Rwandan President Paul Kagame has sparked debate by suggesting that certain military coups in Africa may be justified when they respond to severe leadership failures rather than personal gain.
Speaking on Thursday, Kagame argued that most coups arise from long-standing problems that leaders refuse to tackle, eventually pushing people and soldiers to take drastic measures.
“There are good coups and bad coups,” he said, describing “bad coups” as actions by officers who seize power simply because they can, without any concern for the people. In contrast, “good coups” happen when citizens and members of the military recognize that leaders have overstepped, engaging in lies, theft, repression, or election manipulation.
“If somebody, a group of people, say no, enough is enough. These guys have been telling us lies, they’ve been doing this, they’re enriching themselves, cheating us. You can’t have it anymore, it’s stinking. And they go for whatever form they do it, I think I am okay with it. I know it will be misunderstood, but I am happy to take the risk. I’m okay with that,” Kagame said.
He stressed that even coups deemed “good” are only acceptable if they result in meaningful change. “If you come and do the very things you overthrew people for, or do worse, then why did you carry out the coup?” he asked, warning that failure to deliver reform undermines any justification.
Citing recent events in Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau, Kagame said such incidents demonstrate that coups rarely occur where governance is strong.
“When I heard about the coup in Guinea-Bissau, I thought somebody was guiding a coup against himself,” he said. “But assuming it happened… and that in Madagascar it happened, it means I have been vindicated.” He noted that roughly nine out of ten coups indicate serious, unresolved issues in the affected country.
Kagame also criticized political developments in the Democratic Republic of Congo, challenging the credibility of the country’s electoral process.
He referred to “a man in our neighbourhood who raises the whole world and causes all kinds of troubles,” questioning how he came to power and remained in office. Kagame labeled Congo’s recent elections as “a smokescreen” and bluntly stated: “Elections did not happen.”
Highlighting the importance of accountability, Kagame urged African leaders to address governance and security challenges openly.
“There’s nothing Africa doesn’t have. All these things and areas where we fall short, I can only be surprised and say why? Why do we keep falling short on everything, including the provision of security for our people? When we have the people, we have the resources, we have the knowledge,” he said.
He also dismissed claims that Rwanda exploits Congo’s minerals, noting that Europe’s own history of plunder dwarfs such accusations.
“They looted the minerals better than anybody in history,” Kagame said, adding that Rwanda is unfairly targeted because European audiences “will listen more to these accusations.”
