4D AGO

Nic Cheeseman - Your Vote Was Already Bought!

What happens when elections become rituals and power refuses to leave the room? In this episode of Panel 54, Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh sit down with Prof. Nic Cheeseman, one of the world's leading scholars on African democracy, based at the University of Birmingham and the mind behind Democracy in Africa. Cheeseman brings three decades of research across the continent to a conversation that cuts through the noise of election cycles, youth frustration, and geopolitical manoeuvring. The discussion moves from why authoritarian leaders still hold elections they intend to rig, to the mechanics of political legitimacy that no amount of money can buy at the ballot box. They examine the growing crisis in the Horn of Africa, where Sudan's conflict has displaced fourteen million people while the international community looks elsewhere. From managed instability in Ethiopia to the erosion of democratic norms in Tanzania and Uganda, the conversation interrogates why some conflicts persist not despite global attention but because of its absence. At the heart of the episode is an uncomfortable truth. Democracy across much of Africa has not failed because it was tried and found wanting, but because it was captured, manipulated, and never genuinely delivered. Africa's frustrated youth are not rejecting democratic values, they are rejecting systems that promised representation and delivered extraction. The conversation closes with a note of cautious optimism. From Uganda, Gambia, Zambia to Nigeria, citizens have stood together in numbers that made manipulation futile. The question is whether political elites will meet that energy with reform or repression. A sharp, nuanced conversation about power, legitimacy, and who really benefits when the ballots are counted. Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo. This is Panel 54, a global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Contact: ⁠hello@panel54pod.com⁠ 🎙 Recorded in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

57 min

FEB 6

A New Security Order - Frederick Grounds

What does conflict actually look like up close, long before headlines catch up?In this episode of Panel 54, Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh sit down with Frederick Grounds, a former Lieutenant Colonel in the British Army with over three decades of service, much of it spent training and working alongside African armed forces across the continent. Now based in Nairobi, Grounds offers a rare practitioner’s view of what happens when diplomacy fails and violence becomes inevitable. The conversation moves from Sudan’s humanitarian collapse to Africa's role in multinational military exercises, unpacking how wars begin quietly, how language shifts before bullets fly, and why civilians carry the deepest scars long after fighting ends.They examine Africa’s growing security footprint in a crowded geopolitical landscape. From US and UK partnerships to China’s military base in Djibouti and Russia’s expanding presence in the Sahel, the discussion interrogates where collaboration strengthens African capacity and where it risks eroding sovereignty and accountability.At the heart of the episode is a sobering insight. Military power can stabilise fragile systems, but it can also replace political legitimacy rather than protect it. Africa’s challenge is not a lack of partners, but the ability to enforce limits, read the room, and say no when sovereignty is at stake. A grounded, unsentimental conversation about force, diplomacy, and the thin line between security and control. Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo.This is Panel 54, a global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Contact: hello@panel54pod.com 🎙 Recorded in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

44 min

JAN 30

The New Power Game - Peter Kagwanja

Africa is no longer peripheral to global power. It is central to it. The problem is that influence does not always translate into control.In this episode of Panel 54, Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh are joined by Prof. Peter Kagwanja, one of East Africa’s most influential geopolitical thinkers, to examine how power is exercised, defended, and contested across the continent. The conversation moves through Uganda’s role as a regional security anchor, Kenya’s strategic alignment with Western partners, and Nigeria’s struggle to convert size and influence into coherent foreign policy leverage. Kagwanja also reflects on Sudan’s collapse into militarised politics and Somalia’s long entanglement with foreign security interests as cautionary tales of what happens when force overtakes governance. China’s expanding footprint across infrastructure, finance, and diplomacy is interrogated alongside Western security partnerships, exposing how external actors operate comfortably within Africa’s governance gaps. The discussion shows how counterterrorism cooperation and military aid can stabilise regimes while others are quietly eroding democratic accountability.At the centre of the episode is a hard truth. Africa’s challenge is not a lack of partners, but a lack of strategy, institutional restraint, and political courage. In a rapidly shifting multipolar world, the continent risks remaining reactive unless it defines its own interests with clarity and discipline. This is a sober conversation about China, the West, regional security, and the price Africa pays when power goes unchecked. Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo.A global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Contact: hello@panel54pod.com 🎙 Recorded in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

1h 13m

12/31/2025

Tsepiso, James, Theophilus & Mbugua - Year in Review- Part 1

In Part One of Panel 54’s end-of-year special, Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh sit down with some of Africa’s most influential editors to interrogate a hard question: who controls Africa’s story at a moment of global upheaval? Joining the conversation are Theophilus Yardy from Ghana, Tsepiso Makwetla from South Africa, James Muyanwa from Zambia, and James Mbugua from Kenya. The editors unpack collapsing trust in legacy media, the rise of social platforms as primary news sources, and the economic pressures hollowing out African newsrooms. They reflect on underreported security crises, democratic erosion, and the shrinking space for accountability across the continent. The discussion also confronts foreign influence and sovereignty, including China’s expanding footprint, and asks whether Africa is drifting into a new form of economic and political recolonisation. In a rapidly changing multipolar world, the editors debate why Africa still lacks a real seat at the global table and what it will take to move from being an arena of competition to an actor with agency. A candid, unsparing wrap up conversation about media, power, and Africa’s place in the world in 2025 Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo. This is Panel 54, a global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Let’s talk: hello@panel54pod.com Subscribe: https://linktr.ee/panel54pod 🎙 Recorded on location in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

50 min

12/12/2025

H.E. Ambassador Hiroshi Matsuura: Japan and Africa

Japan and Africa meet at a critical moment in a changing world. One is navigating demographic pressure, technological transition and a complex security environment. The other is rising in strategic importance as the global order shifts toward multipolarity. In this episode of Panel 54, hosts Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh sit down with His Excellency Ambassador Hiroshi Matsuura, Japan’s Ambassador to Kenya, to explore the future of Japan Africa relations beyond aid and assistance. The conversation traces Japan’s six decade partnership with Kenya and the continent, from early development cooperation to today’s focus on industrialisation, technology transfer and human capital. Ambassador Matsuura reflects on Kenya’s transformation over the last twenty five years, the role of trust in long term diplomacy, and why Japan sees Africa as a partner in solving global challenges rather than a recipient of charity. They unpack trade imbalances, Japanese investment in manufacturing, geothermal energy at Olkaria, climate resilience, innovation hubs, and the growing importance of AI and digital technologies. The discussion also widens to geopolitics, examining Japan’s position in a multipolar world, its alliance with the United States, the Indo Pacific framework, and how Africa can use shifting alliances to pursue strategic autonomy. From samurai bonds and development finance to cultural exchange, values and legacy, this episode asks a central question. Can Japan and Africa build a generational partnership that moves from infrastructure to innovation and from aid to agency? Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo. A global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Let’s talk: ⁠hello@panel54pod.com⁠ 🎙 Recorded on location in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

44 min

12/05/2025

Michael Lenaimado - Poachers, Politics & The Battle for Survival.

Poaching networks, shrinking habitats, foreign market demand and political neglect are reshaping conservation across the region. And rangers are paying the highest price. In this episode of Panel 54, veteran ranger Michael Lenaimado joins Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh to break down what’s really happening on the front lines. He exposes how organised poaching networks operate, why demand in China for rhino horn and pangolin scales continues to drive killings, and how weak policy and blocked wildlife corridors are pushing entire ecosystems to the brink. Michael also reveals the human cost: armed confrontations, poor equipment, low pay, no insurance, and communities losing crops, livestock and livelihoods with little compensation. This is a story about survival, sovereignty and the people carrying the weight of conservation — told by a ranger who has lived it. Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo. A global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Let’s talk: ⁠hello@panel54pod.com ⁠ Subscribe: ⁠https://linktr.ee/panel54pod ⁠ 🎙 Recorded in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

1h 2m

11/28/2025

Ndu and Waweru - China, Gen Z and Africa’s Future

After twenty-one episodes across politics, diplomacy, security, mining, protests, soft power and geopolitics, Ndu Okoh and Waweru Njoroge step away from the guest chair and turn the lens on themselves.In this special introspective episode of Panel 54, the hosts reflect on the conversations that shaped the season: interviewing former President Kufuor in Accra, unpacking debt and foreign influence, confronting Africa’s security dilemmas, exploring culture and soft diplomacy, and navigating the realities of protest movements and leadership across the continent. They revisit the moments that challenged them, surprised them and stayed with them long after the cameras were off, from heavy episodes on conflict and sovereignty to lighter ones on CHAN, sports and African identity. The discussion opens up the unseen side of producing a pan-African show: last-minute cancellations, geopolitics affecting bookings, and the constant battle to hold space for real African perspectives in a noisy global landscape. Ndu and Waweru also confront some hard questions from the season:Who are Africa’s next leaders? Can Gen Z sustain political pressure beyond protest? Is the continent facing a new wave of recolonisation through debt and dependency, including China’s expanding role? And what will it take for Africans to reclaim agency over their resources, their governance and their future? They close by imagining what comes next for Panel 54, the guests they still want, the places they hope to travel, and the stories that must be told as Africa finds its voice in a shifting world. Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo. A global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Let’s talk: hello@panel54pod.com Subscribe: https://linktr.ee/panel54pod 🎙 Recorded on location in Nairobi, Kenya 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

44 min

11/21/2025

Seth Bokpe - Money and the Mining Mafia in Ghana

West Africa’s gold is enriching the world — but devastating the people who live closest to it. Illegal mining has become an environmental catastrophe, a political flashpoint and a lucrative gateway for foreign interests. And at the centre of it all is the uncomfortable truth: exploitation thrives when governance fails. In this episode of Panel 54, Seth Bokpe, one of Ghana’s leading investigative journalists, joins Waweru Njoroge and Ndu Okoh to expose how illegal mining has reshaped Ghana and the wider region. From Chinese-backed operations to local political collaborators, Seth breaks down how corruption, weak regulation and foreign demand for gold have created a perfect storm.The conversation digs into destroyed forest reserves, polluted rivers, armed protection networks, and the staggering human cost borne by rural communities. Seth reveals how illegal mining fuels organised crime across West Africa, from Zamfara to the Sahel, feeding instability while governments look away. He also tackles one of the hardest questions: Are Chinese companies to blame — or the local leaders enabling them? And what would real accountability and environmental justice look like if African governments had the courage to act?. This is a story about sovereignty, exploitation and the battle for Africa’s most valuable resources — told by a journalist who has risked everything to expose the truth. Lagos to Lamu. Cape Town to Cairo.A global perspective through an African lens. 📩 Let’s talk: hello@panel54pod.com Subscribe https://linktr.ee/panel54pod 🎙 Recorded on location in Accra, Ghana 🎧 Produced by Commex Africa and E & C Talent

50 min

Panel 54 Podcast

Nic Cheeseman - Your Vote Was Already Bought!

A New Security Order - Frederick Grounds

The New Power Game - Peter Kagwanja

Tsepiso, James, Theophilus & Mbugua - Year in Review- Part 1

H.E. Ambassador Hiroshi Matsuura: Japan and Africa

Michael Lenaimado - Poachers, Politics & The Battle for Survival.

Ndu and Waweru - China, Gen Z and Africa’s Future

Seth Bokpe - Money and the Mining Mafia in Ghana

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Panel 54 Podcast

Episodes

Nic Cheeseman - Your Vote Was Already Bought!

A New Security Order - Frederick Grounds

The New Power Game - Peter Kagwanja

Tsepiso, James, Theophilus & Mbugua - Year in Review- Part 1

H.E. Ambassador Hiroshi Matsuura: Japan and Africa

Michael Lenaimado - Poachers, Politics & The Battle for Survival.

Ndu and Waweru - China, Gen Z and Africa’s Future

Seth Bokpe - Money and the Mining Mafia in Ghana

About

Information