WE CAN’T LET THIS DREAM DIE
By: Losike Albert Koteen
The African youth has in time immemorial written their history. When Kwame Nkuruma, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere among other leaders made an attempt to revolutionize Africa, they were mostly labeled power hungry and visionless Africans. Others had attempts on their life including the 1954 on the case of Nasser. When these movements made Africans proud, the myopic leaders led the congratulatory messages. From this we learned that communities we live in are happy on success without knowing the pain associated with success. We further learnt that nobody without a vision like Nasser will never join Nasser in his vision. We witnessed the death of Patrice Lumumba among other youthful leaders then.
It’s worth noting that after some period of time, Africans were lied to by the colonists to subvert the sovereignty of our culture, Ubuntu and religion, in the name of democracy. This has been used as a tool to plant hatred among the communities. It goes without saying that the bloodshed we have witnessed through political massacres is way too much than those loved ones lost in natural calamities globally. What does this mean, do we Africans hate each other, or a few individuals are greed? The answer is yes, some of our leaders are greedy. Paying through blood of his brother to buy a morsel for the day and no we don’t hate each other, it’s only that a few individuals have misused the word democracy to serve some inferior powers’ interests.
This status quo has taken our resources and time and for decades we lost the direction. We have been fought hard on both sides by our natives, those, who are supposed to teach us have fought us. Those who are supposed to hold our hands have chopped them. Those who were supposed to rescue us dropped us at the sea. So where are we and why must we now act decisively? The nations are craving for economic stability, but the youths have been robbed of their value. This pose a leadership lacuna. When the old is gone, a void is created, the cold war warrior finds an opportunity to infiltrate and the Youths and women on the receiving end. This cycle has been too much, no inauguration of governments anywhere within Africa without bloodshed. Today we are facing the east verse the west war in Sudan, those perpetrators are alive, and not lost property nor loved ones but the victim are the poor Sudanese.
I say it’s time to act, African youths arise its time. Let’s salvage our motherland for our future. Yes, we have been pressed on both sides but not crushed. Ooh yes, we have been hard hit bit not killed. Awake African Youths lets go all the way to realize the wonderful dream by Nasser. Let’s go it for our children, let’s go for our mothers. Africa is our home and it’s our business. WE are indebted to him. For Nasser's tenure as Egypt's leader heralded a new period of modernization and socialist reform in Egypt, along with a staunch advocacy of pan-Arab nationalism (including a short-lived union with Syria) and developing world solidarity. WE CAN’T LET THIS DREAM DIE.
(Photo: The participants in the Nasser Leadership Fellowship group photo during their visit to the Museum of the Leader Gamal Abdel Nasser 2019)
