Regional leaders continue to cast a wary eye toward Guinea, where a military junta has taken control after last month's coup. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has condemned the coup and has suspended Guinea's membership in the regional body until constitutional order is restored in that country. ECOWAS follows the lead of the African Union (AU), which ousted Guinea pending reform in the wake of the military takeover.
Contrast the trepidation over Guinea with the responses to the elections in Ghana, which has evoked triumphal language across the continent. In the comparison, Guinea represents a past from which most Africans want to break, while Ghana represents the future they want to attain.