Around Africa, elections have become too inconvenient
This article examines how long-standing leaders in Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo manipulated constitutional processes to extend their time in power. It highlights a trend where democratic elections are bypassed or undermined to maintain authoritarian control.
José Eduardo Van-Dúnem dos Santos was 37 when the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (better known by its Portuguese acronym, MPLA) chose him to succeed its founding president, Augustinho Neto, in September 1979. By 2010, dos Santos had been in power for 31 years. But the shy and retreating dos Santos was neither an enthusiastic glad-hander nor a wildly popular figure.
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