Africa Unity: A Call of the Hour

 

Before 1884 Africa was a one continental country. One would travel from Cape to Cairo or Dakar to a Dar withouth any requirement of possessing the so called passport. But when colonilists arrived, they divided Africa into many segments known as countries we know today. Many Africans were divided to create animosity among them at the Berlin Conference of 1884-85. This division of Africa served two puporses. First, to see to it that every colonial master is laying a claim in particular area it says it was its.

Secondly, the demarcation of Africa aimed at weakening Africans in case of resistance as it later happened. Divide and rule as championed by Fredrick Lugard made it easier for colonizers to play Africans against one another. Divided Africans were easy to contain and rule not only during the colonial era but also thereafter as it proved to be. This can be seen in the ssecionist movements after independence. Refer to Biafra (Nigeria), Shifta (Kenya), Cassamance (Senegal) and Eritrea. This, if anything, weakened our post colonial regimes. All resulted from the fact that when colonizers were dividing Africa, they did not have any knowledge about its internal division that used to happen naturally. This is why some communities such as Masai, Fulani, Oromo, Somali and many more found themselves in more than one newly demarcated country.

as stated, Africa has suffered from this division since colonial and post colonial times. Many African countries incur huge expenses on their citizen in the quest of guarding these superimposed borders all over Africa. This is the essence of having armies big and small in all African countries. They aim at guarding their borders imposed by colonial masters so that their brethrens should not ‘invade’ them!  These artificially created countries spend big chunks of their budget to feed the do-nothing armies.

Ironically, the said armies are there to ‘repel and confront’ foreign enemies who happen to be their neighbours and brothers and sisters. Almost in many African countries the budgets of the ministries of defense used to be big and a top secret for the national security.

 

Armies do not use toy to ‘defend their countries’. They use weapons which cost a hell of money whether gotten by means of smuggling or being bought legally.  

So too, African countries spend millions of dollar on printing passports annually. Just ask yourself as to how much Africa loses annually in serving this superimposed goof? How much do African countries lose for not allowing our people from our neighboring countries to do business with us? How much elections have already swallowed and will scoop from Africa shall Africa remain divided as it has always been since independence? How many African countries have already gone to war with their brothers and sisters just because they happen to find themselves in different colonial-created nation? Is this nationalism or irrationalism?

How many unnecessary tensions have Africa evidence from those between Rwanda and DRC, Ethiopia and Eritrea, Somalia and Kenya, Cameroun and Nigeria etc? How much is spent on printing Identity cards in various African colonial demarcated countries?

Fake nationalism goes back to   the Peace of Westphalia treat that was not ratified by any African country.  How could they while it was entered before their birth? This treat states that every country must respect the boundaries of other countries. General recognition of the exclusive sovereignty of each party over its lands, people, and agents abroad, and each and several responsibility for the warlike acts of any of its citizens or agents. Ironically, this treat was signed by imperial nations in 1648.  

Interestingly, almost all African rulers know that their major weakness emanates from this fake division that gave births to many fragmented and tiny states they rule. Again, they are not ready to reunify Africa by dedemarcating their colonial superimposed borders!  By doing this, whether intentionally or otherwise, African rulers end up being colonial agents or black colonialist themselves. Who cares if every rulers looks at his fat perks and artificial holiness? Who cares if at all most of them are visionless, greedy and myopia? This proves that Africa has nary been independent even though we tend to believe that we are independent. The United States of America is powerful not just because it houses genius people. It draws its power from the fact that it is the union of over fifty countries almost the same number of African countries.  Just imagine. if US were over fifty divided countries like Africa, how much money it would have been losing to such abracadabras like armies, weapons, passports, IDs, running shoddy and corrupt governments and whatnot? If anything, time for dedemarcating Africa is now shall Africa want to be free and forge ahead.  Essentially what Africa is doing now is like trapping insects in a bag that will ultimately suffocate them. They will obviously end up spending their energy in destroying each other instead of dealing with you.

Source: The African Executive Magazine July 18, 2012.