigray is widened.
Again, Seye appeared to have understood that war between Tigray and Gondar or Eritrea is undesirable and unnecessary considering shared history and values. But he left it blurry and failed to unequivocally speak out about the role of TPLF leadership in terms of creating militarism in Tigray and propagating the youth about self defense.
Finally, Seye Abraham has also remarked about Eritrean President recent remark about the dangers that ethnic politics is posing not just to Ethiopia but to the region, and that his administration will watch inactively until it affects his country.
Seye, like other TPLF leaders, saw it as an intervention in the Ethiopian situation, and that “Isaias should not give Eritreans inheritance of war as he would be passing.” Again, this sounded like a contradictory view for Seye said that “Tigray and Amhara should rather think about how to prevent the danger to the country that their grand parents paid in life.” That statement sounded like Seye understood that ethnic politics gave ground to forces with a vested political interest in weakened or even disintegrated Ethiopia.
The full interview is featured below :
Video embedded from YouTube channel of Tigray Media House
Cover Photo : screenshot from the video
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