Reactions: Stop bashing Gaddafi, he was a great leader and an African hero

This Is Africa encourages free and open debate. Many of our readers have not been happy with articles we’ve published  that have highlighted a less savoury side of deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. What follows are the views of some of those readers:

Views of “Oduho George”

I think “This is Africa ” is ran by pro- westerners, or sold Africans altogether! If Gaddafi was pro- Arab or a racist, does that give anyone a right to overthrow him or kill him? How many racist people are there in western countries? Have any of them been treated in the way Gaddafi was? After all, he was doing great things for the Libyan people. Do you people even feel ashamed to try to portray Gaddafi as a bad person when comparing Libya today and Gaddafi ‘s Libya?

Views of “Khaled Kokab

I am from Sudan. I think Gaddafi was a real leader because he did the best for his country by building it up from nothing. Gaddafi also helped around Africa. In my county Sudan he built universities, streets and mosques. In Libya there were thousands of African people working for good salaries and providing a good life for their families. I believe Gaddafi was the best leader for Africa.

Views of “Albert Afli”

I consider this a foolish article and a mere attempt to denigrate the reputation of such an amazing man. Gaddafi, was not Perfect, just as any man, but his contribution to Africa was positively spectacular. We tend to destroy the images of our Pan-African leaders when sponsored by the West. Honestly, I think this article shouldn’t have been published. It is reckless, ridiculous, stupid and extremely unnecessary. 

In Libya there were thousands of African people working for good salaries and providing a good life for their families

Views of “Tucha Kenneth Sehlabaka”

I’m ashamed. He gave all he had to Libya yet Africans are still ungrateful. In him we lost a father. Never again will Africa have a father so Great. Don’t be fooled into thinking he was a tyrant. It’s what the West wants.

Views of “Abubakar Muhammad Kabo”

Whether you like it or not we consider Gaddafi one of the greatest leaders we have ever had on the African continent. Despite the many reactions from your previous article, let us keep an open mind about what others are saying about him. I am a Nigerian and I found him to be a very important person to Africa in general!

Views of “Greatness within”

This Is Africa have missed the ball and are seemingly incessant upon scratching where it does not itch, we all know of a word given or a policy employed by Gaddafi that most certainly did not sit well with all Africans, but to suggest that because he did express an individual bias or prejudice that we should discount all the good he has done for the continent – is disingenuous.

The Libyan state under Gaddafi executed 18 people in 2010, if this in some odd way justifies the NATO coup d’état then by that same token, should the African Union (assuming they had a collective security force) depose Obama because the United States killed 46 people in 2010? If the answer is no, why mention executions at all when our own governments have no qualms about it.

Whether you like it or not we consider Gaddafi one of the greatest leaders we have ever had on the African continent.

Yes, education was free, and yes it may not have been great but ‘Gaddafi made sure his system was subsidised and even Mercy Corps attested to the fact in its Beyond Gaddafi: Libya’s Governance Context. That is more than the so-called “democratic leaders” can say for their countries.’

You would think in light of the earlier criticism of the slapstick piece of journalism that they would give a more balanced view. Rather we are shovel fed an even more abjectly sentiment fuelled piece devoid of even the slightest degree of objectivity.

I love how the article starts with the appeal to authority fallacy ‘I am a Libyan so I must know better’ (paraphrased title) with its self-defeating call to ‘listen to Libyans’ -a clear indication that the author has conveniently suffered amnesia, forgetting that Gaddafi held majority support in Libya throughout the NATO led intervention!