Umm Muhammed Umar

Senior Researcher and Head of Africa Desk at the Media Review Network, Dr. Mustafa Mheta, talking to Radio Islam about Monday’s coup in Sudan, said that it had been expected. He said that nevertheless, it was shocking that the army had not gone into agreement with the civilian component of the transitional government, had decided to make a power grab, and has dissolved the cabinet, and arrested the Prime Minister along with other ministers.

Dr Mheta said that the generals were being “handled from the outside and they are told what to do.” He said that Sudan’s military leaders believed that the peace process that the country had been forced into was under threat from the civilian component of the government. He further said that they had been instructed to take action to save Sudan’s so-called peace with Israel.

Dr Mheta did not believe ousted President Omar al Bashir had had a hand in Monday’s events in Sudan. He pointed at General Burhan as having been responsible for the coup in Sudan. He said that Omar al Bashir would have been resistant to the so called ‘Abrahamic faith’ issue, saying “But these new generals who are in charge now, we know they’re getting a lot of money from the Gulf, you know, Arab countries like Saudi.” Dr Mheta said that they were receiving billions of dollars from the Gulf countries. He said, “They are doing a bid for those so called Abrahamic, you know, peace accord.”

Regarding the trouble in neighbouring Eswatini, Dr Mheta did not believe the monarchy would survive. He said that what we’re witnessing was actually the beginning of the end of Eswatini’s monarchy. Dr Mheta added, “And to make matters worse, the king himself seems to be very arrogant, and he’s not even giving an ear to his people.” Mehta said that some SADC countries would try and prop the king up so that he remained in power, but that that would not be sustainable for a long period. He said, “I think the time has come now for him either, you know, to sit down with his subjects, the opposition and the like, and map the way forward.” Dr Mehta added, “The people are tired. And I think, you know, it’s already exploded, as it is, but it might even, you know, escalate further.”  The best option, according to Dr Mheta’s expertise, was for King Mswati III to allow a democratic movement to go ahead.

The king has been given a list of demands that he has not agreed to yet, one of them being that he accept the role of ceremonial king, without any executive powers. Dr Mheta said that even the kingdom’s military was becoming incensed. He posed a very laden question: “the army might actually, you know, go on the side of the people, and you know what that means?”