The Mo Ibrahim Foundation says there is no suitable winner, again, for its Africa annual leadership excellence awards.
On Thursday, the foundation said none of the former African heads of State and government met the criteria for the 2015 Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership.
It means that recently retired presidents like Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, Armando Guebuza of Mozambique and Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria, failed to prove they had left a legacy worth rewarding.
Set up by Sudanese-British tycoon Mo Ibrahim in 2006, the Ibrahim Prize is given based on the review of a special committee that includes former diplomats, Nobel laureates, business leaders and democracy activists.
This year’s prize committee was chaired by former Tanzania prime minister Salim Ahmed Salim.
The criteria used by the committee to select a winner include the requirement that all eligible contenders be former heads of State or government who left office in the previous three years.
The leaders should have been democratically elected, served their constitutionally allowed terms and demonstrated exceptional leadership.
In a statement Thursday, Mr Ibrahim, the chairman of the foundation, said he agrees with the verdict of the committee.
“The Board respects the decision of the independent prize committee. When we launched the prize ten years ago, we deliberately set a very high bar.
“We want the prize to shine a spotlight on outstanding leadership to provide role models right across society, as well as supporting Laureates to continue to serve the continent by sharing their wisdom and experience,” he said.
Since 2006, the Ibrahim Prize has been awarded four times.-Daily Nation report
This report has triggered my thinking faculties: i mean, should we say all African Leaders are that “bad” such that none has met the requirements for this award? Am beginning to question the standard set for this award. It might be that the standard is too high for a mortal human being! where in the world do you expect a human being let alone a President to be perfect? Maybe the one giving out the prize money has become too economical with his pocket kkkkk. Of course, this should also be a wakeup call for the Heads of States in Africa that there are still some grey areas that they have too work on….no room for complacency. Or should we say Our African Heads of States leave the state House Very Rich such that they do not mind this award????