Did US Influence Decide Who Would Lead Ethiopia?

A listener calls in to add context to a recent interview TMR did with Professor Alex de Waal on the Ethiopian Tigray conflict.

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The Tigray conflict a couple weeks ago. And I just had an I I did have a thought on that well more of like a clarification I guess. So the professor you spoke to was a great guy but he had said something along the lines of Abiy was kind of a concession and the Oromo protest protesters essentially went with him because he was within the party. But like you know, until they can do it in elections. but what I will say is that Abiy was not the first, that he wasn't even like he was generally not well known at all actually. He was virtually unknown before his bid for the PM position. okay. and the actual guy that the protesters actually wanted who was actually also within the party was a guy named Lemma Megersa. Who currently is I don't know. but he was under house arrest for a while under Abiy. But the thing is I think there's like there's a lack of understanding of how the US plays a role in these kinds of things. And how kind of Insidious that is. Because before Abiy was elected well elected within the party into that PM position him and Lemma Megersa actually came to the U.S. and there was they actually both attended the National Prayer Breakfast. And apparently Abiy during that during that time was very charismatic and he's very like open about and very yeah he's very charismatic and he talks about his Christianity and he prayed with certain Republican Senators. And in April of that year, Senator Inhoff from Oklahoma made this very glowing speech about being in support of Abiy. And it seems to me that that actually played a huge role. because it is like U.S. manipulation Within that system. Because like I said Abiy was virtually unknown. So but your speculation is that it played a role because when people saw that there was some praise coming from the United States that accrued to his benefit. yes, but when I say when you say people I don't it's not the general public in Ethiopia. It is specifically the people at the party. like in the ruling party. okay so because Abiy was not elected through a democratic system. essentially appointed. appointed by the party that had the most seats in the parliament. yes. I mean it was essentially a one-party system honestly. but yes but yeah so I think and it is well known that that ruling party is very close to the U.S state Department. because their aid is in the war on terror in Somalia. So I just thought that was kind of important to point out because the protesters didn't even know of Abiy before that. and they had no say in the matter really. they wanted Lemma their stuff who's actually a well-known politician who has advocated for you know oral formal causes in the past.