Long time no see, and other issues here and there
Posted by By Akogun Akomolafe at 23 September, at 15 : 34 PM Print
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Hey, Femi, what happened to you? It has been a long, long time. Where have you been?
Simmer down, my friend. Why all the gushing enthusiasm?
Sometimes, you are something else, Femi. Do you that?
Do I know what?
Is it a crime to have missed you? I know that I disagree with your ultra-radical views, but I will hate to see you give it up. As Mr. Voltaire said: I might disagree with what you write, but I will defend to death your right to write them.
What are you talking about, my friend? Why the hackneyed quotation from a long dead philosopher, even a rabidly racist one like Monsieur Voltaire?
I said I have missed you and your column.
Hmmmm.
Is that all you got to say. Where have been?
Here and there.
You are surely in a very fine mood today.
Please, in what mood I am supposed to be, ehn? Do you know the last time we had electricity? Do you know how many of my neighbor have died of cholera? Do you know how many of my comrades now sleep in the open, at the mercy of the elements, because their houses have been washed away by the unseasonal rainfall? Do you….
Simmer down, Femi. I am not responsible for all those personal calamities of yours. Sorry. But I only enquire about your health, and look where you have turned the whole thing.
You said I was in fine mood…
I was been sarcastic…
Wait there! Sarcastic or literal, I am giving it to you the way I see it. Darn, in what mood am I supposed to be in this blessed republic of 57 years, where citizens still go without electricity?
Do you blame our government, then?
Whom am I to blame?
Be charitable, Femi, be charitable. They said the Nigerians have stopped the supply gas. Do you expect our government to shit gas, if you will excuse my Italian?
You! Italian? I thought it was French! But, seriously, when do we get it into our heads in this republic to learn to stop the blame game that has not got anywhere for close to sixty years? Tchaah. Today, it is Nigerians who stopped gas that stop us from generating and distributing electricity. Yesterday, it was low-water at Akosombo. When do we stop the blame-game? The managers of our utilities have increased tariffs more time than one care to count. And every time, the promise was that they will up their ante and improve quality of their services. Each and every time they have failed to deliver. They continue to screw us royally. And nauseatingly, we have citizens like you going around town trumpeting their lame excuses. For crying out loud, generating and distributing electricity is no longer rocket science. It is considered basic in most countries where people dare to challenge their brains.
Now, you are getting personal, Femi. It is not fair.
Personal or industrial, I no longer care. What is not fair is for people to continue to swindle us and sell us down the drain. We really look like the world’s champion morons when we make those types of lame excuses. Have our power managers not heard of the word planning? What was their fall-black plan if the Nigerians fail us? How did we end up putting all our eggs in one basket? It is only a complete idiot that fail to have Plans A, B and C. By definition, things can and do go wrong. That is why every sane person has contingency plans. What do we have here in Ghana Incorporation? Nothing. As soon as something goes belly-up, we throw up our hands like helpless children. And our officials will rush to the media with ultra-lame excuses. What happened to Bui Dam which, few months ago, was touted as the panacea to our energy crises? What happened to all the lofty promises to banish energy crises from Ghana? What happened to Mr. President’s declaration to have solved the energy crises? What baffles the mind greatly is that we seem blissfully unaware of the incalculable damage we do to the other sectors of the economy by the erratic power supply. We have few industries to begin with, now we cannot supply them with electricity. They now have to buy diesel and other expensive fuel. Of course, simple economics dictate that their cost of production will shot up astronomically. Many of them have simply close shop adding to our high unemployment rate. It is sad, really. Shame alone should compel us to tackle and solve this electricity crisis once and for all. Erratic power supply is not a luxury we can afford in this modern, competitive world. We cannot continue to shot ourselves in the head by attempting to woo investors, yet cannot provide the most basic of the necessary infrastructures that will attract them.
All those could be true, Femi. I don’t doubt you. But there are other issues happenings in the land. You can write about, for example, the landslide victory chalked by Nana Akuffo-Addo at the special congress of his party. It was unprecedented in the annals….
You are really something. I have written my views on what I think of the crappy political system we operate, which gets people like you so giddy with excitement. What difference would it make which personality or political party wins power, so long as we maintain the same loathsome neo-liberal type of system?
So, you don’t think that Nana Akuffo-Addo will make a difference?
I try as much as possible to err on the side of caution. In this age and time, there is no reason why those that want to rule us cannot assemble competent experts to help them prepare quality position papers on how they intend to solve our problem. I say it is time we citizens demand from those that want to rule us evidence of their having taken time to study the problems they want to solve. There is no reason why, in this age of internet and smartphones, I cannot go to a presidential candidate’s website and access his ideas and plans for me, complete with facts and figures. There is no reason for citizens to continue to be wowed by canned party manifestoes, which are mostly cut and paste jobs. It is said that a people gets the type of government they deserved. So long as we do not make it our business to be involved in how we are governed, and make it our business to take our rulers to task, so long shall we continue to be badly ruled.
So, you also doubt Nana Akuffo-Addo?
You paa! Now, you get personal. I have never met him for me to adjudge him. Those I held in the highest esteem who have met him vouch for his competence and personal integrity. That is good enough for me. All I would like for him to do is flesh out for us details of how he intends to run the affairs of this country and make us join the rest of humanity. He should place his ideas in the public domain, so that we can make informed choice. That should not be too difficult for him to do.
Nostalgia 101: It sounds like a huge joke today, but the headline of the Daily Dispatch of 16th September, 2011 reads: Ghana’s Economy is one of the Fastest Growing ones in 2011 – MoFEP.
That surely sounds like some cruel jokes in these times of gnashing of teeth.
PS: Why is it that it takes forever and a half to get an interview with our officials, and impossible to get one without our president, yet they give easy access to foreign media?
PPS: President Mahama in a recent interview with the BBC said we should remember that Cuba has better health infrastructure than African countries.
I certainly hope that Mr. President is not of the opinion that Cuba’s highly-rated social services fell from the sky.
It is said that you reap what you so.
While our officials cannot wait to lavish the loans, grants, dash and other stuffs they receive on presidential palaces, expensive 4-wheel jeeps and presidential jets, Cuban officials travel around in cars from the 1950s. They prudently invest in their human resources – world-class educational and health facilities, among others.
The results are there for all to see.
Tiny Cuba (about 12 million people) sent her well-trained troops to win our war against apartheid for us. Cuban doctors and health specialists are providing us with health services.
PPPS: So, our comical officials are busy wasting precious time/money and resources debating whether a current or past Finance Minister should lead talk with IMF.
Tchaah!
Like it matters!!!!
If our officials can sign away our oil patrimony at 10/90 in favour of oil companies, IMF will have them for snack.
Nothing will happen at this talk except that we gonna be screwed left, right, center, doggie-style, missionary-position and from every orifice.
Mark my word.
PPPPS: So, our FRIENDS in the West helped us to dismantle the 400 plus manufacturing and service companies Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah set up.
They then borrowed us to import all our domestic and industrial needs from them. Fifty or so years ago, we manufactured virtually everything we consume in this blessed land of ours, today we have been successfully turned into foreign-import consumer junkies.
May the Ancestors save us from friends like these!
PPPPPS: Next time you think of rolling out the big drums in celebration of Ghana’s INDEPENDENCE, try and take a stroll at the Osu Highway. It is easily the most expensive street in Ghana, yet none of the shops belong to a Ghanaian.
That tells you how truly independent we are!
About the Author
Femi Akomolafe is a passionate Pan-Africanist. A columnist for the Accra-based Daily Dispatch newspaper and Correspondent for the New African magazine. Femi lives in both Europe and Africa, and writes regularly on Africa-related issues for various newspapers and magazines.
Femi was the producer of the FOCUS ON AFRICANS TV Interview programme for the MultiTV Station.
He is also the CEO of Alaye Dot Biz Limited Dot Biz, a Kasoa-based Multimedia organisation that specialises in Audio and Video Production. He loves to shoot and edit video documentaries.
His highly-acclaimed books (“Africa: Destroyed by the gods,” “Africa: It shall be well,” “18 African Fables & Moonlight Stories” and “Ghana: Basic Facts + More”) are now available for sales at the following bookshops/offices:
- Freedom Bookshop, near Apollo Theatre, Accra.
- The Daily Dispatch Office, Labone – Accra
- WEB Dubois Pan-African Centre, Accra
- Ghana Writers Association office, PAWA House, Roman Ridge, Accra.
- African Kitchen in Amsterdam Bijlmer
Where to buy them online:
On Lulu Books:
18 African Fables & Moonlight Stories https://goo.gl/Skohtn
Ghana: Basic Facts + More: https://goo.gl/73ni99
Africa: Destroyed by the gods: https://goo.gl/HHmFfr
Africa: It shall be well: https://goo.gl/KIMcIm
Africa: it shall be well
on Kindle books: https://www.createspace.com/4820404
on Amazon books: http://goo.gl/QeFxbl
on Lulu Books: https://goo.gl/SQeoKD
Africa: Destroyed by the gods
on Kindle books: https://www.createspace.com/4811974
on Amazon books: http://goo.gl/1z97ND
on Lulu Books: http://goo.gl/KIMcIm
My Lulu Books page: http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/FemiAkomolafe
Get free promotional materials here:
- Africa: it shall be well: http://alaye.biz/africa-it-shall-be-well-introduction-in-pdf/
A FREE Chapter of ‘Africa: It shall be well’ could be downloaded here: http://alaye.biz/africa-it-shall-be-well-a-free-chapter/
- Africa: Destroyed by the gods (How religiosity destroyed Africa) http://alaye.biz/africa-destroyed-by-the-gods-introduction/
A FREE Chapter of ‘Africa: Destroyed by the gods’ could be downloaded here: http://alaye.biz/africa-destroyed-by-the-gods-free-chapter/
Contact Femi:
Femi’s Blog: www.alaye.biz/category/blog
Website: www.alaye.biz
Femi on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/author/femiakomolafe
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ekitiparapo
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/alayeclearsound;
Gmail+: https://plus.google.com/112798710915807967908;
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/femiakomolafe
Email: fakomolafe@gmail.com
Kindly help me share the books’ links with your friends and, grin, please purchase your copies.
Comradely,
Femi Akomolafe
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