Mother Africa calls; where are they?

By Joseph Osei

Africa indeed is weeping for the visionary and tenacious leaders it ones had. The leaders who stood their grounds against colonialism. The leaders who projected and defended the dignity, wisdom, independence and self sufficiency of AFRICA. The leaders for whom leadership was not a matter of comfort and relish. The leaders who deemed their offices as privileged honors. The leaders who looked unto the seat of governance as an altar of sacrifice. Leaders who would feel guilt of conscience if they came across their fellow citizens living in penury.

Where are they? Where did they all go? Was that gene sprayed into extinction with an infanticide of the west? Where are they hiding? Is the threat of the CIA intelligence that ousted Nkrumah still coercive in this age? Have the beauty of motor kids and presidential convoys pampered the leaders to go to bed? Has GHC 7,200 and a string of countless allowances reduced our representative leaders to talk show guests? Has the despair of the economy deterred us from daring to dream?

We sit and call for foreign direct investment. How relished the term now looks. So proud of it, FDI features gloriously as one of the achievements of governments. We clutch unto our bowls begging from supposed angels. Villains who have an eye fixed on our wealth. The wealth we are so blinded from. For how long will we be deceived? Oh and we help ourselves to the slaughter by deceiving ourselves too. Work simplified for the butcher of mother Africa. Half and over of our policies is to please the philanthropic thief. We court him so piously and religiously as if to say our survival depended on them. Of course they will grab the offered stage and make the most out of it. I give you a handsome reward; I don’t really need. You give me bountiful channels to mother Africa’s resources. A bottle of schnapps, a mirror and some sugar for a dozen of precious human lives for slaves. Insult them as stupid and Africa will be insulting itself in a mirror. Obviously blinded to our own identity. Repeating the same mistakes in a modern fashion embellished with perhaps nicer terminologies and the popular one “IT”.

Never think for your self is what they have preached. Obedient children of powerful mama Africa have religiously lived by the tenets of this doctrine. Subservience is our national anthem and the white man reigns.  The blond eared and pointed noses know the longer the strong man kept his mind somnolent, the longer he stayed secure. The strong man thinks the better he makes the blond ears and pointed noses demi gods the longer he got his daily bread coming in. Your credit rating has been downgraded from B+ to B OK, “yes sir”. Oh but…… we don’t care what you say we know it; after all we created the system. Play by our rules and you will be fine. Subsidies on electricity will cripple the economy…. Fuel subsidies are not sustainable….. Allow private sector investments into the electricity provision in the country…. Two days later debate begins… Two months down the line. The long noses keep their fingers crossed as the media and government pushes the agenda. They manage to get some greedy sycophants in power to join the spin. Nice movie and two months down the line, “Xyz Company limited to invest in 2000 megawatts of power in Ghana”. They sign in the flag staff house before it comes to the public. PURC begins consultations as if it hasn’t arrived at its rates yet. NPA appeals to government with clinched fist. The game goes on and mother Africa’s children suffer the brunt.

Africa misses her illustrious sons. I cannot even think straight to proffer any solutions now. It lies in our individual capacities to wake up from this long sleep. Everything is falling apart. Children are dying every minute from a land as fertile as Africa. Will this generation be able to stand before posterity in judgment? Fathers are committing suicide to save them the shame of irresponsibility to their families. The mothers weep in the secrets of their chambers wondering how to take care of the needs.

Like a lioness calls for her lost cub, the Osargyefo Kwame Nkrumahs, th