What Is Wrong With Africa? Pt2

What is wrong with Africa?
Religion?

Before the advent of Colonialism, the African man had his own religion, he served and worshipped the Gods of his land and the Gods of his land in turn guided and protected him. He prayed for wisdom and direction from the Gods, while he did his work. He understood that he couldn't sit on his hands and let the Gods feed him. In fact, he goes out there to work and even bring some for the Gods as offerings.
The contemporary African man, having worn the garments of new religions, the religions of the slave masters and the colonialists thinks everything starts and ends with prayers. While the rest of the world is making breakthroughs in science, politics, innovations, the majority of the countries in Africa can't boast of steady electricity and pipe-borne water - in 2021. While the rest of the world is building industries and improving their economies in leaps and bounds, African countries are building the biggest church auditoriums where they go to pray to God for 3-course meal and for good jobs.
Some of the world’s richest pastors are from Africa, in fact, make it 4 out of the top 5 richest. Very few known billionaire businessmen and Tech CEOs own private jets, but many African pastors own private jets, some of them even own more than one.
Instead of facing his problems head-on and coming up with an objective solution, the average African, marinating in God's word, would rather go to church and pray.


What is wrong with Africa
Corruption?
This should be somewhere at the top of the list, but so should the other points I have outlined, which goes to show that each of the problems holding Africa back has been firmly rooted, you can hardly talk about one being better or worse than the other.
The politics and it's many administrative follow-ups we have and experience in Africa is all about personal interest first, personal interest second then the people's interest can come at a distant third.
The institutions of Government in many African countries are so weak it is laughable. But don't think for one second that they are weak as a fall out consequence of the other problems mentioned here, they are weak because they have been made so intentionally, strategically to make sure those in power can have their way as they please. How could a state governor handpick his son-in-law as his chief of staff without prior administrative experience? Then later make him a commissioner in one of the state's parastatal? In the same tenure, this governor formed a commission that wasn't formerly in existence and put his daughter in charge, and this is supposed to be a democratic system of government with checks and balances?

Why should there be a law that says a sitting governor cannot be investigated for corruption and embezzlement as long as he is in office? A sitting governor in Nigeria was caught on camera receiving contract kickbacks from contractors he awarded contracts to. He was never investigated and he is still a governor.

For a continent whose countries keep begging for loans and handouts from international bodies and other advanced nations, the cost of running their respective government is sometimes more expensive than the government of those other countries giving them loans.
Imagine Nigeria, a country currently in recession earmarking $7.5 Million for feeding and travels for the president and his vice in 2021. What the hell are they going to be eating? Where the hell are they travelling to?
You see my point? This ridiculous amount has been approved by the senate, in fact, the senate has approved the same amount every year for the president and his vice in the past 5 years for their travels and food. With their bogus salary and allowances, can they not at least cut some kind of cost here?
The police are strategically underfunded and overworked so they can be used at will by the political elite. Imagine a police officer paid with taxpayers money being used as a willing tool to oppress the taxpayers, because he doesn't earn enough through salary so doing what "Oga" asks is a sure way of earning ten times his salary.

Africa is a curse upon itself. The very resources that should be the reason for our growth happen to be the reasons for our backwardness.

What is wrong with Africa?
Brain Drain

Finally, a true consequence of all the ineptitude and the clusterf**k of the African leadership – brain drain. I think what gets on my nerve the most about what is going on in Africa is, the continent has a very high rate of a youthful population, who have embraced the modern ways of doing things and are eager to step up and take care of things, but the old generation keeps stringing them along the old fruitless ways.

Africa is blessed with some of the best minds in the tech industry, the health industry and other booming industries dominated by Tech Savy youths, and since the environment is nowhere conducive for them to show what they can do, to really express themselves and showcase their talents, these young folks emigrate to other countries and they are accepted with open arms.

African countries are gradually losing their best potentials in human resources to Europe and The Americas, who have much better plans and strategy for capacity building and are willing to accommodate these talents.

Is there good news in sight? At what point are things going to change? With the last point I made with brain drain, I am afraid, there might not be an end in sight to what is going in Africa.

The first point, which is the effects of slavery and colonization, is sad and regrettable but how long are we going to continue using that point as a reference to why we are still as we are?

Africa has all the tools to be anything it wants to be, and sadly it has chosen to be mediocre and until the leadership of Africa realizes the potential the continent holds and sits up and put their respective countries first, then nothing is going to change.

What is wrong with Africa? Leadership is what is wrong with Africa, Africa is what is wrong with Africa.