African Independence: a time for introspection, not yet for celebration by Akintola Abdulraman
O you people of this great nation, the time has come to introspect once again, upon the direction of this wonderful nation and evaluate its performance after years and years. Our leaders have pledged to us to protect our rights and obligations. They pledged to protect our environment and ambitions. For a long time, we have been obedient and never transgress against their commandements.
Let me stress that these leaders have been doing wonderfully well and their efforts have to be commended for the immense pleasure and benefits we have gotten from them even though not all will eventually admit it. Nevertheless, they have been graced and privileged to be at that position and whatever the outcome might be, they are worth commending for their efforts and worth advising to be doing better.
Seriouly, the major problem facing our leaders today, which thousands of citizens cannot understand is the issue of “the structural imperialism”. Even after the independence, many African countries, Asian and other countries from the middle East have some relationship with the so called developed nations, the bond that could be political, financial or economical in nature.
The dominance of the core nations such as the G7,(USA, Japan, Italy, Canada, Germany, United kingdom, France) G8 ( United States of America, Russia, Japan, Canada, Italy, United Kingdom, France, Germany) and other powerful countries(China, Japan, Brazil) over the periphery nations such as African nations and others have affected them negatively. A relationship that seems to be violent and uncomfortable in nature in terms of aid and financial support.
To make this domination effective, the core nations use the periphery nations’ leaders known as the bridge heads to exploit their fellow citizens. In return, the periphery nations get financial and economical supports from the core nations in exchange of the exploitation and exploration of mineral ressources of the periphery nations. That seems to be the reality that majority of the citizens cannot perceived.
A good illustration of this, is the action of the periphery nations such as (Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and other countries in the middle East) to borrow approximately billions US dollars as a loan to finance their capital projects during their tenure for a particular term agreed upon by both parties. However, as we can see, the periphery nations lack basic understanding of the projects and lack human resources who are experts in the construction, installation and maintenance, engineering and operations of these projects.
From there, they agree upon another term to deploy their personels and equipments to be used to equip our amenities upon which the periphery nations have to fund the personels and take care of their needs to complete the project successfully. This is why we have foreign nationals always taking charge of the affairs of Africa nations’ projects as in roads, construction, technology and telecommunications to mention just a few.
This undoubtedly affects periphery nations to spend from the borrowed loans from foreign nations on foreign nationals in addition to equipments bought from them and shipped from them to the underdeveloped nations. This makes the debt to be unpayable due to the increase of the loan interest, the mismanagement of the loans and lack of proper understanding of the loan terms. So, from the previous tenures to new tenures, periphery nations keep paying the unpayable debts and they keep on borrowing more and more.
These core nations have ruined our economy, they have as well wasted our strength to unity and crack down the harmonious relationship between periphery leaders and the led. Several countries have complained about this debts saying it is illegitimate, violent and uncomfortable. The debt crisis can be attributed to many factors such as the nature of the economy, economic policies, high dependence on natural resources, and swindling foreign exchange receipt.
In addition to these violent debts, through our leaders, they’ve privatised “health”. We now lack basic healthcare infrastructure, when 1/3 of our population are dying due to cholera, malaria, typhoid and kidney failure. All these sickness were meant to be eradicated from our environment a long time ago. To open your eyes to all these, check the hospitals, the rural communities, and traditional care centres, you will discover people’s complaints about the lack of basic and sound health insurance through which I feel sorry. Things that were meant to be free should now be paid for.
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To understand the structural imperialism in these sector, the core nations send and shipped gadgets and other utensils such as outdated cars, cosmetics, cooking gas, phones and installation of factories and their smokes to cause more sickness and spreading of other dangerous diseases like HIV, cancer, typhoid, kidney problem, diabetes and many others in our environment. In return, the periphery nations ask for more aid and health supports from them in which the periphery nations have to finance to save their citizens. In all such cases, those that can afford it find their ways to these nations for the expensive cares. You now see how difficult it is to cope with.
Apart from these, the core nations through our leaders again, privatised “Education”, the acquisition of knowledge and learning which was meant to be the most distributed item to all citizens, while 2/3 of our population especially the younger ones are still out of school. We are being asked to pay to acquire knowledge and get educated today.
In this sector, our leaders seem not to put much more interest in public schools and this brought the emergence of more private schools. Those that can afford an expensive one find their ways to these core nations for a quality and sound education. In return, they are well integrated and given much more offers than the average citizen who couldn’t afford to pass through that stream. The truth is that most of our leaders have their children studying abroad due to the effect of these structural domination.
Again, we have privatised our public services, electricity and water especially. Why should we privatised water ? Things that belong to us! Our Oceans, rivers, Nigers, lagoons, lakes and streams… privatised!. To even drill a well here is quite expensive. There is really an issue and this is inadmissible. To make this imperialism much more interesting in this sector, we now focus on the drilling of more boreholes. For what ? Can the rural communities afford this. Imagine if each individual starts drilling boreholes for their families and households. Have we thought of the future impacts of these on the earth and the environment? This is emphatically unacceptable.
It is therefore by our rights to mention that we are not yet satiated and we are not hungry neither. Your excellency, these people pledged their allegiance to you. This nation is the bride who cries for the premature love of his groom. This nation is the orphan that requests for the breastfeeding from his lost mother. This nation once again Your excellency, is the one that supported you to be where you are today. This nation is the father who sees his dignity and authority diluted and stolen.
This nation reminds me of the “Bariga” group. Have you heard of the Bariga? This farmer that always complains thoroughly. Saying: “But why? why then am I not sowing? Why can’t I reap the fruits of my labour when I sow? And why when I still reap, I can’t feed myself?
This is just a nation who humbly, modestly and dignifiedly requests for a legitimate justice in their cause. And you are surely going to give it to them your Excellency. You will render this service your Excellency, not by condemning the core nations and their institutions such as the world Bank and the International Monetary Fund, IMF. You will render it by sending them to their first mission, that which they shouldn’t have forgotten. For instance, External Debt in Nigeria increased to 25609.63 USD Million in the first quarter of 2019 from 25274.36 USD Million in the fourth quarter of 2018 while External Debt in Ghana decreased to 20500 USD Million in the second quarter of 2019 from 20678.69 USD Million in the first quarter of 2019.
It is therefore mandatory for you, your Excellency to find crucial strategies that will help the next generation not to be in the same traps you are really battling with.
Also, it is mandatory on all politicians, lawyers, media personels, doctors, educationists, policies makers, singers and writers through their skills and experience to reduce the imbalance between the core nations and the periphery nations until we all finally get it right.
Periphery nations should employ more superior method to negotiate for fixed interest payment and varying amortization schemes, as well as seek multiyear rescheduling rather than year by year basis.
Funds from external debt must be channeled towards projects with high returns devoid of misappropriation in the long run; economic policies should also be channeled towards export promotion and import substitution as this would increase the level of productivity and economic activities thereby resulting in an improvement in external reserve, a favorable balance of payment and increase in foreign exchange earnings.
As there is this popular saying: “Two knocks means we are cleared, three means there is a problem”. It is time for a new story, time for a new strategy and time for a new direction.
Excerpt from the book: My nation
Author: Akintola Abdulraman
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08039479117
Akintola Abdulraman is a seasoned communication professional and experienced in writing for social justice and appraisal of individuals.
