During the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in Arusha early October, there was a heated debate among the legislators and other participants about the viability of coalition governments in Africa. While some legislators argued that the current coalition governments in Kenya and Zimbabwe pose serious threats to parliamentary democracy, others like Prof. Palamegamba Kabuli of Dar es Salaam University contended that Africa should start getting used to coalitions, not “rescue packages” in forms of the current coalition governments in Kenya and Zimbabwe. Participants agreed that the only way to resolve election disputes and avoid ‘forced’ coalition governments was to have independent and strong electoral commissions.

Political coalition is a common phenomenon is older democracies such as Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, Israel among others. In Africa, there have been various attempts to form coalitions in some countries.

Since older democracies are also still struggling with politics of coalitions, do African countries simply give up or learn how to manage coalitions? Mauritius is a relatively stable country that has had coalition governments for several years. Is there something we can learn from Mauritius and others?

The multiparty political system has been a challenge to most African states that have several parties with significant membership across the country. This might necessitate the formation of coalitions when no party can obtain significant victory in the polls to form an effective government on its own.

There are also situations where some countries have many opposition political parties that are relatively small to challenge the ruling party. In such scenario, formation of coalitions is inevitable if the parties are to make significant impact in the polls. In some cases, opposition parties form alliances in Parliament to form a formidable force to check and balance the ruling party’s excesses. On the other hand, the ruling party might also opt for political alliances in order to push for its agenda comfortably in the Parliament.

A few issues could be paid attention to in this era of political pluralism. First, political coalitions should not be formed only for removing the ruling party from power. The parties in coalition must have a clear agenda. This is very important for the stability of the country. Second, politics of coalition requires tolerance, constant dialogue and compromise among coalition parties. Taking extreme positions makes coalition very vulnerable and undermines governance. Third, parties entering coalition must themselves be stable, democratic, organised with clear manifestos. This is significant during negotiations to form a credible coalition government.

Fourth, independent and strong electoral commissions will reduce contested polls results. This is important in the sense that once results are announced parties interested in forming coalition government can negotiate in a less charged political atmosphere. The Kenya and Zimbabwe coalitions were mainly formed in order to avoid escalation of violence. Africa should shun situations that lead to formation of such version of coalitions. Lastly, political coalition is a reality in Africa as long as there is multiparty system. What is important is how these coalitions are managed without compromising national stability and development.     

Mr Odhiambo is a visiting researcher,Institute of Policy Analysis and
Research- Nairobi