Introduction Shimelis Abdissa, the President of Oromia, has introduced a new term—possibly a novel entry into the Afan Oromo lexicon—magaalomsuu, derived from magaalaa, meaning town. The term magaalomsuu is intended to mean “to urbanize,” and it resonates deeply in the context of Oromia’s rural-urban divide with strong socio-political connotations. He further stated, “Waan sadii magaalomuu…
In any civilized political landscape, certain admissions of failure or culpability warrant an immediate and unambiguous resignation. The recent statements by Shimelis Abdisa, President of the Oromia Regional State, serve as a glaring example of such a moment. His admission—albeit cloaked in a desperate blame-shifting exercise—exposes a dereliction of duty so profound that any leader…
November 21st, 2023 was indeed a sad day! The unsaid reason behind the failed peace talks between the Ethiopian government and Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) was all too evident from a statement issued by Mr Redwan Hussien—PM’s advisor and on-behalf chief negotiator—on his X (formerly Twitter) social media page last night. To get the clue,…
