AFRICA AND THE ‘ANIMAL FARM’ SCENARIO

Are Africans Really Independent?

I will never forget George Orwell’s book titled Animal Farm because the message it contains never seem to go out of season. In the novel; Animal Farm, George Orwell exposed a lot about stages of slavery like: how common people are being exploited, People’s awareness of enslavement and their desire to be free, and when that freedom is achieved, their experience of the real slavery in a romantic like setting, etc. People who read that book must have understood it as animal folk tale, cartoon, battle between animals and humans, etc.; but I saw Africa in that novel. Almost all the countries in Africa were colonized by those stronger than them. On the grounds of International Relations, Africans were exploited and African treasures were looted to countries mightier than it. For the blood sheds, the pain and bitterness they felt, the toiling in vain, and all they went through in the hands of their slave masters, Africans fought for their freedom and they have all achieved that freedom. At Independence, every African country celebrated their independence and still celebrates same on yearly basis as a memorial for their day of freedom. The question now is: Are Africans really free?

Buy The Truth And Sell It Not

Achieving independence is a different thing from being free. It is certain that man can never be free because we are either serving people or being served. But there is a level of freedom man need to attain in order to be happy. Ignorance is the problem of Africans. Africans are not physically lazy but they are mentally lazy. Africans don’t reason. Africans don’t seem to connect different phenomena to draw a reasonable conclusion that will guide them in their decisions. In the novel Animal Farm, The animals achieved the freedom they fought for and made simple rules of equality among themselves to guide them; but a greedy and selfish Napoleon arose among them and deceived them into believing what they know is wrong but are not sure. Napoleon gradually deceived or brain washed the rest of the animals until they chased out the leader who meant well for them. Napoleon also gradually changed their freedom laws to laws that will enslave them the more. Yet, even though they know the truth, they kept playing the ignorant fools. Africans are independent from their colonial masters but are still rooted deep in slavery.

Why Sell Your Birthright?

During elections, Africans prefer to vote in the person who shares money, rice, etc that lasts for a while than that person with humanitarian values and principles. African attitude to voting has kept so many good leaders away from the political field. We claim to be independent yet, we remain slaves to our greedy and selfish leaders; who have copied everything they said is not right with our colonial masters and even added their own capitalist attributes. Little wonder, all African countries have issues in their governance structure.

Freedom For Slavery

This is not the Africa that David Diop envisaged when he wrote the poem ‘Africa My Africa’. Then, he saw Africa as a continent suffering in obedience to her colonial masters. He saw African continent as a strong and mighty tree that will grow someday to take shield under itself. He never expected an Africa that will turn back to stand against her progress after her great war of defense. Unknown to David Diop, that freedom he so much dreamt of has ushered in another era of slavery; a modernized and grammatical form of slavery coated by ‘the more you look, the less you see apparel’, whereby the masses have become victims to political slave masters and MMM pastors. Africans lost hope in their leaders and resorted to church and prayers; but instead of finding refuge in the building called church, they are been exploited the more because the so called men of God or pastors have turned the church buildings to MMM offices; no thanks to ignorance and inability to reason that has continued to enslave the Africans, hence, she has continued to exchange her freedom for a different level of slavery.

Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis

Till date, all most all the African countries are still underdeveloped because of bad governance and self imposed slavery. According to Sun Newspaper of December 15, there is war going on in Cameroon and the Cameroonians are fleeing from their country. The Sun Newspaper reported that it began last year as peaceful protests by Anglophone activists against Cameroon’s Francophone-dominated elite, when the former perceived a sign of marginalization by the later. Consequently, Sun Newspaper noted that the English speakers make up less than a fifth of the population of Cameroon, concentrated in former British territory near the Nigerian border that was joined to the French-speaking Republic of Cameroon the year after its independence in 1960 and that French speakers have dominated the country’s politics since.

Wake Up Africa

From the ongoing in Cameroon, it is clear that even though Africans celebrate independence, she has not really gained total freedom from her colonial masters. When will Africans be free from Anglophone and francophone interference in her governance? When will she concentrate and focus on her development, making do with her own culture, resources and manpower? When will Africans get rid of her mental clumsiness and wake up to build her continent? Every humiliating step we take will always land us in the territory of slave masters. If Libyans can treat Nigerians as slaves and if South Africans treat the rest of Africans as outcasts, where else will Africans be free? Africans need to take a step of freedom and be free, as she is the one enslaving herself with the chains of ignorance, greed and selfishness. She needs to learn to be free. She needs to equip herself mentally to take the right decision that will guarantee her freedom. Then, she will be valued and respected anywhere in the world.

Written by Olive Chinyere Amajuoyi

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