By TesfaNews,
The rumor that goes viral all over the internet and across the country on the deteriorating health condition of Ethiopia’s longtime ruler and dictator, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, has finally been confirmed today by the Senegalese leader, President Macky Sall.
Zenawi, who has not been seen for the last several weeks, has missed an African Union Summit that opened Sunday in Ethiopia – a first since he assume power in 1991.
As the current chairperson of NEPAD, Prime Minister Meles was expected to deliver a report to 27th Summit of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC) ahead of the 19th Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) to be kicked off today in Addis Ababa.
Instead, Senegalese President, Macky Sall opened the meeting and wished Meles a happy and quick recovery.
“PM Meles is not attending this meeting with us this afternoon for health reason. We would like to express that we wish him to recover soon to a better health,” President Sall told participants.
Deputy Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, who is also the Minister of Foreign Affair, instead, filled Meles’s seat at AU’s Hall located at the first raw of presidential seat that labeled with Ethiopian Flag.
Following his disappearance from the public, rumor is growing about his health condition. Specially, Meles has failed to show up at the parliament in the last two weeks where he was expected to deliver the already concluded fiscal’ year’s government performance. Following his absence from the parliament, public remains in dark with the growing speculation of his ailing condition, and the next year’s budget has not been endorsed yet. The parliament has not been even officially closed for recess despite one week has already gone from the usual schedule.
There is no official confirmation or denial given neither from the government nor his party’s office.
Sources confirmed Meles’ hurried transport to Belgium 3 days ago to receive an urgent treatment at Saint-Luc University Hospital in Brussels. Opposition websites are claiming that Meles is being treated for a serious and one-way illness – Blood Cancer.
However, other unconfirmed reports from the newly formed opposition alliance, the Ethiopian National Transitional Council (ENTC), has reported that they have been tipped off from inside sources close to the ruling party that the dictator is in a comma and may have even died earlier today. [We shall see about that…]
The most recent images of Meles aired by state-run Ethiopian Television showed him noticeably thinner.
His ultimate death will lead to internal infighting and instability in the country as the top and most corrupt TPLF officials fight for power. Another opposition website, Ethiopian Review, has reported that several family members of the TPLF junta have been observed leaving Ethiopia en mass during the past few days fearing possible chaos that could result from the power struggle that could follow the dictator’s death.
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This is a developing story. Please stay tuned
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