What shapes politics and democracy in Africa?

Africa has for a long time been seen as the continent where democracy is a mere dream and far much beyond reality. I must admit that this mentality greatly affects the path of politics in this wealthy continent. Believe it or not, there are great similarities between campus and national politics in Africa. If you ever want to predict what will be the outcome of the elections in any Africa country, just spend quality time studying the politics in the local African universities. It is sad to note that this happens mostly because of the deep rooted tribalism in these countries. African politics is a dangerous affair where ethnicity is the order of the day. They say that politics is a dirty game; you will not know how dirty it is until you know what happens at the back of most African politics.
The most frightening thing is the reality that ethnicity greatly affects campus politics, the place where most of the African leaders are molded and trained to take responsibilities in the national leadership. I would not expect leaders who survived on tribal lines during their years in campus to change when they climb the leader. We have known students leaders to be people who promise heaven, pretending to be reformists and delivering hell during their term in leadership. I have found this characteristic in most African leaders. They are only seen in their constituencies during campaigns with a packet of maize flour and sugar, after which they disappear till the last year towards the end of their term. What Africa needs to learn is that the rat and cat game that most leaders are fond of playing should be brought to a stop.