This continent has come a long way with a history soaked in blood. It has crossed rivers and climbed valleys. It is a story of people who preached for years with the gospel of self-hate.
This history has been rewritten several times and given certain names. Africa as a continent has been on her knees and stood the toughest times ever but this time, it is losing the battle against shadow powers that have always claimed to be with her in her difficult times.
Who cares if Africa is rich or not, if the Africans are not aware of this fact, they have to be exploited by any willing hand and then they beg for the rest of their lives. This is our story of pain, endless struggles and betrayal.
In Africa, you can dream of anything in life and just because you are an African, you won’t amount to anything. This is why most Africans are doing wonders in the West. And you know what? They are given second names, African- Americans, I don’t know if we will ever have American-Africans because that would be a sheer building of a castle in thin air.
The African sun seems to be setting in the afternoon. There is no doubt, Africa is rich. You just need to believe in what God has given us and it won’t be long before you reap the harvest. But we have been told that we are nothing and taught to hate ourselves to the core.
This is why we have been borrowing money that we can easily make here. The Democratic Republic of Congo, which tops the list of the poorest, is widely considered to be the richest country in the world regarding natural resources; its untapped deposits of raw minerals are estimated to be worth in excess of U.S. $24 trillion.
But it is poor, this is so pathetic. This money is enough to create the Africa we want if we truly believe in Africa. The question of our day is where this money goes.
Let us first look at the nature of Africa, sometimes when you look around you feel proud for being an African and when you turn the other flip side of the coin, you cry for the suffering that our people are going through. There is something so interesting here, the free money or loan.
First of all, we need to know that free things are always dangerous. Take an example of cheap goods, they cost you little money but they don’t last long, so what is the difference here? You buy something stolen cheaply and you end up in police custody when it is traced. The owner may claim that the phone was stolen with USD 3,000, this is going to be a double loss and a label, a thief.
You know, to be called a thief is worse than being dead. You will lose your dignity and trust in society. And when people lose these two in you, I am sorry, but you will only be a useless person in the society. There are some African leaders who have milked their countries dry, and they pride themselves in doing so.
Let us think about free money. There is no doubt, Africa’s begging bowl has holes. African leaders don’t trust what they have and what they need to do to benefit from what they have.
The Chinese have freely donated millions of dollars to Africa for good donkey years and we call them generous people. But I want to tell you a different story, a dollar borrowed by an African is a part of Africa sold. Africa’s future darkens each day.
To be honest, every donation has been an opportunity for African leaders to enrich themselves and their inner circles.
They don’t think about the future of Africa, for the case of an African leader (names withheld), he has seen not only his children running great businesses but his grandchildren. He has made money over the years, so it is of no concern to him if part of his country or Africa is taken by the donors.
The donor, on the other hand, has always been happy to lend any amount of money to any African country without evaluating the ability of the borrower to repay the money or loans. The donors are wise people; they will use you to your own peril.
They don’t have to worry whether you will pay the money or not because they are so sure that you must pay an amount exceeding the money you have borrowed. What is the future of Africa now and how do you see it after ten years?
The donor has a plan and that is to extend its political and economic presence to Africa but who are these donors? I don’t know how to put it, but these are people with self-belief in themselves. They don’t accept foreign aid, instead, they give handouts and make you pay severely. As a matter of fact, China was one of the poorest countries in the world some years ago, but one single step changed the story of China forever.
They don’t have the best resources in the world but they have people. When you know how to use your people, you have no problem with wealth. China has lifted one hundred million people out of poverty within a short span of time. By 2030, they are going to have a poverty-free China. It is incredible.
That is nine years from now. What about Africa’s agenda, 2063? Take your calculator and let us imagine Africa in 2063, maybe by this time, Africa would be in the hands of the Chinese. But the African Union has a different story about Africa by 2063, to them, Agenda 2063 seeks to deliver on a set of Seven Aspirations each with its own set of goals which if achieved will move Africa closer to achieving its vision for the year 2063. The 7 Aspirations reflect our desire for shared prosperity and well-being, for unity and integration, for a continent of free citizens and expanded horizons, where the full potential of women and youth are realized, and with freedom from fear, disease and want.
Africa shall have a universal culture of good governance, democratic values, gender equality, and respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law. This is awesome but wait. We have 42 years, four decades to have the Africa we want. What about the loans and wrong leaders at the helm, it is either you lose Africa, or you surrender Africa to Chinese or European?