Mr Alain,
Keep on writing and do not change the tone. You rightly put it, selfishness is at the heart of our problem. We will only move forward when we stop focusing on the faults of others and reflect on our contribution to the problem.
As you said, it is impossible to advocate change when you are doing the same things you want others to drop. We must accept that we are all connected and that what goes wrong comes wrong. When this circle is broken no matter the justification somebody will get hurt. The general cry is get rid rid of our corrupt leaders and that will fix all our problems. At times I wonder if changing the leaders will make any difference. We once had an opposition which has slowly disintegrated and it is now "good for nothing" because they are not very different from those in power. The name of the game is" beletics" as one of the opposition leaders famously coined. It seems they too are more interested in taking care of their stomachs than representing the people.
Many people are waiting for a Messiah, a super hero to come and get us out of the present predicament. They will have an excruciating wait for there is no messiah out there. We are part of the problem and must also stand up and start being part of the solution. We must reclaim Moral rectitude and stop using shortcuts to solve our problems. What makes us think that we can break the law and not also reap its consequences. The good book says that we reap what we sow. Where laws are not obeyed there is chaos. The weak are oppressed by the strong. The poor get poorer and the rich get richer. When economic laws are broken, you will not get a return from your investments.
Friday, September 25, 2009
A concerned Cameroonian
The author indeed raised some salient issues that all in the Diaspora need to reflect on. However, the fact that many of us in the Diaspora still find it just very hard to organize our selves here into a leadership forum when in abundance of freedom and financial independence, to assist our selves and the communities around us and back home, leaves me very pessimistic!
The author brings to light some of the issues that I would expect many of our social science PhD holders and PhD aspirant to perform an informed research on. Though I am not a social scientist to offer an informed opinion on the subject matter, it however, very issue for me to revisit my limited high school knowledge in geography and reasons why people migrate to other places to come to the conclusion that we have a dead rat in the room! The author raised some issues that if quantified and measured using statistical inferences; will beefed well his argument. He further used Nigerian immigrants as a case study and presented valid points that support his original premise.
The overtone of the heading of heading of his article might be wrong, as it might be misconstrued to be very inclusive of all African countries suffering from what he has carefully framed; but still narrowed to specific issues that ail many of sub Sahara African countries. What I am most disturbed about isn’t just about what Africans back home have to deal with, but the question of who needs the most help? Africans in countries who have been financially deprived or Africans who have moved to the Diaspora and have decided to morally deprive them selves of their African identity? Please pardon me to quickly conclude that many of us in the Diaspora might even need more help than those in Cameroon who still have a sense of who they are, and their integrity intact. The main problem many Cameroonians back home face is centered mostly around the lack of financial independence. Did some one say before that “Africans might have been cursed”? Look not far but in our Lebialem community here in the USA as a case study, and you will understand why some of us might be quick to believe we have been cursed! Where is morality and integrity in most of those the younger generations should be looking up to? How does our community move forward when those who seek to lead look mostly at what will directly benefit them when they serve the community? How will Africa move forward when some spouses literally enslave them selves in order to sustain their families only for us to observe that their partners are out there having multiple concubines and even going after other married people? How can Africa move forward when those who are financially privileged return to Africa/Cameroon and use their financial advantage in the most negative way, one can possibly ever imagine? From running after high school girls to corrupting their ways through the system the turn around and criticize? How can this happen when our community doesn’t allow the brightest ideas to prevail but allows mediocrity because of our inherent pitiful mindset? How can a society that doesn’t encourage the young to grow, but looks for all ways to destroy, expect to sustain its self? Some countries in Africa might be temporary doomed, but Africans and especially Cameroonians in the Diaspora are already proven to be too doomed and confused that I am afraid many of us when we return to Cameroon will be more of the problem than part of the solution Africa or Cameroon needs!
We don’t expect a utopian community abroad, but we have enough of our problems here to deal with that unless we start reflecting on how to address them head on, then can we have the moral stance to talk of Africa’s or Cameroon’s problems and expect those back home to take us seriously. For Africans to return home and have any meaningful positive impact on Africa, Africans in the Diaspora MUST first of all show that they can collectively help themselves here in the Diaspora before attempting to go home and expect to have any influence over how to change Africans/Cameroonians back home. It starts with me, you our families and extends to our community. If we can’t positively used the skills/tools we have acquired here to improve on our selves, our family; how then can we expect to improve on our community here to say the least before thinking of positively impacting those in Africa? What is so disturbing is the fact that we can’t do all that is expected of a community despite we live in an environment where there is respect for the rule of law! How then can we expect to behave differently in an environment where there are lots of subjectivities in the interpretation and reinforcement of the rule of law? What we might expect for Africa/Cameroon may only happen ten generations after we are gone! Albert Einstein once said; if he is asked to solve the world’s biggest problem; he will spend 95% of the allocated time to understand the problem and only use 5% of the remaining time in solving the problem. It might be time for Africans/Cameroonians to understand how to accept great minds to dissect effectively our problems to the point where we can now implement solutions that will address them. We might as well start by admitting that there is a serious problem and appreciate the efforts of minds such as this in framing this problem and employ our collective minds in understanding the problem. Africans/Cameroonians natural instinct is to rush to a solution without carefully understanding the problem, with the excuse that who has the time to go through all the theories… it is time for us to start asking for time to understand our great minds if we need to save on the time to effectively address our mountains of challenges!
Alain A. Taku
A concerned Cameroonian
The author brings to light some of the issues that I would expect many of our social science PhD holders and PhD aspirant to perform an informed research on. Though I am not a social scientist to offer an informed opinion on the subject matter, it however, very issue for me to revisit my limited high school knowledge in geography and reasons why people migrate to other places to come to the conclusion that we have a dead rat in the room! The author raised some issues that if quantified and measured using statistical inferences; will beefed well his argument. He further used Nigerian immigrants as a case study and presented valid points that support his original premise.
The overtone of the heading of heading of his article might be wrong, as it might be misconstrued to be very inclusive of all African countries suffering from what he has carefully framed; but still narrowed to specific issues that ail many of sub Sahara African countries. What I am most disturbed about isn’t just about what Africans back home have to deal with, but the question of who needs the most help? Africans in countries who have been financially deprived or Africans who have moved to the Diaspora and have decided to morally deprive them selves of their African identity? Please pardon me to quickly conclude that many of us in the Diaspora might even need more help than those in Cameroon who still have a sense of who they are, and their integrity intact. The main problem many Cameroonians back home face is centered mostly around the lack of financial independence. Did some one say before that “Africans might have been cursed”? Look not far but in our Lebialem community here in the USA as a case study, and you will understand why some of us might be quick to believe we have been cursed! Where is morality and integrity in most of those the younger generations should be looking up to? How does our community move forward when those who seek to lead look mostly at what will directly benefit them when they serve the community? How will Africa move forward when some spouses literally enslave them selves in order to sustain their families only for us to observe that their partners are out there having multiple concubines and even going after other married people? How can Africa move forward when those who are financially privileged return to Africa/Cameroon and use their financial advantage in the most negative way, one can possibly ever imagine? From running after high school girls to corrupting their ways through the system the turn around and criticize? How can this happen when our community doesn’t allow the brightest ideas to prevail but allows mediocrity because of our inherent pitiful mindset? How can a society that doesn’t encourage the young to grow, but looks for all ways to destroy, expect to sustain its self? Some countries in Africa might be temporary doomed, but Africans and especially Cameroonians in the Diaspora are already proven to be too doomed and confused that I am afraid many of us when we return to Cameroon will be more of the problem than part of the solution Africa or Cameroon needs!
We don’t expect a utopian community abroad, but we have enough of our problems here to deal with that unless we start reflecting on how to address them head on, then can we have the moral stance to talk of Africa’s or Cameroon’s problems and expect those back home to take us seriously. For Africans to return home and have any meaningful positive impact on Africa, Africans in the Diaspora MUST first of all show that they can collectively help themselves here in the Diaspora before attempting to go home and expect to have any influence over how to change Africans/Cameroonians back home. It starts with me, you our families and extends to our community. If we can’t positively used the skills/tools we have acquired here to improve on our selves, our family; how then can we expect to improve on our community here to say the least before thinking of positively impacting those in Africa? What is so disturbing is the fact that we can’t do all that is expected of a community despite we live in an environment where there is respect for the rule of law! How then can we expect to behave differently in an environment where there are lots of subjectivities in the interpretation and reinforcement of the rule of law? What we might expect for Africa/Cameroon may only happen ten generations after we are gone! Albert Einstein once said; if he is asked to solve the world’s biggest problem; he will spend 95% of the allocated time to understand the problem and only use 5% of the remaining time in solving the problem. It might be time for Africans/Cameroonians to understand how to accept great minds to dissect effectively our problems to the point where we can now implement solutions that will address them. We might as well start by admitting that there is a serious problem and appreciate the efforts of minds such as this in framing this problem and employ our collective minds in understanding the problem. Africans/Cameroonians natural instinct is to rush to a solution without carefully understanding the problem, with the excuse that who has the time to go through all the theories… it is time for us to start asking for time to understand our great minds if we need to save on the time to effectively address our mountains of challenges!
Alain A. Taku
A concerned Cameroonian
The vast majority of Sub-Saharan Africans who live outside of the continent are in exile
FYI
http://www.anjnews. com/node/ 1259
By Sabella Ogbobode Abidde
The vast majority of Sub-Saharan Africans who live outside of the continent are in exile. For these Africans, their condition may either be self-imposed or forced by the prevailing conditions in the continent. And the general conditions in the continent are not healthy or enriching, or conducive to personal growth and happiness.
Although conditions differ from one country to another, by and large what we have is a continent where a sizeable number of the people - especially those between the ages of 18 and 45 - cannot wait to go into exile. They cannot wait to get out of their respective countries. Nigeria is an archetypal example of a country where, if embassies assured travel visas, 70 per cent or more of the college students will leave of their own volition.
The majority of those in exile either have nothing substantial to return home to, or their own governments do not want them back. We also see that in some cases, the political, economic, social and cultural space is not large or absorbent enough to accommodate exiles; in other cases, some exiles get blinded by the security, comfort and predictability of their host countries so much so that going back home becomes less attractive. Nigerians, for example, habitually point to the lack of basic infrastructure, poor personal and human security, and a sickening and corrupt political system. To be sure, there are other discouraging and encouraging factors, but mostly, the aforesaid accounts for why most exiles remain in North America and European countries.
Whether one knows it or not, acknowledges it or not, living in exile is horrible. It is one of the most painful of all human experiences. The pain and the anguish is less for most who vacated in their pre-teenage years. For them, acculturation and assimilation is much easier. With time, their memory of the old country fades; cultural chips become less powerful or insignificant; and ties to friends and family may become loose or non-existent. Essentially, therefore, they lose one country and gain another; lose one set of identity and gain another. They transfer their love and loyalty to their new country. For most of these early exiles, they will know one country and one country only. This is generally the case and the pattern unless of course a mother or a father or an influential relative kept the flame and the desire for the old country alive.
The United States, with which I am most familiar, is home to millions of African immigrants. Data may show that the US now houses more Africans than Western and Eastern Europe combined. For a while, Europe - especially Britain, France, Portugal, Belgium and Germany - was the preferred destination for Africans, particularly because of their colonial relationship. In other words, until recent years, colonial Europe was the port of call for Africans. Today, the whole world is present in the US: Every language and culture and nationality is present here. They are present here for different reasons. But above all else, people come here for the freedom, the opportunity and the option to live in manners that are guaranteed by US law and customs.
However, sooner or later, immigrants - African immigrants, who this essay is about - will come to realise that the longer one stays in this country, the deeper the pain and the agony. They may have big cars and big homes; they may have beautiful wives and successful children; and they may also have investment portfolios that are the envy of most. Yet, most will and do feel empty. Every so often, they travel to the motherland to see friends and family. Still they feel empty. Most act and feel like tourists in their own father's land (as most can only spend two to four weeks at a stretch before returning to the grind and their predictable lifestyle). There are those whose eyes swell (with tears) at the thought of returning to Oyinboland. It can be lonely here. And they know it.
If you were a 'nobody' before coming to the US, and if you are still a 'nobody' after all these years, the ache and the grief may not be much. What may matter to you is that you are now a success compared to your previous life. But if you were 'somebody' before your departure, and you are still a big deal here, you are more likely to feel the pain. Even if you were a 'nobody' in your previous life, but once you become 'somebody' here, you begin to, after a while, feel a gradual pain - the type of pain that get more discomforting and unbearable as time passes. First the pain and then the anguish, followed by a sense of uselessness and sadness. If left unchecked, acute sense of loss and actual depression may set in.
An accomplished Nigerian author and teacher once told me: "Most of the professors and successful African immigrants you see in this country are sad and depressed... especially the professors.. . most are angry, and are not respected by their non-Black peers.' From his vantage point, 'most of these Africans are better read and smarter than most of their counterparts, but they generally are saddled with supporting or subservient roles; they have to defer to their non-black colleagues.' To make matters worse, 'even their students complain about their accent and mannerism, and assume they must be less qualified than other professors, especially the whites.'
Faced with such a situation, 'they are angry at their home government, angry at their colleagues, angry at their students and subordinates, and are also angry at themselves.' But within their enclaves and between their own people, 'the African professors are the most pompous, most condescending and most irritating. Most cannot explain simple concepts or simple phenomenon without resorting to antiquated language... they have the need to impress.'
Indeed, the western world - and increasingly, South African universities - are filled with Nigerian and Ghanaian professors. I can't think of a colleges or university, anywhere in the United States, without at least two Nigerian and or Ghanaian teachers or administrators. I also doubt if there is a medical establishment, anywhere in the UK, Canada and the United States, without Nigerian and Ghanaian doctors and nurses.
In all these places and beyond, I doubt if the majority of these Africans truly enjoy being there. The financial compensation is good, but my thinking is that they would rather be home: Helping their own people and helping to advance their own countries. But here they are - needed primarily for their skills and services; needed just to help develop and advance a country that is truly not theirs. How terrible it must feel to be just a hired hand.
If you are a South African, your lot in life may be a lot better. The same goes for those from Botswana, Malawi, Zambia, and a few other countries. In the West African sub-region, Ghana is the newest darling, home to quarter of a million or so Nigerians. If you are a Nigerian then you know you are violated. Twice over!
First, you are violated by a government that is utterly incompetent, utterly corrupt, and utterly wayward. You have a government, a succession of governments, which take pleasure in exploiting and brutalising their citizens. And then you have a citizenry that is too scared and falsely religious to fight back. And so they lie there and take it.
Second, it is not a good time to be a Nigerian anywhere in the world. It has not been a good time to be a Nigerian anytime in the last two decades or so. The world knows you have a well-endowed country that is badly run; the world knows about your soiled reputation (even though it is highly exaggerated and undeserved); and the world also knows you are scared to return home. For more than 30 years, to be a Nigerian was to be respected; in the last 20, it has become a hindrance. So, as an immigrant or as an exile, you feel it and you know it. How painful to know that people deal and interact with you from the other end of a long rope.
To be an African immigrant in the West or anywhere else is not easy. Within the international political and economic system, Africa is an afterthought; socially and culturally, Africa is also an afterthought. And even at the individual level, most non-blacks do not think much of the African. Sometimes one gets the feeling that non-blacks think of Africans as incapable of complex task; a people incapable of governing themselves without generous assistance from the Western world.
Such attitude and conviction, whether state or unstated, is condemnable. Even so, there are times when one surveys the continent and the various governments therein and wonder if, if, if - oh well, just take a look at Nigeria and its leaders (and leadership) for the last 30 or so years. If you are educated, enlightened, polished, decent, and with renaissance thinking and living in the West, is that the kind of country and condition you want to return to?
In the end though, if you have been living in the West for much of your productive life, and you are now clocking 55, 60 or 65 and with the urge to return home, you are likely to have a headache or develop insomnia for a few days or weeks. One might even have panic attacks. Long before this period, one may have planned it all out. One may have methodically planned it all out, in which case the transition - assuming home is where one wants to spend the fourth quarter of one's life - is as smooth as possible.
However, whether planned or not, several years of exile have a way of making one a stranger in one's village or community. How well and for how long you've planned the transition may determine your place and comfort in your new environment. Planned or not, smooth or not, you will, every now and then, get your bearings wrong, your traction will be shaky, your worldview out of sync, some of your mannerisms alien, and your thought pattern criss-crossed. This is the price you must pay for being in exile.
Sabella Abbide is a public intellectual who has written and commented extensively on African affairs. He is currently based in Washington D.C.
http://www.anjnews. com/node/ 1259
By Sabella Ogbobode Abidde
The vast majority of Sub-Saharan Africans who live outside of the continent are in exile. For these Africans, their condition may either be self-imposed or forced by the prevailing conditions in the continent. And the general conditions in the continent are not healthy or enriching, or conducive to personal growth and happiness.
Although conditions differ from one country to another, by and large what we have is a continent where a sizeable number of the people - especially those between the ages of 18 and 45 - cannot wait to go into exile. They cannot wait to get out of their respective countries. Nigeria is an archetypal example of a country where, if embassies assured travel visas, 70 per cent or more of the college students will leave of their own volition.
The majority of those in exile either have nothing substantial to return home to, or their own governments do not want them back. We also see that in some cases, the political, economic, social and cultural space is not large or absorbent enough to accommodate exiles; in other cases, some exiles get blinded by the security, comfort and predictability of their host countries so much so that going back home becomes less attractive. Nigerians, for example, habitually point to the lack of basic infrastructure, poor personal and human security, and a sickening and corrupt political system. To be sure, there are other discouraging and encouraging factors, but mostly, the aforesaid accounts for why most exiles remain in North America and European countries.
Whether one knows it or not, acknowledges it or not, living in exile is horrible. It is one of the most painful of all human experiences. The pain and the anguish is less for most who vacated in their pre-teenage years. For them, acculturation and assimilation is much easier. With time, their memory of the old country fades; cultural chips become less powerful or insignificant; and ties to friends and family may become loose or non-existent. Essentially, therefore, they lose one country and gain another; lose one set of identity and gain another. They transfer their love and loyalty to their new country. For most of these early exiles, they will know one country and one country only. This is generally the case and the pattern unless of course a mother or a father or an influential relative kept the flame and the desire for the old country alive.
The United States, with which I am most familiar, is home to millions of African immigrants. Data may show that the US now houses more Africans than Western and Eastern Europe combined. For a while, Europe - especially Britain, France, Portugal, Belgium and Germany - was the preferred destination for Africans, particularly because of their colonial relationship. In other words, until recent years, colonial Europe was the port of call for Africans. Today, the whole world is present in the US: Every language and culture and nationality is present here. They are present here for different reasons. But above all else, people come here for the freedom, the opportunity and the option to live in manners that are guaranteed by US law and customs.
However, sooner or later, immigrants - African immigrants, who this essay is about - will come to realise that the longer one stays in this country, the deeper the pain and the agony. They may have big cars and big homes; they may have beautiful wives and successful children; and they may also have investment portfolios that are the envy of most. Yet, most will and do feel empty. Every so often, they travel to the motherland to see friends and family. Still they feel empty. Most act and feel like tourists in their own father's land (as most can only spend two to four weeks at a stretch before returning to the grind and their predictable lifestyle). There are those whose eyes swell (with tears) at the thought of returning to Oyinboland. It can be lonely here. And they know it.
If you were a 'nobody' before coming to the US, and if you are still a 'nobody' after all these years, the ache and the grief may not be much. What may matter to you is that you are now a success compared to your previous life. But if you were 'somebody' before your departure, and you are still a big deal here, you are more likely to feel the pain. Even if you were a 'nobody' in your previous life, but once you become 'somebody' here, you begin to, after a while, feel a gradual pain - the type of pain that get more discomforting and unbearable as time passes. First the pain and then the anguish, followed by a sense of uselessness and sadness. If left unchecked, acute sense of loss and actual depression may set in.
An accomplished Nigerian author and teacher once told me: "Most of the professors and successful African immigrants you see in this country are sad and depressed... especially the professors.. . most are angry, and are not respected by their non-Black peers.' From his vantage point, 'most of these Africans are better read and smarter than most of their counterparts, but they generally are saddled with supporting or subservient roles; they have to defer to their non-black colleagues.' To make matters worse, 'even their students complain about their accent and mannerism, and assume they must be less qualified than other professors, especially the whites.'
Faced with such a situation, 'they are angry at their home government, angry at their colleagues, angry at their students and subordinates, and are also angry at themselves.' But within their enclaves and between their own people, 'the African professors are the most pompous, most condescending and most irritating. Most cannot explain simple concepts or simple phenomenon without resorting to antiquated language... they have the need to impress.'
Indeed, the western world - and increasingly, South African universities - are filled with Nigerian and Ghanaian professors. I can't think of a colleges or university, anywhere in the United States, without at least two Nigerian and or Ghanaian teachers or administrators. I also doubt if there is a medical establishment, anywhere in the UK, Canada and the United States, without Nigerian and Ghanaian doctors and nurses.
In all these places and beyond, I doubt if the majority of these Africans truly enjoy being there. The financial compensation is good, but my thinking is that they would rather be home: Helping their own people and helping to advance their own countries. But here they are - needed primarily for their skills and services; needed just to help develop and advance a country that is truly not theirs. How terrible it must feel to be just a hired hand.
If you are a South African, your lot in life may be a lot better. The same goes for those from Botswana, Malawi, Zambia, and a few other countries. In the West African sub-region, Ghana is the newest darling, home to quarter of a million or so Nigerians. If you are a Nigerian then you know you are violated. Twice over!
First, you are violated by a government that is utterly incompetent, utterly corrupt, and utterly wayward. You have a government, a succession of governments, which take pleasure in exploiting and brutalising their citizens. And then you have a citizenry that is too scared and falsely religious to fight back. And so they lie there and take it.
Second, it is not a good time to be a Nigerian anywhere in the world. It has not been a good time to be a Nigerian anytime in the last two decades or so. The world knows you have a well-endowed country that is badly run; the world knows about your soiled reputation (even though it is highly exaggerated and undeserved); and the world also knows you are scared to return home. For more than 30 years, to be a Nigerian was to be respected; in the last 20, it has become a hindrance. So, as an immigrant or as an exile, you feel it and you know it. How painful to know that people deal and interact with you from the other end of a long rope.
To be an African immigrant in the West or anywhere else is not easy. Within the international political and economic system, Africa is an afterthought; socially and culturally, Africa is also an afterthought. And even at the individual level, most non-blacks do not think much of the African. Sometimes one gets the feeling that non-blacks think of Africans as incapable of complex task; a people incapable of governing themselves without generous assistance from the Western world.
Such attitude and conviction, whether state or unstated, is condemnable. Even so, there are times when one surveys the continent and the various governments therein and wonder if, if, if - oh well, just take a look at Nigeria and its leaders (and leadership) for the last 30 or so years. If you are educated, enlightened, polished, decent, and with renaissance thinking and living in the West, is that the kind of country and condition you want to return to?
In the end though, if you have been living in the West for much of your productive life, and you are now clocking 55, 60 or 65 and with the urge to return home, you are likely to have a headache or develop insomnia for a few days or weeks. One might even have panic attacks. Long before this period, one may have planned it all out. One may have methodically planned it all out, in which case the transition - assuming home is where one wants to spend the fourth quarter of one's life - is as smooth as possible.
However, whether planned or not, several years of exile have a way of making one a stranger in one's village or community. How well and for how long you've planned the transition may determine your place and comfort in your new environment. Planned or not, smooth or not, you will, every now and then, get your bearings wrong, your traction will be shaky, your worldview out of sync, some of your mannerisms alien, and your thought pattern criss-crossed. This is the price you must pay for being in exile.
Sabella Abbide is a public intellectual who has written and commented extensively on African affairs. He is currently based in Washington D.C.
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