Last weekend, the regional assembly of the Central Zone (“Bayto Zoba Maekel”) called for a meeting with the residents of the area (“mimihidar.”) Meetings organized by officials of the ruling party (PFDJ) always follow the same formula: the presenter gives a lengthy address on the “objective situation” (“hiluw kunetat”); this is followed by a brief question and answer session and concluded by a call for action—donation, resolution, formation of a subcommittee. 

In keeping with this formula, the presenter told his listeners about the accomplishments of the government in building micro dams, hospitals, wells, roads and bridges. He told them about the danger of Weyane and its “masters.” And he invited them to be steadfast. It was a lengthy and customary address. After he concluded his presentation, he invited the attendants to air their opinion but cautioned them to be brief, since there wasn’t much time left.   

The following is a sample of the comments made by the attendants of the meeting: 

1.  "The reason you give us such a short time to address our concerns is because you spend most of the time talking about things we already know. The accomplishments of the government are well-known to us since we hear them on radio and TV every day. Why don’t we talk about issues that are of concern to us? "

2.  "We are suffering from lack of bread, cereals, cooking gas, cooking oil, sugar and all necessities.  What is the assembly doing to alleviate this problem? "

3.  "You talk about war, sovereignty and Woyane. However, the “agelglot” (conscripts) are defecting or fleeing from their beloved nation not because of enemy propaganda, as you said, but because of the harsh conditions of life and mismanagement by their superiors."     

4.  "There is gross inefficiency and mismanagement everywhere. Unless there is good governance, we are afraid the country will go down the drain. What is the assembly doing about this?"  

When people asked questions or aired these opinions, there was a lot of cheering and applauding. The chairperson felt defensive and uneasy, and finally conceded that there is mismanagement form top to bottom. Unusually, some people felt emboldened enough to leave the mandatory meeting midway.  

Hardships 

Eritreans in Diaspora are so accustomed to hearing about the hardships that the Eritrean people are going through that they may have become sensitized to it. What they may not know is that the degree of destitution is increasing exponentially daily. 

An out-of-control inflationary market has made it difficult for people to make ends meet. Now, even affluent people are not able to bear the crunch. Life in Eritrea has really become difficult even for those who were commending the government. Generals, colonels, Department heads and even ministers are grumbling about the current situation.

Everybody, including the military, is suffering from shortage of flour and bread.  

Gasoline is still being sold in the black or grey market. People, including government officials, can buy it at distributors for 21-23 Nakfa per liter. In desperation, commercial and military drivers are stealing gasoline and adding kerosene or water to their vehicles—which, in turn is destroying their machineries.  

Beer has become like a narcotic—unavailable and expensive. It is being sold for 27- 30 Nakfa, clandestinely. Cigarette is following suit because the Dutch-owned factory (British American Tobacco) has closed due to lack of raw materials. 

How Long? 

The question of “how long” is being asked everywhere in Eritrea—at regional assemblies, at PFDJ seminars and even at the Ministerial level.  

In a meeting at Massawa--the one preceding the recent meeting in Dbarwa--Mr. Woldemichael Ghebremariam, Eritrea’s Minister of Land, Water & Environment, expressed his frustration with the direction of the country. He asked, “How long? Where are we heading to.”  

President Isaias Afwerki gave him an answer that is often a handy tool: he walked out of the meeting. His Chief of Staff and Spokesperson, Mr. Yemane “Charlie” Gebremeskel, went after him and begged him to return to the meeting--which he did. And the subject was changed.