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Ethiopian dictator’s wife on shopping spree in DC

Posted on , Updated on by EthiopianReview.com

Meles Zenawi and Azeb MesfinAzeb Mesfin, the wife of Ethiopia’s despot Meles Zenawi, has been on a shopping spree in Washington DC these past two days while her husband is in New York, according to Ethiopian Review sources.

On Wednesday, Azeb was seen shopping at the Pentagon City Mall in Arlington, Virginia. On Thursday, she visited shops in Virginia and was spotted at locations in Georgetown. Dr Mulai Teklu Yoyannes

Meles Zenawi’s former physician Dr Mulai Teklu Yohannes was driving her around in a silver Toyota Land Cruiser, VA license plate number JKA 4622. (More about Mulai another time.) There were also two women with her.

By the time Azeb was done shopping for the day, the Land Cruiser was filled with shopping bags.

Toyota Land CruiserAzeb Mesfin is not just a dictator’s wife or a private citizen. As a member of the Tigray People Liberation Front’s (Woyanne) politburo, she is one of the 9 individuals who are currently ruling Ethiopia.

And as the de fact head of EFFORT, a Woyanne-controlled business conglomerate that owns 60 large corporations, and owner of the media company Mega Corporation, she is said to be the richest woman in Africa.

In Ethiopia, she is commonly referred to as “The First Lady of Corruption.”

Using relatives and business associates in the U.S., Azeb invests her stolen millions on residential and commercial properties in several states.

The combined wealth of Meles and Azeb is estimated to be over USD 1.2 billion.

(Any one with any information about Woyanne business activity abroad please contact us. Click here for our contact info.)

47 thoughts on “Ethiopian dictator’s wife on shopping spree in DC”

  1. shopping spree while millions of going hungry.mindless woyane since they have controlled,dominated Ethiopia in business,politics they can do whatever they want just like a little kid in candy store they want to get every thing.the hole of Ethiopia wealth is there candy money.

  2. It is unfortunate to see the fate of our country in the hand of Mafias. The racist government is strengthening power and money. But one thing that always bothers me is that most of people in Ethiopia accepted and permitted to lead such damn life.

  5. Elias,
    god bless you, you are truely exposing these mafia terrorist group of TPLF and thier criminal memebers…..and continue to do the best as ethiopians have also to keep fighting the tplf criminal and corrupted members in Diaspora by keep exposing and challenging them…

  7. Let’s see. Pentagon City Mall, Toyota Land Cruiser, George Town, two Women, shopping – this sounds pretty much like my wife and her friends typical habesha outing to me. And we are not a billionaires, it hurts uttering it. Is that a surprise that a “Dr.” owns a Toyota Land Cruiser or a first lady having two friends? Is that a surprise that she went out shopping in what ultimately is a common place to do such activities. Elias, please for the sake of human decency, stop disclosing this kind of nonsense like ones license plate and forth. This is not who we are as a people. But more importantly, it’s what you did not mention was a news worthy than what you opine. A first lady, a billionaire shopping in a mall? The “richest lady” in Africa roaming around in a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by a friend? A “corrupt lady” not having a body guard or a chauffeur driven limo? What’s going on with Meless’ those days? This was and is a waste of time. Stop it, my friend. How low is low for you before you know it?

    tumayota replies:
    January 3rd, 2012 at 5:06 AM

    Is she like your wife did, sorry you do not understand x-kinfe’s wife? she is stupid corrupted lady.how could you compare your wife against her which means yourwife is busturd too.

  8. I have never heard on Ethiopia history to call to PM first lady.She cam from desert and she is now living like a queen.
    My wife Azieb ok
    My gun maybe
    my power never,PM said

  9. Ethiopia’s Elmeda Markos, by the way how many pair of shoes did she buy. This money she and her husband collected by begging hope turn to acid burn all over the body. When do you think her husband is distressed begging signal complaining that the world failed to give assistance as if the world has any obligation.

  11. She was a tiny mouse running around the holes that were bored by the army of rats deep into the rocks at the bottom of the arid mountain where the egg she hatched from left its dirty mark. Today,she has grown and reached the weight of a humengous rodent that she became dangerious to public safety.Every member of the crimefamily in the house of criminals has its distinct marks that disinguishes him or her from the rest of members in the crimefamily while all of them share identical habit and behavour as all have been mice and rats before and as are amry of rodents today.

    Today,Azeb Mesfin is actively engaging in taking a huge chunk of everything and anything that is available above and below the lands,in Ethiopia.Azeb Mesfin is not brand’s name;rather,it is the name of the infamous criminal whose wealth is as big and as much as the crime she has been committing for the last two decades.

  12. Good for you ER!

    People say this is gossip. This is not. This is what investigation means to find out and document what these dictators are doing in the name of Ethiopia and while oppressing Ethiopia. Such information is very vital.

    Have you heard that recently Meles has shuffled his administration and allowing more half Eritreans in power and pushing Tigrayans who are more popular out of leadership? Ethiopian’s business is now being given to another groups, hodam Eritreans so that Meles regime can get support from Eritreans? Meles regime is not turning his face to Eritrea but without Isayas? What does this mean?

  13. Another Bandit
    See in Aiga, what he writes.

    Yohannes Gebresellasie is the founder of the Canadian Chapter of Relief Society of Tigray (REST) and Tigray Development Association (TDA) working in the Northern Highlands of Ethiopia, Africa. He wrote his masters as well as his PhD thesis on International Migration, The Refugee Issues.

  14. From reports we are hearing nobody dared to ask her to pay back Billions of birrs in loans she takes out of Ethiopian state owned banks. As long as nobody asked her to pay back or no measures were taken she is legally correct to do whatever she pleases to do with the money. Meles will not ask the mother of his children to start making payments because half the cloth she ordered are his.

  15. Come on! #7,
    If she was driven by a chauffer in a very expensive car, then everybody would have known who she was and the blood money she was spending. Azeb M. Golla, did not want to standout as one of the first evil ladies of African dictators. #7, don’t you realize that, the evil lady was in disguise, going to the mall like any other ordinary woman.
    Elias, Good job. You are an incredible reporter. It would have been great to know, what she has bought, and how much of the looted money she spent.

  16. Mengistu!!!!You worked your ass of to spend money. Remember Ethiopia’s econemy is on life support system. Don’t forget these people whom we talking about are professional beggars. Doesn’t it make you pissed off when some one asks for money because he is hungry and as soon as you gave him the money run to the liquor store to buy vodka.

  18. Wojew,
    You sound like one of the woyane frifari lekames. Was it your wife accompanying that Dedebit slut? Is that why you are
    afraid of Elias exposing the license plate of the hodam “chauffer” of the evil witch.

    Well, you better get used to it boy. From now on that is what we are going to do. We are going to flush out the blood sucking rats who are gorging on the blood money. That is going to be who we are. Expose the enemies of Ethiopia one by one.

  19. You may have a point but you just do not get it we just do not like Melse , his wife and all hodam woyannes:: We are looking for a reson to insult them take it or leave it bro this is for the 82million voiceless Ethiopians.

  21. Gudit (Tigrinya: Yodit, Judith) is a semi-legendary non-Christian queen (flourished c.960) who laid waste to Axum and its countryside, destroyed churches and monuments, and attempted to exterminate the members of the ruling Axumite dynasty. Her deeds are recorded in the oral tradition and mentioned incidentally in various historical accounts. The accounts of Gudit are contradictory and incomplete. Paul B. Henze wrote, “She is said to have killed the emperor, ascended the throne herself, and reigned for forty years. Accounts of her violent misdeeds are still related among peasants in the north Ethiopian countryside.”[1] Henze continues in a footnote, On my first visit to the rock church of Abreha and Atsbeha in eastern Tigray in 1970, I noticed that its intricately carved ceiling was blackened by soot. The priest explained it as the work of Gudit, who had piled the church full of hay and set it ablaze nine centuries before.[2] There is a tradition that Gudit sacked and burned Debre Damo, which at the time was a treasury and a prison for the male relatives of the king of Ethiopia; this may be an echo of the later capture and sack of Amba Geshen by Ahmed Gragn.[3] The Italian scholar Carlo Conti Rossini first proposed that the account of this warrior queen in the History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria, where she was described as Bani al-Hamwiyah, ought to be read as Bani al-Damutah, and argued that she was ruler of the once-powerful kingdom of Damot, and that she was related to one of the indigenous Sidamo peoples of southern Ethiopia.[4] This would agree with the numerous references to matriarchs ruling the Sidamo polities.[5] If Gudit did not belong to one of the Sidamo peoples, then some scholars, based on the traditions that Gudit was Jewish, propose that she was of the Agaw people, who historically have been numerous in Lasta, and a number of whom (known as the Beta Israel), have professed an Israelite pre-Ezra Judaism since ancient times. If she was not of Hebrew, Israelite or Jewish origin, she might have been a convert to Judaism by her husband, or pagan.[6] Local traditions around Adi Kaweh where she allegedly died and was buried indicate her faith was pagan-Hebraic,rather than Israelite or Jewish [Leeman 2009]. It was during the office of Patriarch Philotheos of Alexandria when Gudit started her revolt, near the end of the reign of the king who had deposed the Abuna Petros. As Taddesse Tamrat explains, at the time “his own death in the conflict, and the military reverses of the kingdom were taken as divine retribution for the sufferings of Abuna Petros.”[7] This chronological synchronicity with the tenure of Patriarch Philotheos, and the intervention of king Georgios II of Makuria, provides us a date of c.960 for Gudit. A contemporary Arab historian, Ibn Hawqal, provides this account: The country of the habasha has been ruled by a woman for many years now: she has killed the king of the habasha who was called Haḍani [from Ge’ez haṣ́ani, modern aṣ́e or atse]. Until today she rules with complete independence in her own country and the frontier areas of the country of the Haḍani, in the southern part of [the country of] the habashi.[8] Another historian mentions that the king of Yemen sent a zebra to the ruler of Iraq in 969/970, which he had received as a gift from the Queen of al-Habasha.[9] Taddesse Tamrat has speculated that one effect of Gudit’s otherwise ephemeral rule, might be the pockets of various languages related to Amharic scattered across southwestern Ethiopia (e.g. Argobba, Gurage and Gafat), which could have been Axumite military settlements isolated by her conquests and later Sidamo migrations. Wikipedia

    Azeb literally means “SouthWest” in Geez.

  22. There is no shopping mall in hell;there is fire.Heaven is too far and unreachable to members of the crimefamily.But,there is a prisoner’s box;she will stand before God and Ethiopians,on that the most awaited judgment day.Azeb Golla Mesfin is guilty of murder,guilty of lotting,guilty of all the roles she played in antethiopia distructive activities.

  24. What is wrong with America. letting tyrants run around freely. let her shop till she drops dead. one day she will burn in hell. hopefully the disease she has kills her soon. it is cure less.

  27. There is place called “kmr dngay” It cose to Mt.Guna. There is a hill. It has two piles stones. According to the oral history. These piles of stone represent the number of soldiers she had. By the order of Gudit each soldier ordered to put a stone. Every soldier piled those stones. I was around that area. 6 on hours on horse there is an area by the name Zagoch. This is the area where the zagua dynasty made as their city after their defeat by Gudit. Weyane did a life death war in kimer dngay. According to some of the tegadalits weyane was almost finished there. Derge knows how to start a war, they don’t know how to finish it.

  30. Very tragic indeed!
    A family destitute of moral value running amack,whose pre-ooccupation “let us live now for tomorrow we die.”The husband and wife are perfect team in persuing hedonism.

  31. Dereje #4: yes, it is a big deal when she is helping herself to the money paid to the Banks by Ethiopian tax payers, foreign aid and foreign loans deposited for development and feeding the hungry, etc.. The loans are not free gifts either – the Ethiopian people have to pay it back through blood and sweat! Are you telling us she is shopping using her monthly government salary? Perhaps you haven’t heard her say that Meles and her can hardly make ends meet by the end of the month, even to pay her children’s school! Poor Azeb, my heart bleeds for her! She is now the Managing Director of EFFORT, TPLF’s conglomerate company – which was started with looted money from Ethiopian banks when Malilit was in the bushes, as well as the funds aid donors acquired to buy food for the Ethiopian people during the famine which occurred during Mengistu’s time – see the BBC story on how the TPLF mercenaries, Meles & Co., deceived Bob Geldof and his donors by selling bags filled with dirt falsely claiming it as grain. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8535189.stm)
    Wejow #7: it’s not the shopping we are concerned about – it’s the money stupid! It’s what she can afford to buy as compared to what the rest of us can afford! They have stripped Ethiopia naked! And our children and even our grandchildren will have to pay the price! Do you really not see why we want to know who is at her beck and call and who are her friends? You know very well that it’s not about a Dr. owning a Toyota! So don’t pretend to act innocent!
    Tekle #14: You know the Bank manager/staff can only send her a bill, if they dare! Are you saying that the Bank should ask Azeb in person to repay the money she borrowed from State owned banks? I hope the Bank manager/staff is not suicidal! Come to think of it – one Bank Manager has committed suicide sometime ago! No one knew the reason. Perhaps you haven’t read what the Ethiopian Commercial Bank Manager said some time ago about the non-payment of some loan to Alamoudi with regard to the Sheraton Hotel. The article said that the Bank had requested payment of the loan several times, but had not received any payment and the Bank was not able to do anything about it. If you really want to know why the Banks aren’t being paid the loans by some high level personalities, please ask the Banks. I am sure the poor pay their loans or else their property will be confiscated.

  33. ‘gudit’ in orome she’s called ‘ako menoye’ there are a lot of oral tradition about this ‘gudit’ or ‘ako menoye’. if someone becoams a dictator, oromos call that person’ ako menoye’

  34. Tizibt #31: You are all over the place. I don’t know what you are trying to say. Are you telling me that – forget the first lady title – the wife of a PM can’t and shouldn’t afford to shop in a ordinary mall? For god’s sake, this is not your Derg’s time. Have you been to Addis lately? Have you seen teenagers of all walk of life driving luxurious cars? Have you heard of farmers owing and driving land cruisers? Did no one told you working smart and hard pays off big time in today’s Ethiopia? I know your standard response to those questions; But trust me those are not people connected to eprdf or tigray. You can choose to live in denial, but you are not entitled to your own set of facts. Yes, there are and there will be corrupt people in any society. Yes, there may be people who take advantage of all available loop holes. But that does not make the government in general a corrupt one. You talk about the banks and staff – do you know how many of them are owned and controlled by the government? Other than that your insinuation about a loan is nothing but a gossip. Where is the hard evidence? Hate alone is not enough. Tizbt , yehe YaSte zazibal!

  35. DJ ABAGAWEYN: yes, it is a big deal when she is helping herself to the money paid to the Banks by Ethiopian tax payers, foreign aid and foreign loans deposited for development and feeding the hungry, etc.. The loans are not free gifts either – the Ethiopian people have to pay it back through blood and sweat! Are you telling us she is shopping using her monthly government salary? Perhaps you haven’t heard her say that Meles and her can hardly make ends meet by the end of the

  38. Wojew #34: I didn’t think I had to respond to your disbelief that Azeb is shopping and going around in a land cruiser like a regular guy/girl. I thought No. 17 had already responded to you about that. Just in case you missed the point – Azeb doesn’t want to go around looking like a billionaire – she isn’t stupid – she’s just overly greedy. All you Woyanes unconsciously like to compare these times to the Derg’s time. Is it because the philosophy and the situation are so similar? Yes, I was in Addis for a couple of months during the 99.6% election “victory”. It seems that you people do not know any other figures besides 99.8% and 99.6%. No, I haven’t seen “the teenagers of all walk (sic) of life driving luxurious cars”. And if I had seen them, I would assume they are children of Woyane officials or they borrowed their parents’ cars. I presume you have checked the backgrounds of those “teenagers of all walk of life”, or is that “your own set of facts”? As for the “farmers owning and driving land cruisers”, I would have been impressed if you had said that they were owners of mechanized farms. The problem with Woyane people is that you are impressed by the wealth of the few. As you say there are some young people – I wouldn’t call them teenagers – who are accomplished and doing well in Ethiopia, but they are representing several US businesses and international NGOs, etc. I hadn’t realized that the fact Azeb is the managing director of EFFORT was my “own set of facts”. Well, the secret is out now! Oh by the way, the Ethiopian Commercial Bank loan to Alamoudi on the non-payment of the Sheraton loan was also not my “own set of facts”. This was written in a pro-Woyane paper in Addis sometime ago. To add some juicy tidbit to this case, the Bank actually said that since loan payments by Alamoudi had not been made, they may have to foreclose on the property. The Bank also said that in the case of ordinary people that would have been the action they would have taken. But since PM (Meles) is a close buddy of the Sheik they were hoping that he may intercede on the Bank’s behalf. As for the other fact that a Bank Manager committed suicide – that fact was mentioned in many papers in Addis, e.g. Fortune, Capital and even some Woyane websites. The looting of Ethiopian State owned banks by TPLF was common practice by TPLF in those days, however nowadays the looting is more in the open. I’m puzzled by your question about the number of banks that are owned and controlled by the government. Should I know the number of banks? I thought I only needed to know which bank is mentioned in a particular article. As for the swindling of Bob Geldof – see the BBC link provided earlier.
    You seem to make light of the corruption in government and talk about “people” taking advantage of “loopholes”. I was not talking about ordinary people. I was talking about the endemic corruption in the EPRDF/TPLF government. As you know corruption is one of the major indices that is detrimental to development, especially when it is practiced within the upper echelons of government.

  39. Wejow #34: I didn’t think I had to respond to your disbelief that Azeb is shopping and going around in a land cruiser like a regular guy/girl. I thought No. 17 above had already responded to you about that. Just in case you missed the point – Azeb doesn’t want to go around looking like a billionaire – she isn’t stupid – she’s just overly greedy. You Woyanes unconsciously like to compare these times to the Derg’s time. Is it because both Derg’s and Woyane’s philosophy and conditions are so similar? Yes, I was in Addis for a couple of months during the 99.6% election “victory”. By the way, what is it with you woyanes’ hang up with the numbers 99.8% and 99.6%. No, I haven’t seen “the teenagers of all walk (sic) of life driving luxurious cars”. And if I had seen them, I would assume they were the children of Woyane officials or they borrowed their parents’ cars. I presume you personally know each of those “teenagers of all walk(sic) of life”, and have checked their backgrounds, or is that “your own set of facts”? As for the “farmers owning and driving land cruisers”, I would have been impressed if you had said that they were owners of mechanized farms. The problem with woyane people is that you are impressed by the wealth of the few. As you say there are some young people – I wouldn’t call them teenagers – who are accomplished and doing well in Ethiopia, but they are representing several US businesses and international NGOs, etc. I hadn’t realized the fact that Azeb is the managing director of EFFORT was my “own set of facts”. Well, the secret is out then! Oh by the way, the Bank loan to Alamoudi on the non-payment of the Sheraton loan was also not my “own set of facts”. This was written in a pro-Woyane paper in Addis sometime ago. To add some juicy tidbit to this case, the Bank actually said that since loan payments by Alamoudi had not been made, in normal circumstances, they would have foreclosed on the property. But since PM (Meles) is a close buddy of the Sheik they were hoping that he may intercede on the Bank’s behalf. As for the other fact that a Bank Manager committed suicide – that too was a fact – not mine. It was the news about 3 years ago in many papers in Addis, e.g. Fortune, Capital and even some woyane websites. The looting of Ethiopian State owned banks by TPLF was common practice by TPLF in those days, however, the looting is more in the open nowadays, e.g. the gold bars etc., eh? You ask if I know how many banks are owned or controlled by the government. Do I need to know? All I need to know is which bank is mentioned in the particular news article. As for the swindling of Bob Geldof – see the BBC link provided earlier.

    You seem to make light of the corruption in government and talk about “people” taking advantage of “loopholes”. I was not talking about ordinary people cheating with their taxes, etc. I was talking about the endemic corruption in the EPRDF/TPLF government. As you know corruption is one of the major indices that is detrimental to development, especially when it is practiced within the upper echelons of government.

  40. You know what suprises me most,these HODAMS, who trys to tell us its not very important to expose these criminals.Its not important azeb going shoping. what important is, what her husband and his hodams friends are doing to Ehiopians & Ethiopia THEY RAPE ETHIOPIA. Elias keep up the good job.

  41. You know what suprises me most,these HODAMS, who trys to tell us its not very important to expose these criminals.Its not important azeb going shoping. what important is, what her husband and his hodams friends are doing to Ehiopians & Ethiopia THEY RAPE ETHIOPIA. Elias keep up the good job.

  42. Tizibit, what’s wrong with you, girl? I don’t know where to start though. Please don’t get me started now. Reading your comment made me realized how people could be so irrational. Now, let’s leave the Azeb stuff aside for a minute. First, assumptions are nothing more than that. You assume things first and make a judgment based on those assumptions. That’s fatal in any kind of business. If you know Azeb well enough how she deals with things – then good for you. Go ahead and tell the world how she operates and manipulates all of us. I don’t have no clue about her character to judge her one way or the other. Absent that I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt in defending her. That’s the least you can do to people. I would have done that if she were called Tizibit or Almaz. Second, you assume I’m woyene hence I know all the kids driving those cars. Since your assumption is dead wrong there is need for me to clarify further. You said how the woynes always compare themselves to Derg. Well, if you ask me for my opinion that is called good politics. Isn’t that how every politician running for office puts the question; Are you better off than you were four years ago? This stark contrast will help put things in prospective – for open-minded person that is. People need to be told how good they have it from time to time. If your observations about Ethiopia are they way you put them, then I must have been visiting another country all this time. If you can’t acknowledge the clear advancement, however imperfect, the country is making then this becomes a dead end discussion. I wish you would say; Yes a progress has been made, yes people are making a living in so many ways, yes the government is trying to improve the quality of life for all people by building and expanding the infrastructure, yes people are moving freely, yes the dark era of Mengistu regime is long gone and yes, yes —–. If that were your observation, then I would not have a problem understanding your frustration about the governments’ fallings. That is because there are plenty of them. This should be the foundation of any discussion. Otherwise it becomes to believing my own set of eyes than yours. You also imply that the success of those youngsters is somewhat tied to “representing several US business and International NGO’s”. For your assumption to be true two things must be correct: Either the NGOs are a new phenomenon to Ethiopia, which they are not, or the US is willing to do business in the country knowing the government is a corrupt one, which is highly unlikely. The more likely scenario is that the government is perusing a sound economy policy that the US firms are willing to invest there. I haven’t heard of any one during the Derg time doing great because of an employment with the NGOs –this is a fact you can’t deny. You also talk about EFFORT and Azeb being its manager, which I assume is all true. Now, from that you conclude being a manager of that entity makes her automatically a corrupt woman. That’s is what’s called your own set of facts. Under your assumption anybody who has to manage something must be corrupt. Just give me a bit of evidence – not your usual dirty list of unsubstantiated accusations – to justify that. Absent that once more this becomes your own set of facts. By the way, I don’t agree the fact that the EPRDF involves itself in such kind of business dealings. This will ultimately lead to conflict of interest in making sound policy decisions. I know for fact this has been a contagious issue frequently raised by the opposition during the campaign. Tizibit, are you telling me Ethiopia is so rich that even Alamoudi can borrow money from the banks and afford not to pay back? If we have that kind of liquidity, then the government must be doing something great. Alamoudi is the best thing that has happened to Ethiopia. We all know well why people on the wrong side of the aisle don’t like him. You seem to shade some elements of democracy when you mentioned “Fortune and Capital” – obviously, unintentional. At one point you said, “Azeb doesn’t want to go around looking like a billionaire” to come back and accuse the woyene a daytime looting. Which one is it? I smell transparency here – if you ask me. You are willing to see only one side of the coin so much so you even missed the discredited report of Bob Geldof’s dealings. Last but not list, I never made light of any corruption. Corruption is corruption. I was just mentioning how difficult it’s to have clean government how hard one tries. This is true to any system or part of the world. You concluded by saying; “As you know corruption is one of the major indices that is detrimental to development, especially when it is practiced within the upper echelons of government”. Amen to that! Meles and Azeb as head of that upper echelon remain clean as long as you don’t charge them with your own set of facts. Fortunately, you still are not entitled to your own set of facts no matter how hard you try.

  43. Wejow: Wow, have you heard of the Shakespearean saying, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks”. I must have hit the nail on the head! Now look who’s all over the place! You are 100 per cent WOYANE! Even your absurd arguments are as twisted and distorted like those of your Master, Meles. You have even mastered his language of twisting one’s word to suit your purposes. I am not going to respond to your long rant, but I will endeavor to give you some pointers. Since you are a true Woyane, you are expected to defend Azeb’s insatiable greed, which is a well-known fact in Ethiopia. By the way Azeb’s greed goes way back since the days of the construction of the Mega building and the woyane publishing enterprise called by the same name, which went bust because of embezzlement during her watch.
    In fact greed is the hallmark of Woyanes’ inherent characteristics. Look at Meles, removing farmers from their land and secretly selling it to the highest bidder for billions of dollars without any legal or constitutional mandate or even without any debate in his rubber-stamp parliament. Meles’ arrogance and disdain for the Ethiopian people is beyond belief. He can’t even be trusted to keep his word which he gave to the farmers, that they cannot own land, but can pass it on to their children! He is even scared of his rubber-stamp parliamentarians in case they may turn out to be patriotic seeing what is going on with the people’s land.
    Why woyanes subconsciously compare themselves to Derg all the time is because they know they are so similar and see a kindred spirit – both are raving commies, which serves their purposes to deceive outsiders. Woyane is also exactly the same as the Derg in its precepts and actions of human rights abuses, i.e. killing, imprisoning, carrying out disappearances of people and the ban on assembly, free press and media, including access to the internet. However much I hate the Derg, at least the Derg did not carve up and sell millions of hectares of Ethiopian land to foreigners.
    Honestly speaking, the country has regressed and I don’t think that a tiny percentage (1%)of the population doing slightly well means it is something to write home about, since the large majority is worse off than it ever has been. Since you have your own set of facts on Ethiopia’s development, perhaps you should glance at Prof. Alemayehu G. Mariam’s article “Mr Zenawi Goes to College”, in which he put together the 2010 indices on various development attributes applicable to Ethiopia, which have been compiled by the professionals concerned. Ethiopia did better in the “ease of doing business (investment climate)”, i.e. facilitating conditions for investors within a very short time! I can’t help but be amused at Woyane’s eagerness to acquire quick money!
    Do you really think that Geldof would reveal to the world that he had been duped by a bunch of hoodlums? It would be difficult for him to continue asking his benefactors to support the causes to which he is so dedicated. You can’t be naïve as to think that he would acknowledge that he has been fooled by con artists!
    It wasn’t my intention to respond to you at length, but you got me going! By the way, I only used the words “assume” and “presume” once and I couldn’t let you get away with that. I used those words in connection with your question, which was “Have you seen teenagers of all walk(sic)of life driving luxurious cars? Have you heard of farmers owing(sic) and driving land cruisers? Did no one told you working smart and hard pays off big time in today’s Ethiopia?” So I replied “No, I haven’t seen ‘the teenagers of all walk(sic) of life driving luxurious cars’. And if I had seen them, I would assume they were the children of Woyane officials or they borrowed their parents’ cars. I presume you personally know each of those ‘teenagers of all walk(sic) of life’, and have checked their backgrounds, or is that ‘your own set of facts?’” It was I who asked you about your facts on the teenagers’ background, but you tried to do a “Meles” on me by turning it around and accusing me of having my own set of facts! What a charade!
    I am really not concerned whether you think I made up what I wrote. I read a lot and try to get as much information as I can.

  44. I give it to you that you try to read a lot and amass as much information as you can. Unless you stop this mentality of group think though- i don’t think reading alone will get you any where. What do you expect the good professor, Alemayehu, will write about the current government? Before I read any of his articles I can tell you with a high degree of certainty what it will say. Before it gets late you better get out of your comfort zone and try to read and see at the other side of the coin. At least, that is what I’m trying to do by visiting this website. Using my choice of sources information, I can tell you on all three major indicators : 1) a social and human development index, i. e., level of literacy, access to primary health care facilities, nutritional level, gender equality, child mortality rate, etc.; 2) economic factors such as raising people’s living conditions, per capita income, access to housing, access to sanitary conditions; and 3) environmental indicators such as: access to water facilities, access to secure land, access to improved sanitation, energy consumption, ecosystem stress, etc,. Ethiopia has been making a great deal of progress. But this all statical lingo means nothing if you and I can’t even agree in what we see in our naked eyes. That means, at least, one of us is blinded by something irrational. I’m trying to figure out how this can happen. Call me what you want – but arrogant or dogma are not the tributes you will associate with me. Where do you get the 1% number I wonder, where do you get the audacity to read the soul of somebody to make the judgment you make I ask, how is that possible for you to be so irrational you can not distinguish between development and selling “secretly selling it to the highest bidder for billions of dollars” ,,,,,,,,,,
    What amazes me more is that when you say ” a well-known fact in Ethiopia”. Because you talk to like minded people does not mean that represents the whole Ethiopia. For some of you , Ethiopia starts at 14th&U and ends at 9th@U. So, please stop saying that. A loud minority will never represent the silent majority for long. Just watch!
    Now, do you know Canadians alone hold 7.7 million acres of land in the USA? According to a new USDA report 1.4 million acres of land in Alabama alone is owned by foreigners. Those are hard unbiased facts. Now, is that mean the american government is a corrupt one also? I don’t think so. If you try to look all policy decisions the government makes in the meanest possible prism, yes, of course, you always come to the conclusion you seem to be getting. You already long ago decided this government is corrupt and to no good. But as someone who can cite Shakespeare, I would expect you to have your facts and reasons straight. You asked if I think “Geldof would reveal to the world that he had been duped by a bunch of hoodlums? ” The short answer is no, I don’t know Mr. Geldof well enough to know what he will do. You see – this is the problem with you. You just assumed that he will never say – I been duped – then you take that for fact and make the conclusion that the allegation must be correct. By what logic? If you want go ahead and call me woyane – for what it’s worth – but as long as you are willing to be reasonable and come with the correct arguments – I will not have a problem acknowledging your points. As it stands now – you seem to be blinded by something sinister for you to see things clearly. That worries me a lot more than anything else. May be we all are cursed to be divided – I don’t know. There is a lot we can do by coming together for the common good. Governments come and go – only we people and the country we love will remain behind. Why don’t we settle our differences by highlighting the things to come than by trying to bring down what others built. Why do we expect perfect outcomes in a imperfect world? Why do we wish our perceived enemies despair and death? Why can’t we accept small baby steps forward than destroying what we build seeking the giant steps? Well, I got carried away. I forgot for a minute I’m woyene. My bad!
    So, please don’t assume the opposite of what I say – because I insist so passionately to make my points across – does not mean I don’t believe in them. I think that was what you were trying to imply with your Shakespeare quote.

    Well, Tizibit, let me finish by quoting one of my beloved writer/thinker : “Do not give in too much to feelings. A overly sensitive heart is an unhappy possession on this shaky earth. ” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

  46. I am waitting her here @ the skyline to pay for me my hair cut when she visit Showa beauty salon may b we are expecting the drive to be changed may be yes it could be kenfes brother Tamerat !!!!!!!

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